Rogue River Country Wilderness Area
Southern Oregon Wilderness Areas

Wilderness is the America that was - wild land beyond the frontier that shaped the growth of our Nation and the character of its people. Our desire to protect the nation's
Wilderness resource was formalized in 1964 with passage of the Wilderness Act. This landmark conservation legislation established the National Wilderness Preservation System. Since then, Congress has designated over 100 million acres of Wilderness. These areas possess outstanding opportunities for solitude and primitive types of recreation, and may contain ecological, geological, or other features of scientific, educational, scenic, or historical value.
Wilderness areas are protected to allow natural ecological processes to operate freely and managed so that man is a visitor who does not remain.
Map By National Wilderness Preservation System.
Rogue River Country Wilderness Areas
Rogue River Country has to go along with its 2 National Parks, 5 National Forests and
7 Wild and Scenic Rivers with 622 miles of Wild and Scenic River, 10 Wilderness
Areas, 2 National Monument Areas, 2 National Recreation Areas and 3 National
Wildlife Refuges. This is more National Wilderness Area, and protected land than any other area of its size.
Upper Rogue River Region
The Upper Rogue River Region of Rogue River Country is the highest in elevation going from a little less than 1000-foot above sea level to 8000-foot Cascade Mountain ridge tops. The summer months seldom see rain and weather is very pleasant with Valley temperatures near 90-degrees in summer and evenings in low 50-degree area. Back Country temperatures will vary with elevation and shading.
Sky Lakes Wilderness Area
With a name like Sky Lakes, this Wilderness is obliged to deliver at least one impressive sapphire pool, and it does. In fact, it takes in three major lake basins as it stretches along the crest of the Cascade Mountains from the southern border of Crater Lake National Park to State Highway 140: Sky Lakes, Seven Lakes, and Blue Canyon. All of southern Oregon seems to lay at your feet from the summit of Mount McLoughlin, which peaks at 9,495 feet then levels out northward into a broad plateau-like ridge dotted with many of the lakes. You'll find creeks and ice-cold springs, and scores of crystalline alpine lakes stocked every other year with either rainbow trout, brook trout, cutthroat trout, or kokanee. This is arguably some of the best alpine fishing in America, set against a backdrop of tall trees that reach to the edge of the lakes. A forest of lodgepole pine and mountain hemlock holds an Engelmann spruce here and there.
This area is cut by the Pacific Crest National Scenic Trail from north to South.
Prospect Ranger District / Rogue River National Forest
47201 Highway 62 Prospect, Oregon 97536-9724
(541) 560-3400
Sky Lakes Wilderness Area
Rogue Umpqua Divide Wilderness Area
Mountain Lakes Wilderness Area
The concept of Wilderness in the National Forests originated in the early 1920's. Mountain Lakes was one of the three original
"primitive areas" designated in Oregon and Washington National Forests in 1930,
and it has been managed as a primitive recreation area since that time. When the
1964 Wilderness Act passed, 23,071 acre Mountain Lakes became one of the
nation's original Wilderness Areas.
Mountain Lakes
is unique, yet its geologic history is similar to that of Crater Lake National
Park, its famous neighbor to the north. Like Crater Lake, the landscape contains
a large caldera (a broad crater-like basin) formed by the explosion and collapse
of a volcanic cone. Unlike Crater Lake, the caldera is filled with many smaller
lakes rather one large lake.
The
Pacific Crest National Scenic Trail wonders through the Mountain Lakes
Wilderness.
Winema National Forest
Umpqua Region
Rogue-Umpqua Divide Wilderness Area
Ranging in elevation from 3,200 to 6,878 feet, the 33,000-acre Rogue-Umpqua Divide Wilderness separates the drainages for the famed Rogue and Umpqua rivers. The wilderness is located 80 miles southeast of Roseburg.
This is a mysterious and beautiful area of high mountain meadows and hill-hugging mists. During the spring, abundant wildflowers welcome the season. In the fall, vivid colors mark the changing season. This is a land of deep forests and sub-alpine meadows. For those who want to experience large old-growth forests, Acker Divide and Cripple Camp trails fit the bill. Nearly all the trails in the Rogue-Umpqua Divide pass through sub-alpine meadows.
