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50 Years Later, the Incalculable Gift of the Wilderness Act

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I can’t remember the name of the creek, if I ever knew it. I had crossed Elk Pass the afternoon before, walking west through the monster wall of the Bitterroot Mountains, headed for Hunter Peak and the Selway River far below, in no particular hurry. The creek fell away in a series of cascades, with a pool beneath each drop, and each touch of the elkhair caddis fly brought up a piranha-like swarm of six-inch cutthroats, some of them leaping clear of the water to attack the fly in the air. The trick was to keep it away from them, to dap the fly and let the frenzy build, until from deeper in the pool the bigger trout began to stir and rise. Sometimes, if you timed it just right, the big fish--ten inches, 12 at the most--would slam the fly just as it touched the water, and go rocketing away, thrashing, their brilliant yellows and blacks and reds catching the muted late summer light that fell through the big firs. I brought them to hand, unhooked them and slid them back into the water.

The creek went on and on, pool after pool, fish after fish, as the afternoon waned to evening, and the dusk settled into the deep forest. I’d find some place to sleep, and tomorrow I’d follow the creek to the river, and walk downstream to Moose Creek, or the Salmon Hole. Or I might turn upriver and try to make it all the way to Magruder Crossing. Youth is reckless (I was in my late 20s), and we are all supposed to have a strict plan to follow in the backcountry, but I didn’t have a plan then; didn’t want one. This was the Bitterroot-Selway Wilderness, an undiluted dose of pure freedom that could be had for nothing more than self-reliance and the price of a good pair of boots.

Read more here: 50 Years Later, the Incalculable Gift of the Wilderness Act | Field & Stream

The Wilderness Act celebrates its 50th year this year. I don't know how many people on here have spent any nights miles from the closest road or signs of civilization in the backcountry in one of our federal wilderness areas, but if you haven't you really are missing out.
 
It's also worth pointing out that the concept of protected wilderness is an American invention just like National Parks.
 
I've done the Pacific Crest Trail back when it was only Mexico to Canada. I celebrate that we've put aside some places for future generations to explore for themselves what it's like to be around more god made than man made things.
 
I've done the Pacific Crest Trail back when it was only Mexico to Canada. I celebrate that we've put aside some places for future generations to explore for themselves what it's like to be around more god made than man made things.

That's cool. How long did it take you? My son and I have done backpacking trips to Paddy Creek Federal Wilderness in Missouri, Devil's Backbone Federal Wilderness in Missouri, Buffalo River Federal Wilderness in Arkansas, Indian Peaks Federal Wilderness in Colorado, Holy Cross Federal Wilderness in Colorado, and Bridger Federal Wilderness in Wyoming. We go on a week long backpacking trip every summer and try to get some weekenders in throughout the year. My son did his first one with me when he was 4 and he is 13 now. The most remote place we have been to thus far is in the Wind River Range in Wyoming. If you take off walking east to west across the Winds, you will walk nearly 40 miles before you get to another road on the other side and that is if you could actually walk it in a perfectly straight line. Its pretty cool knowing you are at least a couple of days walk from the nearest road.

Personally, I think that our wilderness in America is what defines us as a country more than anything else. Its unfortunate that so many people take it for granted these days and don't understand how hard previous generations had to work to for these areas to be protected.
 
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That all sounds so beautiful! The PCT took about 5-6 months of 25 mile a day hiking interspersed with some downtime to pick up our food boxes (you mail them ahead to Ranger stations along the trail). I would suggest skipping the first few hundred miles as they, even then, were not exactly a good advo for the trail. You have to drink out of the aquaduct and at night we'd get rousted from our tents by Border Patrol. Once you get to past that though the beauty begins.

My favorite is up here in Oregon, it's why I settled here. The Three Sisters. First time there I met a grandfather, father and son doing a three generation hike. The lakes and streams are full of trout and kokanee (land locked salmon). Heck had to send my fishing pole home because I wasn't eating down my pack.
 
I once spent a week in the Three Sisters Primitive Area. It's very pretty. No roads, no electronics, no machinery. We went in on horseback. I still have some of the obsidian arrow heads I found there as souvenirs. It is or at least was possible to get 100 miles from a road. True wilderness.
 
