The Chumash Wilderness is a

wilderness area Wilderness or wildlands (usually in the plural), are natural environments on Earth that have not been significantly modified by human activity or any nonurbanized land not under extensive agricultural cultivation. The term has traditionally re ...

within the southern

Los Padres National Forest Los Padres National Forest is a United States national forest in southern and central California. Administered by the United States Forest Service, Los Padres includes most of the mountainous land along the California coast from Ventura to Mo ...

. It is located in the

Transverse Ranges The Transverse Ranges are a group of mountain ranges of southern California, in the Pacific Coast Ranges physiographic region in North America. The Transverse Ranges begin at the southern end of the California Coast Ranges and lie within Santa ...

, in northern

Ventura County Ventura County () is a County (United States), county in Southern California, the southern part of the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census, the population was 843,843. The largest city is Oxnard, California ...

and southwestern

Kern County Kern County is a county located in the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 census, the population was 909,235. Its county seat is Bakersfield. Kern County comprises the Bakersfield, California, Metropolitan statistical area. The county sp ...

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...

. The wilderness was created by the U.S. Congress as part of the

Los Padres Condor Range and River Protection Act of 1992 The Los Padres Condor Range and River Protection Act of 1992 (Public Law 102-301) is a Federal law that established five new designated Wilderness Areas and three new designated Wild and Scenic Rivers in the Los Padres National Forest and Angele ...

(Public Law 102-301). The same legislation also established the Garcia, Machesna Mountain, Matilija, Sespe, and Silver Peak Wilderness areas.

Geography

The Chumash Wilderness includes most of the highest terrain in Ventura County. The nearest towns are in the

Mountain Communities of the Tejon Pass The Mountain Communities of the Tejon Pass, or the Frazier Mountain Communities, in the San Emigdio Mountains is a region of California that includes Lebec, Frazier Park, Lake of the Woods, Pinon Pines, and Pine Mountain Club, in Kern Count ...

region, including the unincorporated communities of Frazier Park to the east, Lockwood Valley and Cuddy Valley to the south,

Pine Mountain Club Pine Mountain Club is an unincorporated area and census-designated place in southwestern Kern County, California. As of the 2010 census it had a population of 2,315. It is one of the Mountain Communities of the Tejon Pass. Geography Pine Mount ...

to the north. The

Cuyama Valley The Cuyama Valley (Chumash: ''Kuyam'', meaning "Clam") is a valley along the Cuyama River in central California, in northern Santa Barbara, southern San Luis Obispo, southwestern Kern, and northwestern Ventura counties. It is about two hours ...

region is to the west The wilderness area extends from just west of the summit of Mount Pinos (8,831 ft/2,692 m) to

Cerro Noroeste Cerro Noroeste is a mountain located in Southern California's Kern County, a mile north of the Ventura County border. It is located a few miles southwest of the community of Pine Mountain Club, at an elevation of 8283 feet (2525+ m). The mountai ...

(Mount Abel) to the west, and south into the badlands north of Lockwood Valley Road. Since Mount Pinos, Cerro Noroeste, and the

are developed with paved roads, they did not qualify for inclusion in the wilderness, which wraps partially around them. The highest point in the Chumash Wilderness is

Sawmill Mountain Sawmill Mountain is located on the county line between Kern and Ventura counties in California. The mountain is located in the Chumash Wilderness and its summit is the highest point in Kern County and the second highest in the Los Padres Nationa ...

, at 8,818 ft (2,688 m). Major trailheads into the wilderness can be found at Mount Pinos as well as Cerro Noroeste/Mount Abel. From the Mount Pinos parking area, the wilderness trailhead is approximately 2 miles (3 km) along a dirt road with a locked gate. Vegetation within the wilderness includes

chaparral Chaparral ( ) is a shrubland plant community and geographical feature found primarily in the U.S. state of California, in southern Oregon, and in the northern portion of the Baja California Peninsula in Mexico. It is shaped by a Mediterranea ...

at lower elevations, and conifers at higher elevations. Some of the badlands near the southern edge of the wilderness are almost barren of vegetation, and include steep slopes with knife-edge ridges. Snow is frequent from fall until late spring at the highest elevations. Rain is rare in the summer, and wildfires are natural in the

fire ecology Fire ecology is a scientific discipline concerned with natural processes involving fire in an ecosystem and the ecological effects, the interactions between fire and the abiotic and biotic components of an ecosystem, and the role as an ecosystem ...

based

habitat In ecology, the term habitat summarises the array of resources, physical and biotic factors that are present in an area, such as to support the survival and reproduction of a particular species. A species habitat can be seen as the physical ...

s. Characteristic fauna of the wilderness include

black bear Black bear or Blackbear may refer to: Animals * American black bear (''Ursus americanus''), a North American bear species * Asian black bear (''Ursus thibetanus''), an Asian bear species Music * Black Bear (band), a Canadian First Nations group ...

mountain lion The cougar (''Puma concolor'') is a large cat native to the Americas. Its range spans from the Canadian Yukon to the southern Andes in South America and is the most widespread of any large wild terrestrial mammal in the Western Hemisphere. ...

bobcat The bobcat (''Lynx rufus''), also known as the red lynx, is a medium-sized cat native to North America. It ranges from southern Canada through most of the contiguous United States to Oaxaca in Mexico. It is listed as Least Concern on the ...

, as well as the endangered

California condor The California condor (''Gymnogyps californianus'') is a New World vulture and the largest North American land bird. It became extinct in the wild in 1987 when all remaining wild individuals were captured, but has since been reintroduced to nort ...

. The wilderness is at the heart of the historic range of this large

endangered species An endangered species is a species that is very likely to become extinct in the near future, either worldwide or in a particular political jurisdiction. Endangered species may be at risk due to factors such as habitat loss, poaching and inv ...

of scavengers.

References

External links

Wildernesses within the Los Padres National Forest

Description at Wilderness.net
{{Ventura County, California, state=collapsed Los Padres National Forest Mt. Pinos Ranger District, Los Padres National Forest Wilderness areas of California Protected areas of Ventura County, California Protected areas of Kern County, California Mountain Communities of the Tejon Pass Protected areas established in 1992 1992 establishments in California

Geography

See also

References

External links