 These beautiful meadows change with the seasons. In the spring, they are a pallet of lush green grass, wildflowers, and trees in bud. In the summer, the smell of horsemint fills the air as hummingbirds dart from flower to flower. The range of several conifers meet in this wilderness creating a diverse pallet including sugar pine, grand fir, mountain hemlock, western white pine, incense cedar, sub-alpine fir, western red cedar, white fir, ponderosa pine, Douglas-fir, Alaska-cedar,
Shasta Red fir, Lodgepole pine, pacific silver fir, western hemlock, and white-bark pine.
Numerous trails throughout the wilderness take visitors to many lakes, meadows, and breathtaking vistas. Early local resident O.C. Brown described the area around Fish Lake "on all sides the mountains clad in dense, evergreen forest, rise like a wall and are crowned by massive peaks of frowning rocks, that stand like feudal castles and for countless ages have mirrored their bold outlines in the sylvan lake".
Tiller Ranger District / Umpqua National Forest
National Wilderness Preservation System
Mt. Thielsen Wilderness
At 55,100 acres, the Mt. Thielsen Wilderness Area is the largest wilderness on
the Umpqua National Forest. Located 80 miles east of Roseburg, it runs along the
crest of the Cascades.

Born of the same volcanic activity that created Crater
Lake, this is the land of fire and ice. The Pacific Crest Trail passes through
the middle of the wilderness area. For a more serene wilderness adventure, hike
into Lake Lucille or Maidu Lake. The trail passes over deep pumice that was
deposited when Mt. Mazama erupted to form Crater Lake. The famed North Umpqua
River begins at Maidu on its long trek to the Pacific Ocean. For the more
experienced, the climb to the top of 9,182-foot Mt. Thielsen is in order.
Sitting at the top of the sharp volcanic pinnacle, it is easy to see why
Thielsen has been called "the lightning rod of the Cascades".
Mt. Thielsen Wilderness Area / Umpqua National Forest
P.O. Box 1008
Roseburg, Oregon 97470
National Wilderness Preservation System / Mt Thielsen
Mt. Thielsen at 9132 ft. elevation sits on top of the Cascade Range.
The
Pacific Crest National Scenic Trail winds through the Mount Thielsen Wilderness for 26 miles along the summit of the Cascade Range.
Boulder Creek Wilderness Area
Small waterfalls and rapids connect the series of quiet pools (suitable for
summer swimming) that make up Boulder Creek, a tributary of the North Umpqua
River. The rapids run south and west, channeling through the heart of the
Wilderness. Numerous streams feed into Boulder Creek, quenching the thirst of
the old-growth timber that towers over its banks. Ponderosa pines flourish on
Pine Bench, near the lower end of the Wilderness, and are thought to be the
largest such stand this far northwest of the crest of the Cascade Mountains.
Boulder Creek Wilderness Area
Umpqua National Forest / Boulder Creek Wilderness
North Umpqua National Forest Recreation
Red Buttes Wilderness Area
This Wilderness was named for the reddish orange hue that a high content of iron and magnesium lends to its dramatic topographical formations. Split into two pieces by the California-Oregon state line, the bulk of Red Buttes Wilderness lies in California, straddling the stone-bound crest of the Siskiyou Mountains from the Red Buttes themselves to Sucker Creek Gap. You'll find meadows, fields of brush, and rocky slopes rising to craggy peaks. Cold streams rush down heavily eroded valleys and through extensive stands of old-growth ponderosa pine, sugar pine, incense cedar, and Douglas fir. White and red fir and mountain hemlock grow on the upper slopes.
Siskiyou National Forest / Red Buttes Wilderness Area
The Kalmiopsis Wilderness Area
The Kalmiopsis Wilderness contains more than 180,000 acres of terrain in the rugged Siskiyou Mountains of Southwestern Oregon. It is located west of Cave Junction and includes the headwaters of the Chetco River and the Illinois River Canyon.
The original Kalmiopsis Wilderness Area was created from 76,900 acres in 1946 to preserve the very rare Kalmiopsis leachiana, a miniature rhododendron-like plant that is a relic from before the ice ages.
The Kalmiopsis has several access points in the Illinois Valley, one of the most popular being Onion Camp at the end of Eight Dollar Mountain/Fiddler Mountain Road.
