Otter Creek Wilderness | |
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Location | West Virginia, United States |
Coordinates | 39°01′58″N79°39′13″W / 39.03278°N 79.65361°W Coordinates: 39°01′58″N79°39′13″W / 39.03278°N 79.65361°W |
Area | 20,698 acres (83.76 km2) [2] |
Established | 1975 [3] |
Operator | Monongahela National Forest |
Website | Otter Creek Wilderness |
The Otter Creek Wilderness is a U.S. Wilderness area located in the Cheat-Potomac Ranger District of Monongahela National Forest in West Virginia, USA. [2] The Wilderness sits in a bowl-shaped valley formed by Otter Creek, between McGowan Mountain and Shavers Mountain in Tucker and Randolph Counties. [3] It is crossed by 42 miles (68 km) of hiking trails. Otter Creek Trail is the longest, at 11 miles (18 km). [4]
By 1914, almost all of the virgin forest in the Otter Creek watershed had been timbered, mostly by the Otter Creek Boom and Lumber Company, but also by the owners of several small farms and homesteads. [2] In 1917 key land purchases were made by the U.S. Forest Service as part of the formation of the national forest system. The Otter Creek area was managed as a multiple use forest, including some second growth logging, until the passage of the Eastern Wilderness Act in 1975. [5] The last private in-holding was acquired the same year.
The Omnibus Public Lands Management Act of 2009 added 698 acres (282 ha) to the original 20,000 acres (8,100 ha) of the Otter Creek Wilderness. [6] This addition is situated on the northern and eastern flanks of McGowan Mountain leading down to Dry Fork. It provides much of the scenic view for this popular river which contains excellent whitewater paddling and trout fishing.
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The Shavers Mountain Spruce-Hemlock Stand, a 68-acre (280,000 m2) red spruce-hemlock stand of old growth forest, is partly within the Otter Creek Wilderness.
The Monongahela National Forest is a national forest located in the Allegheny Mountains of eastern West Virginia, USA. It protects over 921,000 acres of federally owned land within a 1,700,000 acres proclamation boundary that includes much of the Potomac Highlands Region and portions of 10 counties.
The Dolly Sods Wilderness — originally simply Dolly Sods — is a U.S. Wilderness Area in the Allegheny Mountains of eastern West Virginia, US, and is part of the Monongahela National Forest (MNF) of the U.S. Forest Service (USFS).
Shavers Fork Mountain Complex is the name given to the mountains on either side of Shavers Fork in the highlands portions of Randolph County, Pocahontas County, and Tucker County in West Virginia, USA. Much of the land surrounding the river and its adjacent mountains is protected by Monongahela National Forest including about 20,000 acres (81 km2) of designated wilderness.
The Gaudineer Scenic Area (GSA) is a scenic area and National Natural Landmark in the Monongahela National Forest (MNF). It is situated just north of Gaudineer Knob of Shavers Mountain on the border of Randolph and Pocahontas Counties, West Virginia, USA, about 5 miles (8.0 km) northwest of the town of Durbin.
The Bull of the Woods Wilderness is a wilderness area located in the Mount Hood National Forest in the northwestern Cascades of Oregon, United States. It was created in 1984 and consists of 37,607 acres (15,219 ha) including prime low-elevation old-growth forest, about a dozen lakes of at least 1-acre (4,000 m2) and many large creeks and streams. Adjacent areas, including Opal Creek Wilderness to the west, create a pristine area of nearly 84 square miles (218 km2). There are at least ten trailheads and 60 miles (97 km) of trail.
Umpqua National Forest, in southern Oregon's Cascade Range, covers an area of 983,129 acres (3,978.58 km2) in Douglas, Lane, and Jackson counties, and borders Crater Lake National Park. The four ranger districts for the forest are the Cottage Grove, Diamond Lake, North Umpqua, and Tiller ranger districts. The forest is managed by the United States Forest Service, headquartered in Roseburg.
The Red Buttes Wilderness is a wilderness area in the Klamath and Rogue River national forests in the U.S. states of Oregon and California. It comprises 19,940 acres (8,070 ha), approximately 16,190 acres (6,550 ha) of which is located in California, and 3,750 acres (1,520 ha) in Oregon. It was established by the California Wilderness Act of 1984 and the Oregon Wilderness Act of 1984.
