White River National Forest

National forest in northwest Colorado

White River National Forest
The Maroon Bells in White River National Forest

Location	Colorado, United States
Nearest city	Glenwood Springs, CO
Coordinates	39°35′20″N 105°38′35″W / 39.589°N 105.643°W / 39.589; -105.643
Area	2,285,970 acres (9,251.0 km)
Established	June 28, 1902
Governing body	U.S. Forest Service
Website	White River National Forest

White River National Forest is a National Forest in northwest Colorado. It is named after the White River that passes through its northern section. It is the most visited National Forest in the United States, primarily from users of the twelve ski areas within its boundaries.

The forest contains 2,285,970 acres (3,571.8 sq mi, or 9,250.99 km). In descending order of land area it is located in parts of Eagle, Pitkin, Garfield, Summit, Rio Blanco, Mesa, Gunnison, Routt, and Moffat counties.

The White River National Forest provides significant habitat for deer, elk, mountain sheep, mountain goat, bear, mountain lion, bobcat, lynx, moose, raptors, waterfowl, trout and many other species of wildlife.

The forest contains 1,900 mi. (3,058 km) of forest system roads, 2,500 mi (4,023 km) of trails, and the Dillon, Green Mountain, Ruedi, and Homestake reservoirs.

The forest is managed from Forest Service offices in Glenwood Springs. There are local ranger district offices in Aspen, Carbondale, Eagle, Meeker, Minturn, Rifle, and Silverthorne.

The Dillon Ranger district, run out of Silverthorne, was transferred from the Arapahoe National Forest to the White River National Forest in 1998.

Wilderness areas

There are eight officially designated wilderness areas lying within White River National Forest that are part of the National Wilderness Preservation System. Five of them extend into neighboring National Forests (as indicated).

Collegiate Peaks Wilderness (the largest part in San Isabel NF; also partly in Gunnison NF)
Eagles Nest Wilderness
Flat Tops Wilderness (partly in Routt NF) (considered by some accounts the birthplace of the U.S. Wilderness Area system)
Holy Cross Wilderness (partly in San Isabel NF)
Hunter-Fryingpan Wilderness
Maroon Bells–Snowmass Wilderness (partly in Gunnison NF)
Ptarmigan Peak Wilderness
Raggeds Wilderness (mostly in Gunnison NF)

Ski areas

The following ski areas are located inside the forest:

Arapahoe Basin
Aspen Mountain
Aspen Highlands
Beaver Creek
Breckenridge
Buttermilk
Copper Mountain
Ski Cooper (divided between WRNF and San Isabel National Forest)
Keystone
Snowmass
Sunlight
Vail

Fourteeners

There are ten peaks with an elevation higher than 14,000 ft (4,267 m), colloquially known as 14ers in the forest:

Castle Peak 14,279 ft (4,352 m), Maroon Bells-Snowmass Wilderness, Elk Mountains
Grays Peak 14,278 ft (4,352 m), Front Range (bisected by White River National Forest and Arapahoe National Forest boundary)
Torreys Peak 14,274 ft (4,351 m), Front Range (also divided between WRNF and Arapahoe National Forest)
Quandary Peak, 14,271 ft (4,350 m) Tenmile Range
Capitol Peak 14,137 ft (4,309 m), Maroon Bells-Snowmass Wilderness, Elk Mountains
Maroon Peak, the higher of the two Maroon Bells summits, 14,163 ft (4,317 m), Maroon Bells-Snowmass Wilderness, Elk Mountains
Snowmass Mountain 14,099 ft (4,297 m), Maroon Bells-Snowmass Wilderness, Elk Mountains
Pyramid Peak 14,025 ft (4,275 m), Maroon Bells-Snowmass Wilderness, Elk Mountains
Mount of the Holy Cross 14,011 ft (4,271 m), Holy Cross Wilderness, Sawatch Range

The following two peaks are often included in lists of the Colorado fourteeners, but do not pass the 300 ft topographic prominence metric commonly used by U.S. Mountaineers:

North Maroon Peak, the lower of the two Maroon Bells Summits 14,019 ft (4,273 m), Maroon Bells-Snowmass Wilderness, Elk Mountains
Conundrum Peak, a neighboring summit of Castle Peak, 14,040 ft (4279 m), Maroon Bells-Snowmass Wilderness, Elk Mountains

References

Table 6 - NFS Acreage by State, Congressional District and County - United States Forest Service - September 30, 2007.
USFS Ranger Districts by State Retrieved June 16, 2018.
The Virtual Dillon Ranger District Retrieved June 16, 2018.

