Visit Wilderness

Search for a wilderness as the destination for your next outdoor adventure.

Bob Marshall Wilderness Area, Minnesota

Why Visit Wilderness?

While wilderness can be appreciated from afar—through online content, television, or books—nothing compares to experiencing it firsthand. Activities like camping, hiking, or hunting allow you to fully enjoy the recreational, ecological, spiritual, and health benefits that wilderness areas offer. These areas provide “outstanding opportunities for solitude or a primitive and unconfined type of recreation,” chances to observe wildlife, moments to renew and refresh, and the physical benefits of outdoor exercise. In many wilderness areas, you can even bring your well-behaved dog.

Learn more about the diverse ways in which we benefit from wilderness and threats wilderness areas face today.

Located in the northeast corner of Olympic National Forest, just to the north of The Brothers Wilderness, Buckhorn Wilderness stands divided into northern and southern portions by the Dungeness River and a parallel road.

The smaller northern portion, drained by the Gray Wolf River and its tributaries, descends from higher mountainous terrain to lowlands heavily forested in fir, hemlock, and cedar with an understory of moss, ferns, and berry bushes.

South of the river and south of the trails, the terrain soars skyward to a ragged ridge with difficult access and few human visitors. Drained by the Dungeness and Quilcene Rivers down glacier-carved valleys and fed by deep canyon tributaries, the larger southern portion is even more rugged than the northern. A dense and stately forest covers the lower elevations, while the higher country often opens into large alpine meadows rich with summer grasses and bright wildflowers.

Access is provided by 60 miles of trails.

Leave No Trace

How to follow the seven standard Leave No Trace principles differs in different parts of the country (desert vs. Rocky Mountains). Click on any of the principles listed below to learn more about how they apply in the Buckhorn Wilderness.

Plan Ahead and Prepare
Travel and Camp on Durable Surfaces
Dispose of Waste Properly
Leave What You Find
Minimize Campfire Impacts
Respect Wildlife
Be Considerate of Other Visitors

For more information on Leave No Trace, Visit the Leave No Trace, Inc. website.

Location

Maps

Digital and paper maps are critical tools for wilderness visitors. Online maps can help you plan and prepare for your visit ahead of time. You can also carry digital maps with you on your GPS unit or other handheld GPS device. Having a paper map with you in the backcountry, as well as solid orienteering skills, however, ensures that you can still route-find in the event that your electronic device fails.

Online Maps

Interactive Map of the Buckhorn Wilderness
FS Topographic Map
Google Earth

Washington Wildernesses

Printed Maps

Fetching MyTopo from Database

USGS Store

Rules & Regulations

Motorized equipment and equipment used for mechanical transport is generally prohibited in all wilderness areas. This includes the use of motor vehicles, motorboats, motorized equipment, bicycles, hang gliders, wagons, carts, portage wheels, and the landing of aircraft including helicopters.

Wilderness-Specific Regulations

Learn more about why regulations may be necessary in wilderness.

Contacts

Applicable Wilderness Law(s)

Public Law 98-339

Date: July 3, 1984
Acreage: 45,817 acres

Washington State Wilderness Act of 1984 - Public law 98-339 (7/3/1984) To designate certain National Forest System lands in the State of Washington for inclusion in the National Wilderness Preservation System, and for other purposes.

For more information (To download or see all affected wilderness areas) visit our law library for 98-339 or special provisions for 98-339 or legislative history for 98-339.

Public Law 99-635

Date: November 7, 1986
Acreage: -343 acres

(No official title, revise boundaries of Olympic National Forest wildernesses) - Public law 99-635 (11/7/1986) To revise the boundaries of Olympic National Park and Olympic National Forest in the State of Washington and for other purposes

For more information (To download or see all affected wilderness areas) visit our law library for 99-635 or legislative history for 99-635.

Want to Volunteer for Wilderness?

People who volunteer their time to steward our wilderness areas are an essential part of wilderness management. Contact the following groups to inquire about volunteer opportunities. Groups are listed alphabetically by the state(s) in which the wilderness is located.