Black Canyon Wilderness

Infobox_protected_area | name = Black Canyon Wilderness
iucn_category = Ib

---

caption =
locator_x = 30
locator_y = 37
location = Oregon, USA
nearest_city = Paulina, Oregon
lat_degrees = 44
lat_minutes = 20
lat_seconds = 13
lat_direction = N
long_degrees = 119
long_minutes = 39
long_seconds = 15
long_direction = W
area = convert|13400|acre|km2|1|sing=off
established = 1984
governing_body = United States Forest Service

Black Canyon Wilderness is a wilderness area in the Ochoco National Forest. It drainage basin of the South Fork of the John Day River. It lies in Grant and Wheeler counties of Oregon. The nearest city is Dayville, in Grant County. [http://www.fs.fed.us/r6/centraloregon/recreation/special/wilderness/blackcanyon.shtml Deschutes & Ochoco National Forests - Black Canyon Wilderness] ] It was established in 1984 and encompasses 13,400 acres (21 mi², 54 km²).

Topography

The elevation ranges from 2,850 to 6,483 feet (870–1975 m). There are about seventeen miles of developed trail; eighty percent of the wilderness has a grade exceeding thirty percent, typically steep canyons and sharp ridges. [http://gorp.away.com/gorp/resource/us_wilderness_area/or_black.htm Black Canyon Wilderness] - GORP] Three sides of the canyon reach elevations to convert|6000|ft|m|0|sing=off, while waters in the gorge have downcut through basalt lava, emptying into the South Fork of the John Day River at convert|2800|ft|m|0|sing=off. [http://www.publiclands.org/explore/site.php?id=4185&PHPSESSID=23cfeb7c9 Black Canyon Wilderness] - Public Lands Information Center]

Vegetation

Much of the Black Canyon Wilderness consists of a dry sagebrush environment, but ponderosa pine, mountain mahogany, juniper, and fir forests can also be explored.

Wildlife

A wide range of vegetative conditions in the Wilderness provide habitat for nearly 300 different species of wildlife, including Black Bear, cougar, deer, elk, and rattlesnake. Steelhead trout can be found in perennial streams, which they use for spawning. Wildflowers such as Crimson Columbine, Lupine, and Indian paintbrush flourish throughout the Wilderness. [ [http://www.wilderness.net/index.cfm?fuse=NWPS&sec=wildView&WID=52&tab=General Black Canyon Wilderness] - Wilderness.net]

References

See also

* List of Oregon Wildernesses
* List of U.S. Wilderness Areas
* Wilderness Act

External links

* [http://www.fs.fed.us/r6/centraloregon/recreation/special/wilderness/blackcanyon.shtml Black Canyon Wilderness] - Deschutes & Ochoco National Forests
* [http://www.publiclands.org/explore/site.php?id=4185&PHPSESSID=23cfeb7c9 Black Canyon Wilderness] - Public Lands Information Center