I once spent a week in the Three Sisters Primitive Area. It's very pretty. No roads, no electronics, no machinery. We went in on horseback. I still have some of the obsidian arrow heads I found there as souvenirs. It is or at least was possible to get 100 miles from a road. True wilderness.

It may have seemed that far from a road, but in terms of how the crow flies, the furthest one can get from a road in any direction in the lower 48 is a point in the Greater Yellowstone Region. At that point you can be at least 22 miles from a road in any direction (of course in some directions it would be far further).

The only places in the United States you can get more than 100 miles from a road is in the Alaskan Interior. Its kind of sad when you think about it. There is a married couple who are both wildlife ecologists that are actually doing a project where they travel to and document the conditions and ecology of the most remote point in each of the 50 states. You can read about it here:

Project Remote |

Of course that all said, a road can be simply a forest service fire trail and there are still some very remote places left in the lower 48, many of them are thankfully protected from any future development.
 
It may have seemed that far from a road, but in terms of how the crow flies, the furthest one can get from a road in any direction in the lower 48 is a point in the Greater Yellowstone Region. At that point you can be at least 22 miles from a road in any direction (of course in some directions it would be far further).

The only places in the United States you can get more than 100 miles from a road is in the Alaskan Interior. Its kind of sad when you think about it. There is a married couple who are both wildlife ecologists that are actually doing a project where they travel to and document the conditions and ecology of the most remote point in each of the 50 states. You can read about it here:

Project Remote |

Of course that all said, a road can be simply a forest service fire trail and there are still some very remote places left in the lower 48, many of them are thankfully protected from any future development.

That may be true today but I was in the Three Sisters Area in in the 1950's. No question that it was 100 miles from the nearest road.
 
I once spent a week in the Three Sisters Primitive Area. It's very pretty. No roads, no electronics, no machinery. We went in on horseback. I still have some of the obsidian arrow heads I found there as souvenirs. It is or at least was possible to get 100 miles from a road. True wilderness.

Used to be a debate about allowing horses in federal wilderness areas. Their poop introduces a number of plant species not native to the wilderness. In fact we were warned off of taking fresh tomatoes for the very same reason. I remember talking with Tom Winnett about it.
 
That may be true today but I was in the Three Sisters Area in in the 1950's. No question that it was 100 miles from the nearest road.

So cool! Did you happen to stop by Bagby hot springs while you were in the area?
 
So cool! Did you happen to stop by Bagby hot springs while you were in the area?

The name doesn't ring a bell. Sorry. The two images that spring to mind were an obsidian hillside and one of the bluest lakes I've ever seen. The hilliside was pure black, made up of broken pieces of obsidian. Not a single plant grew there. The lake was in a low spot surrounded on all sides by steep hills. We had to leave the horses above and scramble down to the lake on foot. Azure blue. We fished for trout there. I also remember how bright the milky way was in the night sky. I don't see the milky way any more. Haven't seen it for years.
 
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Here are a few images of some of the federal wilderness areas my son and I have backpacked in and fished:

The Upper Buffalo River in Arkansas, Ponca Federal Wilderness:

buffaloriver.jpgbuffaloriver2.jpg

Crater lake in the Indian Peaks Federal Wilderness in Colorado:

CraterLake.jpg

Lake Constantine in the Holy Cross Federal Wilderness in Colorado:

lakeconstantine.jpg



Bridger Federal Wilderness in Wyoming (this one is absolutely epic):

islandlake.jpg
 
Oh yeah! That last is my idea of heaven on earth.
 
I've done the Pacific Crest Trail back when it was only Mexico to Canada. I celebrate that we've put aside some places for future generations to explore for themselves what it's like to be around more god made than man made things.

That is totally cool CB!! PCT. No small thing.
 
That's cool. How long did it take you? My son and I have done backpacking trips to Paddy Creek Federal Wilderness in Missouri, Devil's Backbone Federal Wilderness in Missouri, Buffalo River Federal Wilderness in Arkansas, Indian Peaks Federal Wilderness in Colorado, Holy Cross Federal Wilderness in Colorado, and Bridger Federal Wilderness in Wyoming. We go on a week long backpacking trip every summer and try to get some weekenders in throughout the year. My son did his first one with me when he was 4 and he is 13 now. The most remote place we have been to thus far is in the Wind River Range in Wyoming. If you take off walking east to west across the Winds, you will walk nearly 40 miles before you get to another road on the other side and that is if you could actually walk it in a perfectly straight line. Its pretty cool knowing you are at least a couple of days walk from the nearest road.

