Gates of the Mountains Wilderness

Infobox_protected_area | name = Gates of the Mountains Wilderness
iucn_category = Ib

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caption =
locator_x = 75
locator_y = 30
location = Montana, USA
nearest_city = Helena, MT
lat_degrees = 46
lat_minutes = 53
lat_seconds =
lat_direction = N
long_degrees = 111
long_minutes = 58
long_seconds =
long_direction = W
area = 28,562 acres
(115 km²)
established = 1964
visitation_num =
visitation_year =
governing_body = U.S. Forest ServiceThe Gates of the Mountains Wilderness is located in the U.S. state of Montana. Created by an act of Congress in 1964, the wilderness is managed by Helena National Forest.

Gates of the Mountains Wilderness (then known as the Gates of the Mountains Wild Area) was the site of the 1949 Mann Gulch fire, which claimed the lives of 13 firefighters and which was the subject of Norman Maclean's book "Young Men and Fire".

U.S. Wilderness Areas do not allow motorized or mechanized vehicles, including bicycles. Although camping and fishing are allowed with proper permit, no roads or buildings are constructed and there is also no logging or mining, in compliance with the 1964 Wilderness Act. Wilderness areas within National Forests and Bureau of Land Management areas also allow hunting in season.

History

. Captain Lewis wrote on July 19, 1805, cquote|this evening we entered much the most remarkable clifts that we have yet seen. these clifts rise from the waters edge on either side perpendicularly to the hight of 1200 feet. ... the river appears to have forced its way through this immense body of solid rock for the distance of 5-3/4 Miles ... I called it the gates of the rocky mountains.

Geology

The prominent gray cliffs along the Missouri River in the Gates of the Mountains are formed by Madison Limestone. At the southern entrance to the canyon the trace of the Eldorado thrust fault juxtaposes Proterozoic Belt Supergroup Greyson Shale over much younger Madison Limestone; this faulting was part of the Sevier orogeny. Within the canyon, caves and folded layers of Madison Limestone are found. Near the north end of the canyon, at Mann Gulch and further north, alternating ridges and valleys reflect the alternating resistance of younger rock layers overlying the Madison Limestone. The entire canyon is an example of a superposed or antecedent stream, in which the river pre-dates the uplift of the rocks and kept pace with erosion as uplift occurred. ["River Log and Road Log: Thrust Faulting near Gates of the Mountains, Lombard, Lewis & Clark Canyon", Montana Geological Society 1994 Guidebook, James L. Cannon, Gary G. Thompson, and John R. Warne, editors]

References

External links

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