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Colorado

Grand Mesa National Forest

November 29, 2023 Raven About The Parks 3 Comments

Grand Mesa National Forest

Colorado

Managed by U.S. Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Region

351,715 acres (346,555 federal/ 5,160 other)

Website: https://www.fs.usda.gov/gmug

Overview

Covering 540 square-miles, Grand Mesa is the largest flattop mountain in the world and has an average elevation of 10,500 feet. It rises east of Grand Junction and is easily explored via paved Highway 65, also known as Grand Mesa Scenic Byway. Due to its high elevation, Grand Mesa National Forest is a popular destination for snowmobiles in the winter. This area was first set aside by President Harrison in 1892 as Battlement Mesa Forest Reserve, only the third such designation in U.S. history. It is now co-managed with Colorado’s Gunnison and Uncompahgre National Forests.

Highlights

Grand Mesa Scenic Byway, Land’s End Ranger Observatory, Ward Lake, Island Lake Interpretive Trail, Crag Crest National Recreation Trail, Eggleston Lake, Leon Peak, Battlement Trail

Must-Do Activity

Also covering a portion of Battlement Mesa, Grand Mesa National Forest contains more than 300 lakes, several of which have campgrounds. The Grand Mesa Visitor Center on Highway 65 near Island Lake is a great place to start, with a 20-minute film shown detailing the 1999 Land’s End archaeological excavation that found evidence of 8,000 years of human activity at 9,000 feet in elevation. Dirt roads travel east from there deeper into the National Forest, or you can take a side trip west on the Grand Mesa Scenic Byway to the visitor center at Land’s End Ranger Observatory for views all the way into Utah’s La Sal National Forest.

Best Trail

The best trail in Grand Mesa National Forest is without a doubt Crag Crest National Recreation Trail. It can be hiked as a 10.3-mile loop from two trailheads, one at Island Lake (paved access) and the other at Eggleston Lake (that requires some dirt road driving). The crest portion of the hike is the highlight as it follows a narrow ridge of volcanic rock that offers spectacular views. Due to its exposure and the high altitude (up to 11,189 feet) it is recommended that you get an early start to avoid afternoon thunderstorms. For those not wishing to do the entire loop, we found that by starting out counterclockwise from Eggleston Lake the trail climbs steeply providing panoramas within two miles. We completed five miles out-and-back with a cumulative elevation gain of 1,100 feet and felt we had gotten the full experience.

Watchable Wildlife

Trout fishing is one of the main draws to the 300 lakes in Grand Mesa National Forest. The lakes and streams also attract elk, mule deer, bighorn sheep, raccoons, red foxes, black bears, and mountain lions, in addition to large birds like bald eagles, golden eagles, peregrine falcons, common ravens, and wild turkeys. Due to its high elevation, look for pikas in the rocks along Crag Crest National Recreation Trail.

Instagram-worthy Photo

Starting counterclockwise on the Crag Crest National Recreation Trail from Eggleston Lake, we climbed to stunning panoramas within two miles.

Peak Season

Summer

Fees

None

Road Conditions

Grand Mesa Scenic Byway follows paved Highway 65 up above 10,000 feet in elevation, as well as west to Land’s End Ranger Observatory. The unpaved Land’s End Road continues switchbacking down the mesa to Highway 50, but is not recommended for vehicles more than 21 feet in length. The unpaved roads on Grand Mesa were in good shape during our June visit, but are closed in the winter.

Camping

There are campgrounds at several lakes in Grand Mesa National Forest, as well as dispersed camping options along the dirt roads.

Wilderness Areas

None

Related Sites

Gunnison National Forest (Colorado)

Colorado National Monument (Colorado)

Arapaho National Forest (Colorado)

Nearest National Park

Black Canyon of the Gunnison

Conifer Tree Species

Engelmann spruce, subalpine fir, Douglas-fir, two-needle pinyon pine, ponderosa pine

Flowering Tree Species

Gambel oak, quaking aspen, narrowleaf cottonwood, mountain-mahogany, chokecherry

Explore More – Now a geological term, what does “mesa” mean in Spanish?