The Cummins Creek Wilderness is a 9,300-acre (3,800 ha) wilderness area in the Siuslaw National Forest within the Oregon Coast. It is one of three wilderness areas created in the Siuslaw in 1984, along with Drift Creek and Rock Creek. It is "dedicated to preserve in a wilderness state, the last remaining virgin stands of Sitka spruce, western hemlock and Douglas-fir, in Oregon's coast lands." Cummins Creek and nearby Cummins Ridge are named for F.L. Cummins, an early homesteader.
Shavers Mountain, is a high and rugged ridge situated in the Allegheny Mountains of eastern West Virginia. It is about 35 miles (56 km) long, north to south, and several of its peaks exceed 4,000 feet (1,200 m) in elevation. Shavers Mountain is notable for being "bookended", at its northern and southern ends, by two exceptional natural areas: the Otter Creek Wilderness and the Gaudineer Scenic Area, respectively, both of which preserve small stands of old growth forest on the mountain.
Laurel Fork South Wilderness is a U.S. Wilderness Area located in the Greenbrier Ranger District of Monongahela National Forest in West Virginia. The Wilderness protects high-elevation lands along Laurel Fork and is bordered by Middle Mountain to the west. It is a companion to Laurel Fork North Wilderness, the two being split by Randolph County Route 40. Laurel Fork South contains 9 miles (14 km) of hiking trails.
The Cranberry Wilderness is a 47,815-acre (19,350 ha) U.S. wilderness area in the Monongahela National Forest of southeast West Virginia, United States. Its name derives from the nearby Cranberry Glades as well as from the Cranberry River and Cranberry Mountain. In addition to being wilderness, it is a designated black bear sanctuary.
The Omnibus Public Land Management Act of 2009 is a land management law passed in the 111th United States Congress and signed into law by President Barack Obama on March 30, 2009. The bill designates millions of acres in the US as protected and establishes a National Landscape Conservation System. It includes funding for programs, studies and other activities by the Department of the Interior and the Department of Agriculture, and in some cases bars further geothermal leasing, oil and gas leasing, and new mining patents on certain stretches of protected land.
Ramsey's Draft Wilderness is a designated wilderness area in the North River Ranger District of the George Washington and Jefferson National Forests of Virginia in the United States. The wilderness area was established in 1984 and comprises 6,518 acres (26.38 km2). It is administered by the US Forest Service.
The Roaring Plains West Wilderness is a U.S. Wilderness Area in the Allegheny Mountains of eastern West Virginia, USA. It is part of the Monongahela National Forest and includes Mount Porte Crayon, the sixth highest point in the state.
Spruce Mountain, in eastern West Virginia, USA, is the highest ridge of the Allegheny Mountains. The "whale-backed" ridge extends for only about 16 miles (26 km), from northeast to southwest, but several of its peaks exceed 4,500 feet (1,400 m) in elevation. The summit, Spruce Knob, is celebrated as the highest point in the state as well as the range, which covers parts of four states.
The Big Draft Wilderness is a 5,144-acre (2,082 ha) U.S. Wilderness area in the Monongahela National Forest of southeast West Virginia, USA. Its name derives from the nearby Big Draft, a tributary of Anthony Creek which is a tributary of the Greenbrier River. Big Draft Wilderness occupies the southernmost acreage of the Monongahela National Forest and is located just south of the Blue Bend Recreation Area. The town White Sulphur Springs lies about 5 miles south of the Wilderness and about 15 miles northeast of Lewisburg.
Garden Mountain Wilderness is a U.S. wilderness area in the Eastern Divide Ranger District of the George Washington and Jefferson National Forests. It is a small wilderness area in western Virginia, consisting of an area of 3,331 acres (13.48 km2) and bordering the Beartown and Hunting Camp Creek Wilderness. It was designated as wilderness area in 2009 by Omnibus Public Land Management Act of 2009. The wilderness area also borders a portion of the Appalachian Trail.
Brush Mountain East Wilderness is a U.S. wilderness area in the Eastern Divide Ranger District of the George Washington and Jefferson National Forests. It was designated as wilderness area in 2009 by Omnibus Public Land Management Act of 2009.
The Lynn Camp Creek Wilderness Study Area, a 3226-acre site in the Eastern Divide Ranger District of the George Washington and Jefferson National Forests, was designated a wilderness study area by the Omnibus Public Lands Act of 2009.
Mount Rogers Crest Zone is a wildland in the George Washington and Jefferson National Forests of western Virginia that has been recognized by the Wilderness Society as a special place worthy of protection from logging and road construction. The Wilderness Society has designated the area as a "Mountain Treasure".