The Ansel Adams Wilderness is a wilderness area in the

Sierra Nevada The Sierra Nevada ( ) is a mountain range in the Western United States, between the Central Valley of California and the Great Basin. The vast majority of the range lies in the state of California, although the Carson Range spur lies primari ...

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

. The wilderness spans ; 33.9% of the territory lies in the Inyo National Forest, 65.8% is in the Sierra National Forest, and the remaining 0.3% covers nearly all of

Devils Postpile National Monument A devil is the personification of evil as it is conceived in many and various cultures and religious traditions. Devil or Devils may also refer to: * Satan * Devil in Christianity * Demon * Folk devil Art, entertainment, and media Film and ...

Yosemite National Park Yosemite National Park ( ) is a List of national parks of the United States, national park of the United States in California. It is bordered on the southeast by Sierra National Forest and on the northwest by Stanislaus National Forest. The p ...

lies to the north and northwest, while the

John Muir Wilderness The John Muir Wilderness is a wilderness area that extends along the crest of the Sierra Nevada of California for , in the Inyo National Forest, Inyo and Sierra National Forests. Established in 1964 by the Wilderness Act and named for naturalist ...

lies to the south.

History

The wilderness was established as part of the original

Wilderness Act The Wilderness Act of 1964 () is a federal land management statute meant to protect U.S. Wilderness Area, federal wilderness and to create a formal mechanism for designating wilderness. It was written by Howard Zahniser of The Wilderness Socie ...

in 1964 as the Minarets Wilderness. The Minarets Wilderness was created by enlarging and renaming the Mount Dana-Minarets Primitive Area. In 1984, after his death, the area was expanded and renamed in memory of

Ansel Adams Ansel Easton Adams (February 20, 1902 – April 22, 1984) was an American landscape photographer and environmentalist known for his Monochrome photography, black-and-white images of the American West. He helped found Group f/64, an association ...

, well-known environmentalist and nature photographer who is famous for his black-and-white landscape photographs of the Sierra Nevada.

Geography and geology

The Ansel Adams wilderness spans in elevation from , forming the northern end of the High Sierra. The centerpiece of the Ansel Adams wilderness is the Ritter Range, which includes dark metavolcanic

glaciated A glacier (; or ) is a persistent body of dense ice, a form of rock, that is constantly moving downhill under its own weight. A glacier forms where the accumulation of snow exceeds its ablation over many years, often centuries. It acquires d ...

mountains such as Mount Ritter, Banner Peak, and The Minarets. Immediately to the east of the Ritter Range is the Middle Fork of the

San Joaquin River The San Joaquin River ( ; ) is the longest river of Central California. The long river starts in the high Sierra Nevada and flows through the rich agricultural region of the northern San Joaquin Valley before reaching Suisun Bay, San Francis ...

, which contains

Devils Postpile A devil is the personification of evil as it is conceived in many and various cultures and religious traditions. Devil or Devils may also refer to: * Satan * Devil in Christianity * Demon * Folk devil Art, entertainment, and media Film and ...

, a series of basaltic columns that were revealed and smoothed by glacier action. The Middle Fork originates from Thousand Island Lake, at the foot of Banner Peak, one of the largest backcountry lakes in the Sierra. To the east of the Middle Fork canyon is the true Sierra Crest, which, at roughly of elevation is lower than the Ritter Range. This relatively low region of the Crest allows winter storms through and cause large amounts of snowfall on

Mammoth Mountain Mammoth Mountain is a lava dome complex partially located in the town of Mammoth Lakes, California, in the Inyo National Forest of Madera County, California, Madera and Mono County, California, Mono counties. It is home to a large Mammoth Mounta ...

, which sits in the gap. The gap also allows migration of plants and animals across the Sierra Crest. To the west of the Ritter Range lies the canyon of the North Fork of the San Joaquin, a relatively remote and unvisited high-country area. The southern part of the wilderness contains the deep canyon of the main San Joaquin River, which flows out of the Sierra Nevada to California's Central Valley. Panoramaanseladams

Climate

Ecology

The Ansel Adams wilderness contains substantial area above treeline, at approximately . The area above treeline contains alpine meadows and fellfields, with a large number of glacial lakes. Below treeline, the wilderness is dominated by

lodgepole pine ''Pinus contorta'', with the common names lodgepole pine and shore pine, and also known as twisted pine, and contorta pine, is a common tree in western North America. It is common near the ocean shore and in dry montane forests to the subalpin ...

, red fir, and

Jeffrey pine ''Pinus jeffreyi'', also known as Jeffrey pine, Jeffrey's pine, yellow pine and black pine, is a North American pine tree. It is mainly found in California, but also in the westernmost part of Nevada, southwestern Oregon, and northern Baja Califo ...

, depending on elevation. Alger Lakes Ansel Adams Wilderness

Recreation

The wilderness contains of hiking trails, including portions of the

John Muir John Muir ( ; April 21, 1838December 24, 1914), also known as "John of the Mountains" and "Father of the national park, National Parks", was a Scottish-born American naturalist, author, environmental philosopher, botanist, zoologist, glaciologi ...

and

Pacific Crest Trail The Pacific Crest Trail (PCT), officially designated as the Pacific Crest National Scenic Trail, is a long-distance hiking and equestrian trail closely aligned with the highest portion of the Cascade and Sierra Nevada mountain ranges, which lie ...

s. The Sierra High Route, an off-trail route described by Steve Roper, runs along the base of the Ritter Range, through the wilderness. The Middle Fork of the San Joaquin receives the most visitors: a mandatory bus is required for visitors to reach Devils Postpile from the

Mammoth Mountain Ski Area Mammoth Mountain Ski Area is a ski resort in eastern California, located on the east side of the Sierra Nevada, Sierra Nevada mountain range within the Inyo National Forest. The resort is located in the town of Mammoth Lakes, California. The res ...

during the summer. The Minarets are a well-known area for technical rock climbing. Winter brings various

cross-country ski Cross-country skiing is a form of skiing whereby skiers traverse snow-covered terrain without use of ski lifts or other assistance. Cross-country skiing is widely practiced as a sport and recreational activity; however, some still use it as a m ...

possibilities, accessible from both Mammoth Mountain and the June Mountain ski area.

References

Sierra National Forest Wilderness PageInyo National Forest

External links

Sierrawild.gov: Ansel Adams Wilderness website
*
Wilderness.net: Ansel Adams Wilderness

TopoQuest map of Ansel Adams Wilderness Area

{{Authority control Wilderness areas of California Protected areas of the Sierra Nevada (United States) Inyo National Forest Sierra National Forest Protected areas of Fresno County, California Protected areas of Madera County, California Protected areas of Mono County, California Protected areas established in 1964 1964 establishments in California Ansel Adams