Learn more about this and the 154 other National Forests in our new guidebook Out in the Woods

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Washington

Gifford Pinchot National Forest

October 18, 2023 Raven About The Parks 5 Comments

Gifford Pinchot National Forest

Washington

Managed by U.S. Forest Service, Pacific Northwest Region

1,409,966 acres (1,321,506 federal/ 88,460 other)

Website: https://www.fs.usda.gov/giffordpinchot/

Overview

First set aside as Mt. Rainier Forest Reserve in 1897, nearly one-million acres were renamed Columbia National Forest in 1908. It became Gifford Pinchot National Forest in 1949 to honor the chief of the U.S. Division of Forestry (1898-1905) and first chief of the U.S. Forest Service (1905-1910). The Yale graduate studied forestry in Europe and his family founded the Yale Forest School (see Grey Towers National Historic Site). Gifford Pinchot National Forest borders the Columbia River to the south, across from Oregon’s Mt. Hood National Forest. It stretches north to Mt. Rainier National Park and contains 12,276-foot Mt. Adams (the state’s second tallest volcano) and Mt. St. Helens, which was designated a National Monument after its eruption on Sunday, May 18, 1980. There are 1,475 miles of trails and more than 4,000 miles of roads in the National Forest, so there is plenty to explore outside the volcanoes.

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Highlights

Mt. St. Helens National Volcanic Monument, Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area, Silver Star Scenic Area, Lower Falls of the Lewis River, Tatoosh Range, Packwood Lake, Quartz Creek, Ape Cave, Langfield Falls, Horseshoe Lake, Panther Creek Falls, Ice Cave, Mt. Adams, Midway High Lakes Area, Takhlakh Lake, Lava Canyon Trail, Pacific Crest National Scenic Trail

Must-Do Activity

We will cover Mt. St. Helens National Volcanic Monument in a separate post, so here we will focus on the National Forest’s other attractions. North of Mt. St. Helens, a half-mile trail follows Quartz Creek through an old-growth forest of huge Douglas-firs. To the south, check out Lava Canyon Trail and Cedar Flats Research Natural Area where old-growth western redcedar trees are draped in lichen. There are numerous waterfalls in the National Forest, including dual Panther Creek Falls that drops 175 feet side by side and the triple Falls Creek Falls that cascades 150 feet. This lush region is also known for its berry picking, especially the renowned Sawtooth Berry Fields.

Best Trail

Ape Cave is a lava tube located south of Mt. St. Helens, which at 2.5 miles is the third longest in North America. The cave is not named for a fossil discovery, but rather the local outdoors club that explored its interior in the 1950s after its discovery. It is believed that the lava tube formed during a basaltic flow 1,900 years ago. Ape Cave Trail is a National Recreation Trail receiving approximately 170,000 visitors annually (a timed reservation is required). There are two layers to the cave, a smoother 0.8-mile upper level and a rougher 1.5-mile lower level that requires scaling an eight-foot lava wall. Bundle up if you visit, as the underground temperature is 42°F year round. The 650-foot-long Ice Cave is another lava tube known for its ice stalactites in spring (reservation required).

Watchable Wildlife

Located on the rainy side of the Cascades, Gifford Pinchot National Forest receives plenty of precipitation to feed its many rivers, including the glacier-fed White Salmon National Wild and Scenic River. Four species of fish identified as threatened inhabit this region’s waters: bull trout, steelhead, chinook salmon, and coho salmon. Another threatened species, the northern spotted owl requires buffer zones around its nests. Mammals of Gifford Pinchot National Forest include elk, black-tailed deer, black bears, bobcats, and several species of marmots. The wettest parts of the forest, especially in riparian corridors, have a variety of frogs, salamanders, and newts.

Instagram-worthy Photo

There are numerous waterfalls in this forest due to its high annual rainfall and steep elevation gradients.

Peak Season

Summer

Fees

An America the Beautiful Pass or Northwest Forest Pass ($5 day use) is required at many parking areas in the National Forest, including Ice Cave and Ape Cave (where a timed reservation is required from recreation.gov).

Road Conditions

The major roads are paved to viewpoints in Mt. St. Helens National Volcanic Monument, but there are plenty of unpaved roads throughout the National Forest, some requiring high-clearance vehicles.

Camping

Iron Creek Campground north of Mt. St. Helens has two short trails, a quarter-mile trail through old-growth forest and one that follows a river 1.5 miles under a canopy of Douglas-fir and western redcedar. Dispersed camping is allowed throughout the National Forest, and we have camped here to avoid the crowds while visiting the beautiful waterfalls of Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area, part of Gifford Pinchot National Forest and Oregon’s Mt. Hood National Forest.

