In the Handies Peak NSA. Photo by Patrick Kelley.

Wilderness Areas Around Lake City

Uncompahgre Wilderness
  • Rugged, steep terrain with lush drainages that feed the western slope of Colorado,
  • Contains fourteeners Uncompahgre Peak and Wetterhorn Peak, plus lower peaks Coxcomb, Wildhorse, and Matterhorn Peaks,
  • Includes the the Big Blue Trail and the Ridge Stock Driveway.

Powderhorn Wilderness
  • Abundant wildlife, forests, lakes, and a network of hiking and horseback riding trails,
  • Destinations include Powderhorn Lakes and Devils Lake.

La Garita Wilderness
  • Remote area with few visitors, abundant wildlife,
  • Contains fourteener San Luis Peak, plus slightly lower peaks Baldy Chato, Stewart Peak, Baldy Alto, and others,
  • This huge wilderness stretches from the top of Spring Creek pass on Highway 149, across and around to the other side of Creede.
Weminuche Wilderness
  • The northern portions of this area, which are closest to Lake City, are much less crowded than the southern portions.
  • Contains the headwaters of the Rio Grande, and the Rio Grande Pyramid.

Redcloud Peak
Wilderness Study Area
  • Inside the the center of the Alpine Loop National Back Country Byway,
  • Contains fourteeners Redcloud and Sunshine Peaks, plus the Alpine Gulch and Williams Creek trails.

Handies Peak
Wilderness Study Area
  • Location of fourteener Handies Peak,
  • Home of the American Basin cirque and Sloan Lake.

Exploring National Wilderness Areas

There are four National Wilderness Areas and two Wilderness Study Areas in the Lake City area.  Each has its own character, with varied terrain, elevations, plants, and animals.

Mechanized and motorized vehicles, including bicycles, are not permitted in Wilderness Areas.  Hiking, backpacking, primitive camping, horseback riding, and pack animals are permitted.

Mountaineering and backcountry hiking can be dangerous or even deadly.  Please read this page from 14ers.com, where you'll find helpful information about hiking in the mountains of Colorado.
"We simply need that wild country available to us, even if we never do more than drive to its edge and look in.  For it can be a means of reassuring ourselves of our sanity as creatures, a part of the geography of hope." -- Wallace Stegner

Wilderness Areas Photo Tour

Click any photo below to begin.