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.

The Arc Dome Wilderness comprises the southern third of the Toiyabe Range, a rugged spine of mountains with difficult access, and includes the range's highest summits. Much of the Wilderness lies above 10,000 feet, but Arc Dome itself, at 11,775 feet, dominates the area. On the west side, the ground rises gradually from the Reese River Valley; on the east, rocky canyons break up steep inclines.

Vegetation consists of sagebrush and grass lower down, and gives way to pinion-juniper higher up, with occasional stands of pine and aspen.

Much of the high country is open, affording visitors outstanding expansive views.

Desert bighorn sheep, once abundant in the state, seldom appear except in the Jett Canyon-Twin Rivers region in the eastern section. Mountain lions, bobcats, deer, beavers, grouse, and raptors are more established, but it's the trout in the Reese River, South Twin Creek, and North Twin Creek that qualify as a bona fide wildlife attraction (among anglers, at least).

Trails from the eastern boundary give access to both Twin Creeks and some beautiful country. The Toiyabe Crest Trail, a 72-mile designated National Recreation Trail, sweeps through more than 30 miles of the area, from a parking lot at Ophir Summit to a parking lot at South Twin, offering access to the summit of Arc Dome. This trail boasts great views but little water, and subsequently feels the tread of few human feet. The Cow Canyon Trail, from the western boundary, follows the Reese River for about a mile, then splits to give access to other trails and most of the Wilderness.

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 Arc Dome 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 Arc Dome Wilderness
FS Topographic Map
Google Earth

Nevada 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 101-195

Date: December 5, 1989
Acreage: 115,000 acres

Nevada Wilderness Protection Act - Public law 101-195 (12/5/1989) To designate certain lands in the State of Nevada as wilderness, and for other purposes

For more information (To download or see all affected wilderness areas) visit our law library for 101-195 or special provisions for 101-195 or legislative history for 101-195.

Public Law 116-9

Date: March 12, 2019
Acreage: -4 acres

John D. Dingell, Jr. Conservation, Management, and Recreation Act - Public law 116-9 (3/12/2019) To provide for the management of the natural resources of the United States, and for other purposes.

For more information (To download or see all affected wilderness areas) visit our law library for 116-9 or special provisions for 116-9 or legislative history for 116-9.

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.