Wilderness Areas

Dark Divide Roadless Area

Glacier View Wilderness

Goat Rocks Wilderness (also in Wenatchee National Forest)

Indian Heaven Wilderness

Mount Adams Wilderness

Tatoosh Wilderness

Trapper Creek Wilderness

William O. Douglas Wilderness (also in Wenatchee National Forest)

Ross Lake National Recreation Area (Washington)

Fort Vancouver National Historic Site (Washington)

Nearest National Park

Mount Rainier

Conifer Tree Species

Douglas-fir, western redcedar, Pacific silver fir, noble fir, subalpine fir, mountain hemlock, western hemlock, whitebark pine, lodgepole pine, Alaska yellow-cedar

Flowering Tree Species

balsam poplar, paper birch, willow, red alder, bigleaf maple, Pacific rhododendron

Explore More – In addition to the White Salmon River, which four other waterways in the National Forest have been recommended to be added to the Wild and Scenic River System?

Learn more about this and the 154 other National Forests in our guidebook Out in the Woods

Alaska

Lake Clark National Park and Preserve

September 13, 2023 Raven About The Parks 2 Comments

Lake Clark National Park and Preserve

Alaska

Managed by National Park Service

Established 1978 National Monument, 1980 National Park

4,030,025 acres

Website: nps.gov/lacl

Overview

Lake Clark National Park and Preserve is inaccessible by road and receives only about 15,000 visitors annually. It sits at the northern end of the massive Alaska Peninsula southwest of Anchorage, home to the twin 10,000-foot volcanoes Redoubt and Iliamna. Cloaked in the whitest of snow, on a clear day they dominate the skyline view from a boat bobbing in Cook Inlet or a vehicle driving the Sterling Highway. Behind the mountains lies massive Lake Clark itself, as well as the Twin Lakes made famous in the film Alone in the Wilderness and the book One Man’s Wilderness that both documented Richard “Dick” Proenneke’s cabin building and backcountry lifestyle (see our list of the Top 10 Non-Fiction Books Set in a National Park and Alaska). Many visitors take flightseeing tours and never step foot on the ground, but that does not make their experience any less extraordinary.

Learn more in the expanded 2nd edition of our guidebook to the National Parks— A Park to Yourself: Finding Solitude in America’s 63 National Parks.

Highlights

Redoubt Volcano, Iliamna Volcano, Port Alsworth, Lake Clark, Richard Proenneke Historic Site, Double Glacier

Must-Do Activity

You can easily see the twin 10,000-foot volcanoes (Redoubt and Iliamna) within the park from Anchorage or Homer on a clear day, but getting to them is no easy task. Your best bet is to take a float plane charter service and land on one of the big, glacier-fed lakes. While you are over there try to do some salmon fishing; that is why the brown bears and bald eagles like it here. The park’s visitor center is in Port Alsworth on Lake Clark, and another popular destination is Richard Proenneke Historic Site on Twin Lakes. The park’s best attraction may be the massive glaciers that cling to the peaks of the Alaska and Aleutian Ranges and the Chigmit and Neacola Mountains. Flying over a jagged glacial field offers a unique perspective on these giant rivers of ice and the boulder strewn valleys where gray, milky streams follow the wide pathways left by receded glaciers.

Best Trail

At the park’s visitor center in Port Alsworth, 2.5-mile Tanalian Falls Trail is the only officially maintained trail and a popular destination for backpackers. At Richard Proenneke Historic Site, we hiked the scenic and steep Teetering Rock Trail less than a mile up to its namesake boulder that moves when you push on it.

Instagram-worthy Photo

Viewed from above, Double Glacier appears cracked and fissured like the skin on the back of a human hand. Rocky debris in lines of black accentuate the frozen white that hint at the slow flow of the ice river down the valley. Deeper crevasses reflect a cerulean shade that bewilders the eye in this otherwise monochrome landscape.

Peak Season

Summer

Hours

https://www.nps.gov/lacl/planyourvisit/hours.htm

Fees

None, but it is expensive to access by airplane. We took Kachemak Air Service to Twin Lakes and Talon Air Service to Double Glacier and Big River Lakes/Wolverine Creek.

Road Conditions

Essentially, there are no roads in Lake Clark National Park and Preserve.

Camping

No designated campgrounds exist within the park, so backcountry campers must come prepared with everything they need, plus the supplies required to wait an extra week for pickup should the weather turn bad.

Chugach National Forest (Alaska)

Kenai Fjords National Park (Alaska)

Explore More – Before this area was a National Park, when did Richard “Dick” Proenneke arrive at Twin Lakes to begin building his cabin?