"White River has 70 Streams and 110 lakes for fish," June 10, 1937. (Colorado Historic Collection) Aspen Daily Times. "Recreation in the Forest ." March 1, 1945 (Colorado Historic Collection)

Axelton, John . Big Game Hunters Guide to Colorado. second ed. : Wilderness Adventures Press, 2008. (Google Books)

Forest Plan Focus, White River National Forest, August 1997. S.l.: s.n., 1997. (Google Books) Graves, Henry S.. Vacation days in Colorado's national forests. Washington: G.P.O., 1919.(Google Books)

N.p., n.d. Web. <www.nps.gov2Fthro2Fhistoryculture2Ftheodore-roosevelt-quotes.htm>.

External links

White River National Forest (United States Forest Service)

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Protected areas of Colorado

Federal

4 National Parks	Black Canyon of the Gunnison Great Sand Dunes Mesa Verde Rocky Mountain
9 National Monuments	Browns Canyon (BLM-USFS) Camp Hale-Continental Divide (USFS) Canyons of the Ancients (BLM) Chimney Rock (USFS) Colorado Dinosaur Florissant Fossil Beds Hovenweep Yucca House
3 National Historic Sites	Amache Bent's Old Fort Sand Creek Massacre
2 National Recreation Areas	Arapaho (USFS) Curecanti
1 Wild and Scenic River	Cache la Poudre River
4 National Historic Trails	California Trail Old Spanish Trail Pony Express Trail Santa Fe Trail
1 National Scenic Trail	Continental Divide Trail
11 National Forests	Arapaho Grand Mesa Gunnison Medicine Bow–Routt Pike Rio Grande Roosevelt San Isabel San Juan Uncompahgre White River
2 National Grasslands	Comanche Pawnee
44 National Wildernesses	Black Canyon of the Gunnison Black Ridge Canyons Buffalo Peaks Byers Peak Cache La Poudre Collegiate Peaks Comanche Peak Dominguez Canyon Eagles Nest Flat Tops Fossil Ridge Great Sand Dunes Greenhorn Mountain Gunnison Gorge Hermosa Creek Holy Cross Hunter–Fryingpan Indian Peaks James Peak La Garita Lizard Head Lost Creek Maroon Bells-Snowmass Mesa Verde Mount Evans Mount Massive Mount Sneffels Mount Zirkel Neota Never Summer Platte River Powderhorn Ptarmigan Peak Raggeds Rawah Rocky Mountain National Park Sangre de Cristo Sarvis Creek South San Juan Spanish Peaks Uncompahgre Vasquez Peak Weminuche West Elk
3 National Conservation Areas	Dominguez–Escalante Gunnison Gorge McInnis Canyons
8 National Wildlife Refuges	Alamosa Arapaho Baca Browns Park Monte Vista Rocky Flats Rocky Mountain Arsenal Two Ponds
3 National Heritage Areas	Cache la Poudre River Corridor Sangre de Cristo South Park
28 National Historic Landmarks	Beaver Meadows Visitor Center Bent's Old Fort Central City/Black Hawk Historic District Colorado Chautauqua Cripple Creek Historic District Cumbres and Toltec Scenic Railroad Denver Civic Center Durango and Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad Elitch Gardens Carousel Georgetown–Silver Plume Historic District Granada War Relocation Center Leadville Historic District Lindenmeier site Lowry Pueblo Ludlow Tent Colony Site Mesa Verde Administrative District Minnequa Steel Works Pikes Peak Pike's Stockade Raton Pass Red Rocks Park Shenandoah-Dives Mill Silverton Historic District Telluride Historic District Temple Aaron Trujillo Homesteads United States Air Force Academy, Cadet Area Winks Panorama
16 National Natural Landmarks	Big Spring Creek Garden of the Gods Garden Park Fossil Area Hanging Lake Indian Springs Trace Fossil Natural Area Lost Creek Scenic Area Morrison-Golden Fossil Areas Raton Mesa Roxborough Russell Lakes Sand Creek Slumgullion Earthflow Spanish Peaks Sulphur Cave and Spring Summit Lake West Bijou Site
National Register of Historic Places	National Register of Historic Places listings in Colorado