Personally, I think that our wilderness in America is what defines us as a country more than anything else. Its unfortunate that so many people take it for granted these days and don't understand how hard previous generations had to work to for these areas to be protected.

I dint see the Ouachita Trail in there SD!?!?
 
It may have seemed that far from a road, but in terms of how the crow flies, the furthest one can get from a road in any direction in the lower 48 is a point in the Greater Yellowstone Region. At that point you can be at least 22 miles from a road in any direction (of course in some directions it would be far further).

The only places in the United States you can get more than 100 miles from a road is in the Alaskan Interior. Its kind of sad when you think about it. There is a married couple who are both wildlife ecologists that are actually doing a project where they travel to and document the conditions and ecology of the most remote point in each of the 50 states. You can read about it here:

Project Remote |

Of course that all said, a road can be simply a forest service fire trail and there are still some very remote places left in the lower 48, many of them are thankfully protected from any future development.

Wow! I love that link. So glad you put it up.
 
Here are a few images of some of the federal wilderness areas my son and I have backpacked in and fished:

The Upper Buffalo River in Arkansas, Ponca Federal Wilderness:

View attachment 67160631View attachment 67160632

Crater lake in the Indian Peaks Federal Wilderness in Colorado:

View attachment 67160633

Lake Constantine in the Holy Cross Federal Wilderness in Colorado:

View attachment 67160634



Bridger Federal Wilderness in Wyoming (this one is absolutely epic):

View attachment 67160635

The pic of Bridger looks like it has a very well established trail.
 
I dint see the Ouachita Trail in there SD!?!?

I just included Federal Wilderness. I have backpacked other areas as well. Most of the Ouachita Trail runs through National Forest, only segments traverse wilderness areas. I have done some trail runs on it above Jessieville.
 
The pic of Bridger looks like it has a very well established trail.

Yeah, that area around Island Lake is pretty popular. It is right up near treelike as well, you are over 10,000 feet there. Trails near treelike always get well worn because of how long it takes them to be reclaimed by vegetation. Our campsite was in that large grove of trees in the middle of the picture. This is deep, deep in the backcountry. The Wind River Range is huge, it would take a lifetime to explore all the backcountry there. I was hopping to see a grizzly (at a safe distance) while we were there, but never saw one.
 
I just included Federal Wilderness. I have backpacked other areas as well. Most of the Ouachita Trail runs through National Forest, only segments traverse wilderness areas. I have done some trail runs on it above Jessieville.

Im working that trail now. Moving west to east, I'm east of Jessieville 20-25 miles at about 176. The western trail head is visible from my front porch. Buffalo River, cool too.
 
Im working that trail now. Moving west to east, I'm east of Jessieville 20-25 miles at about 176. The western trail head is visible from my front porch. Buffalo River, cool too.

Wow, if you can see the western trail head you are on some choice property. That is probably the prettiest part of Oklahoma.
 
Wow, if you can see the western trail head you are on some choice property. That is probably the prettiest part of Oklahoma.

Yep. Talimena Drive. I guess you no longer live down in Arkansas?
 
Yep. Talimena Drive. I guess you no longer live down in Arkansas?

No, Arkansas is a nice place to live if you like the outdoors and a nice place to grow up, but its not a nice place to try to further your career in. Moved up to Kansas City in 1999.
 
Great pics. Would love to visit those places.

I have spent a fair amount of time on the Jacks Fork and Current river near Eminence Mo. Yearly trip for us about a week at a time. When I was younger I spent a great deal of time in the mountains just outside of Santa Maria Ca.

To this day my family and I are in the woods as much as we can possible be. Either backpacking, canoeing, trail riding, Etc. Just can't get enough of it. Recently bought a cabin in the woods of Ste Genevieve Mo so now I will be forever surrounded by the wilderness.

Thanks for posting.
 
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