Kalmiopsis Wilderness Area
Illinois Ranger District / Siskiyou National Forest Trail Maps
Wild Rogue Wilderness
Designated Wild and Scenic, the Rogue River churns its way through basalt down a canyon that reaches 4,000 feet in depth, attracting thousands of river runners every year to Oregon's most popular and most famous waterway. Between frothy rapids,
the river lies quietly in green pools. But when it rages, it does so magnificently, over drops as far as 15 feet that will stand a boat on end, through chasms so narrow a raft will rub both sides of the canyon at once, and over the white tops of treacherous Class IV rapids. If you do the entire 40-mile stretch, plan on the following: a three-day trip, pleasant campsites on river bars and benches where creeks spill into the main flow, and a long wait for a chance since only one applicant in 10 gets a permit. The Rogue River Canyon Trail follows the river as it flows to the sea. Wilderness Lodges are available to stay at on your hike or float trip.
If the lodge you wish to stay at is on the opposite side of the river from the trail hailing them will get you a boat ride across. Be sure and make reservations at our Rogue River Lodges page. This is a great trail or river
experience.
BLM Wild Rogue Wilderness information
Siskiyou National Forest / Wild Rogue Wilderness Information P.O. Box 440 Grants Pass, Oregon 97526
(541) 471-6500
Wild Rivers Coast
Grassy Knob Wilderness Area Located in the Elk River Drainage
Covered in a tangled rain forest of coniferous evergreens thick with an ankle-grabbing under-story, Grassy Knob Wilderness lies rugged and steep. Elevations vary from almost sea level to more than 2,000 feet on summits that include Grassy Knob, at 2,342 feet, on the western boundary. This Wilderness nurtures the fragrant Port Orford cedar, drooping
with its characteristic twisting limbs in rare stands of old growth with some trunks exceeding six feet in diameter. The primary drainage of misnamed Dry Creek provides habitat for a remarkable population of spawning salmon. Many small, turbulent, and virtually pure streams tumble for short distances over emerald waterfalls and through ravines cool with shade during typically sunny summers. The red of vine maple brightens moss-laden glens come autumn, while winter brings an average of 130 inches of chilly rain born in the nearby Pacific. Weather changes may be remarkable and rapid.
Siskiyou National Forest / Grassy Knob
Oregon Islands Wilderness Area
A string of some 1,477 wave-washed rocks and tiny islands mirror almost the entire length of the Oregon coast from Tillamook Head to the California border. These precious chunks of land, protected as the Oregon Islands National Wildlife Refuge, equal less than 800 acres, but those relatively few acres provide a nesting habitat for an estimated 1.1 million seabirds, more than nest along the coastlines of California and Washington combined. Beginning in April, black-and-white murres throng the islands. Summer brings tufted puffins, auklets, and murrelets, who stay here with the murres until August. Loons, scoters, and grebes arrive for winter. Five species of gulls and two of cormorants reside here year-round.
These rocky islands also serve as haul-outs for seals and sea lions, who heave themselves up to give birth, to rest, and to molt. You'll see few plants other than sea palms and bobbing bulbous heads of kelp. Some of the islands support meager growths of twinberry, salal, and stunted spruce. The threatened seacliff stonecrop flowers here occasionally and nowhere else in Oregon.
Oregon Islands National Wildlife Refuge Complex
Bandon Marsh National Wildlife Refuge
Wilderness Ethics
Please practice leave no trace hiking and camping. You can reduce your
impact on the environment by observing these guidelines:
Camping - Camp in trees as opposed to meadows. Pine duff can
withstand use much better than fragile meadow flowers and plants. Trees
also offer you privacy and shelter from the wind. Camp at least 100 feet
from trails and water. Animals will not come to water if you are too
close.
Fire - Use a small camp stove and avoid building campfires whenever
possible. Campfires consume scarce vegetation and leave permanent scars
on the rocks and land. Also, the risk of starting a forest fire is less
when using a stove.
Sanitation - Bury human waste in the top six to eight inches of
topsoil at least 100 feet from water sources, and urinate well away from
trails and water sources. If you must use soap, make sure it is
biodegradable.
Refuse - Pack out all garbage, litter and extra food. Nothing should
be left behind. Food scraps, like egg and peanut shells and orange
peels, take a long time to de-compose and are eyesores to other hikers.
Pets - Pets are allowed in the wilderness: however, they must be kept
under control at all times. Pets must not be allowed to chase wildlife.
Travel - Travel in wilderness areas is restricted to foot or
horseback. No motorized or mechanical equipment, including chainsaws and
bicycles, is allowed. Group size may also be restricted.
Trails - Use existing trails, and avoid cutting switchbacks.
Shortcutting does not save time and will cause serious erosion problems.
Be Listed on Rogue River Country Web Site!
E-mail: Contact Rogue River Country
Office Phone: (541) 247-4138
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