Favorite wilderness

Fifty years ago, in 1964, Congress passed the Wilderness Act. (Yes, in those days they actually got something done!) The US Forest Service is hoping to make a big deal out of this, and we hope they are successful. After all, this act is what has allowed us to hike for days on end through the Sierra Nevada without crossing a road, seeing a power line, or hearing the noise of chain saws or cars.



And as a way to thank them, I'd like to suggest that we each offer up our favorite wilderness area. Ours is Emigrant Wilderness, just north of Yosemite, and just a half-hour from our cabin. It has a lot in common with the National Park, including that amazing granite, but without so many people---and a lot easier permits!



What's yours?

My favorite is the Eagle Cap wilderness in NE Oregon.

It is Oregon's 2nd largest wilderness, so there's lots of trail miles to explore, with beautiful mountains, meadows, forests, lakes and waterways. It is a long drive from any population center, so it is somewhat protected from overuse by its remoteness. I keep going back there. I can't help myself. I'm in love.

I had a great time this past weekend in the Superstition Wilderness outside Phoenix, but the Sylvania Wilderness in the UP of Michigan holds a special place in my heart and is still my favorite.

Of course Sylvania is a lot like the Boundary Waters where I spent my honeymoon. I fondly remember floating in a canoe into a raft of loons at sunset and being serenaded late into the evening. Hmmm... do I have to choose only one?

The wilderness I use most often is Desolation, which is ironically named but the closest gen-you-wine alpine experience to my sea level abode. One can get away from crowds even there if one knows a few tricks.

Favorite would be a toss-up between John Muir and Alpine Lakes. Vastly different environments but both featuring gob-smackingly beautiful lakes and terrain.

Oh, my, no way I can make a choice here! I'll try for the top 5--subject to change the next time I visit another wilderness!

The Mt. Hood and Hatfield Wildernesses of Oregon are closest to home and therefore the ones I visit most frequently. The latter is in the Columbia River Gorge--it's great to know that much of the south side of the Gorge away from the highway is now protected.

The Bridger Wilderness on the west side of Wyoming's Wind River Range is a truly spectacular place to spend weeks.

Washington's Glacier Peak Wilderness.

OK, I need one more for the top 5, and that would be the Eagle Cap Wilderness in the Wallowas of NE Oregon.

I'd have to say the Golden Trout Wilderness, for those incredible gems of the trout world, and the fact it encompasses the Kern, one of the best wild trout rivers in the country.The natural bridge surrounded by giant western cedars with Volcano Creek flowing through it is one of my favorite places, ever. My home wilderness (10 miles away) is the Lye Brook Wilderness of Vermont. Lots of bear, moose, bobcat, fishers and some incredibly beautiful brook trout ponds. Some nice summits, too. By 1890 it had been 90% logged off. It's regrown nicely. The AT/LT traverses it. I can't imagine life without them. I'm very grateful for their existence.

This program really made a difference here and even though our wilderness areas are not as big or spectacular as those out west there are some that are still very much worthy of the designation.

I go to Hercules Glades a lot because it's so close but there are others nearby that are more scenic. The Leatherwood is probably my favorite here. It's one of the most rugged and I love exploring the waterfalls, cliffs, and caves there. All of the wilderness areas near the Buffalo River are great though, and well worth exploring.

Linville Gorge Wilderness. Although I'm dreaming of Shining Rock Wilderness this fall. Both of these wilderness areas are in western Carolina.

For me it is the Uintas. I can't recall the name of the wilderness area, so I will just say whatever one King's Peak is in.