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Oklahoma, Texas

Black Kettle National Grassland

August 16, 2023 Raven About The Parks 4 Comments

Black Kettle National Grassland

Oklahoma, Texas

Managed by U.S. Forest Service, Southern Region

33,113 acres (31,286 federal/ 1,827 other)

Website: https://www.fs.usda.gov/detail/cibola/home/?cid=stelprdb5397425

Overview

Like Cimarron National Grassland in Kansas, Black Kettle National Grassland was purchased by the federal government during the 1930s Dust Bowl. This is one of the only National Grasslands with a visitor center, shared with the National Park Service (NPS) who manages Washita Battlefield National Historic Site at the site of an 1868 massacre that took the life of Chief Black Kettle of the Southern Cheyenne. Even though the downstairs U.S. Forest Service office was closed on our Saturday visit, the NPS ranger at the desk provided a map and information on the National Grassland. We also walked the paved interpretive trail at the visitor center that explained homesteading, prescribed burning, and preserving the rare shinnery oak species.

Highlights

Black Kettle Recreation Area, Lake Marvin, Spring Creek Lake, Croton Creek Watchable Wildlife Area, Skipout Lake, Cheyenne Nature Walk

Must-Do Activity

Recreation here surrounds four reservoirs, including a tiny parcel around 63-acre Lake Marvin in Texas. In Oklahoma, there are 60-acre Skipout Lake, 50-acre Spring Creek Lake, and 80-acre Dead Warrior Lake. Fishing, picnicking, and free primitive camping are allowed at all four reservoirs, with a 1.75-mile trail circling Skipout Lake and wooded trails south of Dead Warrior Lake in Black Kettle Recreation Area.

Best Trail

Unlike some other National Grasslands, there are multiple marked and maintained trails here, including two loops totaling 1.6 miles at Croton Creek Watchable Wildlife Area (south of Highway 47) lined by small signs describing native grasses, trees, and birds. A slightly hidden trail is shown on the Forest Service app in the town of Cheyenne where a sidewalk heads into the woods leaving from the parking lot at the high school baseball field. The Cheyenne Nature Walk is paved and has a gazebo and boardwalk crossing a wetland area that was dry during our May visit.

Watchable Wildlife

Three unique bird species we spotted during our May visit were Mississippi kites, northern bobwhite quail, and scissor-tailed flycatchers. In addition, we saw cardinals and woodpeckers, and heard whippoorwills, barn owls, and barred owls overnight. Wild turkeys, cedar waxwings, and lesser prairie chickens are also among the 277 bird species identified. Tracks of white-tailed deer and raccoons were abundant on the Croton Creek Trail, plus there are bobcats, mountain lions, and beavers in the area. Fishermen can catch black bass, saugeye, catfish, and other types of pan fish.

Instagram-worthy Photo

This area is more heavily wooded than some other prairie National Grasslands, which can be experienced on the Croton Creek Trail and Cheyenne Nature Walk (watch for poison-ivy).

Peak Season

Spring and fall

Fees

None

Road Conditions

Highways 283, 33, and 47 are paved roads that run through the National Grassland, and despite abundant spring rainstorms, we did not have any difficulty with the unpaved roads.

Camping

All four lakes offer free primitive campsites with some picnic tables, as does Croton Creek Watchable Wildlife Area where we stayed only six miles west of Cheyenne. RV campsites with hookups at Lake Marvin cost $20 a night.

Alibates Flint Quarries National Monument (Texas)

Cimarron National Grassland (Kansas)

Nearest National Park

Great Sand Dunes

Explore More – The South Canadian River flows north of Black Kettle National Grassland, but what is the river that runs through the middle of it?

South Carolina

Francis Marion National Forest

July 12, 2023 Raven About The Parks 3 Comments

Francis Marion National Forest

South Carolina

Managed by U.S. Forest Service, Southern Region

414,700 acres (258,864 federal/ 155,836 other)

Website: https://www.fs.usda.gov/scnfs

Overview

Located on South Carolina’s coast between Myrtle Beach and Charleston, Francis Marion National Forest was devastated by the 130-mile-per-hour winds of Hurricane Hugo in 1989. Young and damaged trees have grown back in the subtropical coniferous and maritime forests, although some attractions like the Sewee Shell Ring Boardwalk have never been rebuilt. Other historic sites in the National Forest include the 1768 St. James Church, Battery Warren from the Civil War, and Watahan Historical Area, which has colonial plantations and the site of a 1782 Revolutionary War battle. On the Santee River, Guilliard Lake Scenic Area has three trails that visit an old-growth baldcypress forest, but the National Forest’s four Wildernesses are mostly inaccessible wetlands.

