Family-Friendly Fun
Top Activities in the Wild
Summer is the best season for heading into the wild. Whether you're looking for a backcountry journey or some family-friendly fun, we've found some places that just might work for your next wild adventure.
Planning a trip to enjoy your favorite wild pastime? Here are a few activities we recommend:
Backcountry journeys
The most serious wilderness explorers will find plenty of backcountry to experience in places like the remote corners of Idaho or the canyons of southeastern Utah.
Camping
Fall asleep in the cool forests of the east coast or alongside the crystal waters of Idaho's Clearwater Basin.
Family-friendly fun
When school lets out for the summer, there's nothing more fun than chasing salamanders in North Carolina or romping through Montana forests.
Great hiking
Whether it's day hiking or long-distance hiking you're looking for, you'll find miles of trails to wear in your boots in places like Montana’s Gallatin Range.
Nature walking
Wander through a bursting garden of beautiful desert plants in New Mexico and find other great places for nature walking.
Quiet moments
You can find lots of quiet moments in off-the-beaten-path wild places like red rock country in western Colorado and southeastern Utah.
Urban escapes
From California’s San Gabriel Mountains to New Hampshire’s White Mountain National Forest, these places offer a great getaway from the bustle of urban life.
Wild adventures
It doesn't get much wilder than Wyoming’s Shoshone National Forest — among the wildest, most rugged places left in America.
Wildlife watching
A trip to Alaska and the Arctic is the perfect place to see wildlife — caribou, migratory birds, whales, polar bears and more.
mywilderness
Betty White first visited California’s Sierra Nevada at age four. That visit, and visits almost every year thereafter, made a lasting impression on her.
Join Us
Our precious wild places are being lost at the rate of 6,000 acres per day. You can help save America’s last remaining wilderness by joining The Wilderness Society with a gift of $35 or more today!
Why Wilderness
Wilderness is a precious resource with many human, natural and economic benefits that we need to protect.
Thursday, May 16, 2013Visit us in the Eco-Village at this summer’s Dave Matthews Band concerts.
Thursday, May 16, 2013It is a haven for geology lovers as water and erosion has exposed millions of years of deposited sedimentary rock. Recreationists of all kinds are awed by its natural sculptures: rock formations, canyons, mesas and gorges.
Wednesday, May 15, 2013A new rule will protect proposed renewable energy sites from conflicting mining development on public lands in the Western states, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) said at the end of April.
Wednesday, May 15, 2013Yet, here we are, with people and the government unable to stop furloughs, job losses, and lower revenue to keep the government functioning. Our public lands have certainly not been spared from this indiscriminate budget ax.
Tuesday, April 2, 2013But Alaska’s Sen. Lisa Murkowski refused to accept that decision. She and residents of the tiny community of King Cove are fighting to have the decision overturned.
Tuesday, March 19, 2013Birdwatchers travel from far and wide to northwest Colorado to see male sage-grouse strut their stuff in hopes of attracting a mate. Early spring is prime season to catch these timid grouse dancing on the lek and shaking their tail feathers through organized tours.
Expanding energy development to meet the growing needs of America must be balanced with protecting vital wild places.
The Wilderness Society has launched a new quarterly report "By The Numbers" to track how many acres of American land have been protected by Congress and the Executive branch, and how many acres have been leased out to energy development.
April 24, 2013
Dear Senator:
In 2012, the Bureau of Land Management released Manual 6330, which replaced the agency's longstanding policy for management of Wilderness Study Areas (WSAs), known as the Interim Management Policy for Lands Under Wilderness Review (IMP). Manual 6330 does not provide for designation of new WSAs, but it does require more protective management for existing WSAs than the IMP.
Friday, May 17, 2013A draft Resource Management Plan (RMP) for the Dominguez-Escalante National Conservation Area and Dominguez Canyon Wilderness near Grand Junction, CO would improve land management efforts and provide a sustainable path for the area over the next 20 years.
Thursday, May 16, 2013The Wilderness Society today applauded the U.S. Senate for passing the Rio Grande del Norte National Conservation Area Establishment Act out of the Energy and Natural Resources Committee.
The Rio Grande del Norte National Conservation Area Establishment Act (S. 241) – sponsored by Tom Udall (D-NM) and co-sponsored by Sen. Martin Heinrich (D-NM) – would protect as wilderness roughly 13,500 acres of the Cerro del Yuta and 8,000 acres of the Rio San Antonio areas.
Thursday, May 16, 2013The Wilderness Society today applauded the U.S. Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee for passing the Pine Forest Range Recreation Enhancement Act out of committee.