State

43 State Parks	Arkansas Headwaters Barr Lake Boyd Lake Castlewood Canyon Chatfield Cherry Creek Cheyenne Mountain Crawford Eldorado Canyon Eleven Mile Elkhead Fishers Peak Golden Gate Canyon Harvey Gap Highline Lake Jackson Lake James M. Robb - Colorado River John Martin Reservoir Lake Pueblo Lathrop Lone Mesa Lory Mancos Mueller Navajo North Sterling Paonia Pearl Lake Ridgway Rifle Falls Rifle Gap Roxborough Spinney Mountain St. Vrain Stagecoach State Forest Staunton Steamboat Lake Sweetwater Lake Sweitzer Lake Sylvan Lake Trinidad Lake Vega Yampa River
1 State Forest	State Forest
307 State Wildlife Areas	List of Colorado state wildlife areas
96 State Natural Areas	Aiken Canyon Antero-Salt Creek Arikaree River Badger Wash Blacks Gulch Blue Mountain-Little Thompson Fault Bonny Prairie Boulder Mountain Park Brush Creek Fen California Park Castlewood Canyon Chalk Bluffs Coal Creek Tallgrass Prairie Colorado Tallgrass Prairie Comanche Grassland Copeland Willow Carr Corral Bluffs Cross Mountain Canyon Dakota Hogback Deer Gulch Dome Rock Droney Gulch Duck Creek Dudley Bluffs East Lost Park East Sand Dunes Elephant Rocks Escalante Canyon Fairview Fourmile Creek Fruita Paleontological Garden Park Fossil Gateway Palisade Geneva Basin Iron Fens Gothic Gunnison Gravels Haviland Lake High Creek Fen High Mesa Grassland Hoosier Ridge Hurricane Canyon Indian Spring Indian Springs Trace Fossil Irish Canyon Jimmy Creek Ken-Caryl Ranch Kremmling Cretaceous Ammonite Limestone Ridge Lookout Mountain Lower Greasewood Creek McElmo Mexican Cut Mini-Wheeler Miramonte Reservoir Mishak Lakes Mount Callahan & Logan Wash Mine Mount Emmons Iron Bog Mount Goliath Narraguinnep Needle Rock North Park Phacelia Orient Mine Owl Canyon Pagosa Skyrocket Paradise Park Park Creek Hogback Pyramid Rock Rabbit Valley Rajadero Canyon Raven Ridge Redcloud Peak Rough Canyon Roxborough Ryan Gulch Saddle Mountain San Miguel River Sand Creek Shell Duck Creek Shell Rock Slumgullion Earthflow South Beaver Creek South Boulder Creek South Cathedral Bluffs Specimen Mountain Staunton Tamarack Ranch Treasurevault Mountain Trinidad K-T Boundary Two Buttes Unaweep Seep Wacker Ranch West Creek Wheeler Geologic White Rocks Yanks Gulch/Upper Greasewood Creek Natural Area Zapata Falls
26 Scenic and Historic Byways	Alpine Loop Cache la Poudre-North Park Collegiate Peaks Colorado River Headwaters Dinosaur Diamond Flat Tops Trail Frontier Pathways Gold Belt Tour Grand Mesa Guanella Pass Highway of Legends Lariat Loop Los Caminos Antiguos Mount Blue Sky Pawnee Pioneer Trails Peak to Peak San Juan Skyway Santa Fe Trail Silver Thread South Platte River Trail Top of the Rockies Tracks Across Borders Trail of the Ancients Trail Ridge Road/Beaver Meadow Unaweep Tabeguache West Elk Loop

Trails

28 National Recreation Trails

6 Regional Trails

Colorado Department of Natural Resources

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