Highlights

Sewee Visitor and Environmental Education Center, Buck Hall Recreation Area, Battery Warren Historic Site, Huger Recreation Area, Honey Hill Recreation Area, I’on Swamp Interpretive Trail, Shell Ring Trail, Palmetto Trail

Must-Do Activity

Sewee Visitor and Environmental Education Center is a good place to start a visit, and includes an exhibit on reintroducing red wolves. Not far away, Sewee Shell Ring Boardwalk was never rebuilt after Hurricane Hugo in 1989, but the trail to the boardwalk remains open (despite what you might read online). A one-mile loop trail takes visitors to a 4,000-year-old ceremonial ring made of oyster shells and a 600-year-old shell midden, but no longer out into the salt marsh. Another historic walk is the I’on Swamp Interpretive Trail where signs explain the embankments and ditches built by slaves to create rice paddies.

Best Trail

A free permit is required to backpack the Palmetto Trail on its 47-mile stretch through Francis Marion National Forest. The easternmost seven miles of this statewide trail was opened in 2003 running from the Swamp Fox Trailhead to Buck Hall Recreation Area (fee) on the Intracoastal Waterway bordering Cape Romain National Wildlife Refuge. Both trailheads are easily accessible from Highway 17. This sandy section of the Palmetto Trail is known as the Awendaw Passage because it follows Awendaw Creek for most of its length. There are bridges and boardwalks built over the wettest areas, but very few good places to set up a campsite due to the density of the forest understory.

Watchable Wildlife

We saw a variety of wildlife in Francis Marion National Forest, including coastal species you do not find in any other National Forest, like crabs and mussels. The salt marshes provide habitat for large birds like Mississippi kites, ospreys, little blue herons, and great egrets. We spotted red-headed woodpeckers and pileated woodpeckers, and there are also endangered red-cockaded woodpeckers. While backpack camping, we saw fireflies, bats, fox squirrels, and a seldom-seen whippoorwill, a bird known for its distinctive, repetitive calls at night. In Awendaw Creek, we saw a muskrat and four-foot-long rat snake, but did not find any alligators or river otters.

Instagram-worthy Photo

Battery Warren was built by slaves during the Civil War so soldiers could defend the railroad bridge across the Santee River. The earth embankments are still visible at the end of a short trail maintained by the U.S. Forest Service.

Peak Season

Spring

Fees

There is a fee to park and launch a boat at Buck Hall Recreation Area. A free permit (available online) is required to backpack camp on the Palmetto Trail in Francis Marion National Forest.

Road Conditions

The main roads cutting through the National Forest are paved, and even the unpaved roads we drove were flat, packed sand.

Camping

Buck Hall Campground is located at a boat launch on the Intracoastal Waterway, while scenic Edmund Campground has Spanish moss-draped trees near the northern end of Wambaw Creek Wilderness. Huger Campground and Halfway Campground are located along the Palmetto Trail. Extensive wetlands and thick woodlands make dispersed camping and backpacking difficult in Francis Marion National Forest.

Wilderness Areas

Hell Hole Bay Wilderness

Little Wambaw Swamp Wilderness

Wambaw Creek Wilderness

Wambaw Swamp Wilderness

Related Sites

Fort Sumter and Fort Moultrie National Historical Park (South Carolina)

Reconstruction Era National Historical Park (South Carolina)

Charles Pinckney National Historic Site (South Carolina)

Croatan National Forest (North Carolina)

Nearest National Park

Congaree

Conifer Tree Species

baldcypress, longleaf pine, shortleaf pine, loblolly pine

Flowering Tree Species

tulip-poplar, sweetgum, American holly, yaupon holly, live oak, overcup oak, water oak, cherrybark oak, willow oak, southern red oak, white oak, American beech, green ash, red bay, red buckeye, swamp cottonwood, water tupelo, water locust, water hickory, bitternut hickory, sweet bay magnolia, Carolina willow, titi, southern bayberry

Explore More – What was Francis Marion’s nickname earned by employing guerilla tactics against the British during the American Revolutionary War?

Learn more about this and the 154 other National Forests in our new guidebook Out in the Woods

We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites.

Grand Mesa National Forest

Gifford Pinchot National Forest

Lake Clark National Park and Preserve

Black Kettle National Grassland

Francis Marion National Forest

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