Chimney Peak Wilderness

Chimney Peak Wilderness
IUCN Category Ib (Wilderness Area)
Location	Tulare County, California, USA
Nearest city	Ridgecrest, California
Coordinates	35°50′56″N 118°05′09″W / 35.84889°N 118.08583°W / 35.84889; -118.08583Coordinates: 35°50′56″N 118°05′09″W / 35.84889°N 118.08583°W / 35.84889; -118.08583
Area	13,134 acres (53.15 km2)
Established	Oct.31, 1994
Governing body	Bureau of Land Management

The Chimney Peak Wilderness is a 13,134-acre (53.15 km²) ^[1] wilderness area located 20 miles (32 km) northwest of Ridgecrest, in southeastern Tulare County, California. The 1994 California Desert Protection Act (Public Law 103-433) created the wilderness and it is managed by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), Department of the Interior.

The Chimney Peak Wilderness is a rugged and mountainous desert environment on the eastern side of the southern Sierra Nevada Range. The wilderness is named for Chimney Peak, elevation 7,871 feet (2,399 m), located in the northeast corner of the wilderness.^[2] The area has desert plants of Joshua tree and creosote bush on the valley floors and in foothills, canyons and on the alluvial fans. Higher elevations have pinyon pine.

A portion of the Sacatar Trail, an old wagon road into the Owens Valley once used by soldiers and cattlemen,^[3] cross the Chimney Peak Wilderness as does the Pacific Crest Trail.

Recreational activities include hiking, horseback riding, fishing and camping/backpacking. No motorized vehicles or mechanical equipment is allowed within a wilderness area.

The BLM began a "byway" program in 1989 which is a tour by automobile through or near scenic public lands. This program designates "backcountry byways" along secondary roads. The Chimney Peak Backcountry Byway can be accessed from State Route 178, is over 38 miles (61 km) in length and travels through Lamont Meadow, circles around Chimney Peak and returns to Canebrake Road at Lamont Meadow.^[4]

Notes

1. ^ "Chimney Peak Wilderness". Bureau of Land Management. http://www.blm.gov/ca/pa/wilderness/wa/areas/chimney_peak.html. 
2. ^ "Chimney Peak". Geographic Names Information System, U.S. Geological Survey. http://geonames.usgs.gov/pls/gnispublic/f?p=gnispq:3:::NO::P3_FID:270429. 
3. ^ "Roadrunner". Kern-Kaweah Chapter of the Sierra Club's newsletter. Nov/Dec 2004. p. 6. http://kernkaweah.sierraclub.org/roadrunner/november_december_2004.pdf. 
4. ^ "Chimney Peak Back Country Byway". Bureau of Land Management. http://www.blm.gov/ca/st/en/fo/bakersfield/Programs/Recreation_opportunities/chimneypeakbyway.html. 

External links

• "Chimney Peak Wilderness". Bureau of Land Management. http://www.blm.gov/ca/pa/wilderness/wa/areas/chimney_peak.html. Retrieved 2011-08-11. 
• "Chimney Peak Wilderness". Wilderness.net. http://www.wilderness.net/index.cfm?fuse=NWPS&sec=wildView&WID=117. Retrieved 2011-08-11.