Popo Agie Wilderness ( )Locally "po-PO-zha" according to Don Pitcher, 2006, ''Moon Handbooks Wyoming,'' p. 26

/ref>More ambiguous transcription of "po-po-zsha" at is located within Shoshone National Forest,

Wyoming Wyoming ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States, Western United States. It borders Montana to the north and northwest, South Dakota and Nebraska to the east, Idaho t ...

, United States. The wilderness consists of on the east side of the continental divide in the Wind River Range. Originally set aside as a primitive area in 1932, in 1984 the Wyoming Wilderness Act was passed securing a more permanent protection status for the wilderness. The wilderness is a part of the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem. U.S. Wilderness Areas do not allow motorized or mechanized vehicles, including bicycles. Although

camping Camping is a form of outdoor recreation or outdoor education involving overnight stays with a basic temporary shelter such as a tent. Camping can also include a recreational vehicle, sheltered cabins, a permanent tent, a shelter such as a Bivy bag ...

and fishing are allowed with proper permit, no roads or buildings are constructed and there is also no

logging Logging is the process of cutting, processing, and moving trees to a location for transport. It may include skidder, skidding, on-site processing, and loading of trees or trunk (botany), logs onto logging truck, trucksmining Mining is the Resource extraction, extraction of valuable geological materials and minerals from the surface of the Earth. Mining is required to obtain most materials that cannot be grown through agriculture, agricultural processes, or feasib ...

, in compliance with the 1964 Wilderness Act. Wilderness areas within National Forests and Bureau of Land Management areas also allow hunting in season. Popo Agie Wilderness Wind River Range

The Popo Agie Wilderness is a primarily sub-alpine and alpine region with the minimum elevation of . Twenty mountains exceed , with the highest being Wind River Peak at . Perhaps the most visited area within the wilderness and the entire Wind River Range is the

Cirque of the Towers The Cirque of the Towers is located in the Wind River Range Wyoming, U.S., part of which is in the Bridger Wilderness in Bridger-Teton National Forest, while the remainder is in the Popo Agie Wilderness in Shoshone National Forest. Located in th ...

due to the impressive

granitic A granitoid is a broad term referring to a diverse group of coarse-grained igneous rocks that are widely distributed across the globe, covering a significant portion of the Earth's exposed surface and constituting a large part of the continental ...

mountains and sheer cliffs which attract climbers from all over the world. Overuse has led to camping restrictions within the wilderness, especially in the proximity of Lonesone Lake which is located in the Cirque of the Towers. The wilderness spans a section of the southern Wind River Range. Over 300 lakes and several tributaries of the Wind River are located in the wilderness. Rare reports of

wolves The wolf (''Canis lupus''; : wolves), also known as the grey wolf or gray wolf, is a canine native to Eurasia and North America. More than thirty subspecies of ''Canis lupus'' have been recognized, including the dog and dingo, though gr ...

have been documented and are considered to be from the wolf recovery efforts commenced in the late 20th century in

Yellowstone National Park Yellowstone National Park is a List of national parks of the United States, national park of the United States located in the northwest corner of Wyoming, with small portions extending into Montana and Idaho. It was established by the 42nd U ...

to the north. Additionally, reports of

grizzly bear The grizzly bear (''Ursus arctos horribilis''), also known as the North American brown bear or simply grizzly, is a population or subspecies of the brown bear inhabiting North America. In addition to the mainland grizzly (''Ursus arctos horr ...

s have been documented but they too are rare. Black bears,

moose The moose (: 'moose'; used in North America) or elk (: 'elk' or 'elks'; used in Eurasia) (''Alces alces'') is the world's tallest, largest and heaviest extant species of deer and the only species in the genus ''Alces''. It is also the tal ...

, elk, and pronghorn are the more commonly sighted

megafauna In zoology, megafauna (from Ancient Greek, Greek μέγας ''megas'' "large" and Neo-Latin ''fauna'' "animal life") are large animals. The precise definition of the term varies widely, though a common threshold is approximately , this lower en ...

. Trumpeter swans, bald eagles, hawks, and falcons inhabit the wilderness, especially near lakes and streams. Eight species and subspecies of trout, including a few found only in the Yellowstone region exist as well. The forest is dominated by lodgepole pine and Douglas fir, Engelmann Spruce, and subalpine fir at higher elevations up to the

tree line The tree line is the edge of a habitat at which trees are capable of growing and beyond which they are not. It is found at high elevations and high latitudes. Beyond the tree line, trees cannot tolerate the environmental conditions (usually low ...

. The closest town is Lander, Wyoming. Access into the wilderness from the north via the Wind River Indian Reservation requires obtaining a permit before entering.

References

External links

* * {{Protected Areas of Wyoming Protected areas of Fremont County, Wyoming IUCN Category Ib Shoshone National Forest Protected areas of Sublette County, Wyoming Wilderness areas of Wyoming Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem 1984 establishments in Wyoming Protected areas established in 1984 Wind River Indian Reservation

See also

References

External links