King Range Wilderness
Encyclopedia
The King Range Wilderness is a 42585 acres (172 km²) federally designated wilderness area within the King Range National Conservation Area in northern California
, United States. The area was set aside with the passage of the Northern California Coastal Wild Heritage Wilderness Act
of 2006 (Public Law 109-362). The Bureau of Land Management
is the responsible agency and is currently working on a Management Plan for the King Range Wilderness. This section of California's coastline is known as the "Lost Coast
", a landscape too rugged for highway building, which forced the construction of State Highway 1
and U.S. 101 inland. The King Range Wilderness is the longest undeveloped coast, outside of Alaska, in the United States.
The Act of 2006 also set aside an area three geographical miles offshore as the Rocks and Islands Wilderness. It is the smallest wilderness area in the National Wilderness Preservation System
, with a total size of five acres.
The King Range is part of the Coast Ranges mountains and has the greatest relief in the shortest distance of all coast ranges in the state. In the lateral distance of three miles (5 km), the King Range rises from sea level to over 4000 feet (1,219.2 m).
There are four areas of botanical significance: Old growth forest
of Douglas-fir
on the east slopes of King Range, dune system of the Mattole River
, undisturbed coastal prairie, and coastal stands of reedgrass
.
Wildlife include black-tailed deer
, black bear
, mountain lion, and the re-introduced Roosevelt elk
. Bird species are quail
, grouse
and dove. Also hawks, turkey vulture
s and osprey
.
Marine animals include harbor seal
s, Stellar and California sea lion
s,and sea otter
.
The Honeydew Creek Wildlife Preserve protects 2980 acres (12 km²) of habitat north of King Peak for bald eagle
, Northern spotted owl
, mink and anadromous fish
.
sites in the coastal area are no older than 2,800 years, possibly because of geological uplifting and soil erosion. Early Native American
artifacts found in the King Range suggest settlement by the Wiyot, then the Yurok by A.D. 1100. More recently, the Mattole, Sinkyone and Bear River peoples have lived in the area.
From the 1570s through the 1800s, Spanish, American and Russian explorers and fur-trappers came to the area. By the 1880s, ranches and farms were supplying the demands of the mining communities and the growing settlements. Remains of old homestead ruins and their orchards can still be found throughout the King Range.
With the advent of mechanized equipment, the area became more accessible, and the Douglas-fir
forests supplied lumber and an economic boom was underway by the 1940s with Humboldt County
being the largest supplier in the state.
Fishing also became a large economic industry, especially for salmon
.
On December 10, 1929, President Herbert Hoover
issued Executive Order 5237 at the request of the state that withdrew several parcels from settlement as public land. California's State Division of Beaches and Parks saw recreational potential in the King Range, but the land remained unclassified until the 1950s. Congressman Clem Miller
introduced a bill in 1961 to establish the national conservation area, and had support from organizations such as the Sierra Club
and the Mattole Action Committee. Although Congressman Miller died in a plane crash in 1962, another member of Congress, Don Clausen, continued Miller's work and the bill was signed into law by 1970.
Although the inland areas can have summer temperatures over 100oF, the cold waters of the Pacific Ocean moderates coastal temperatures to an average of 60oF. The extreme vertical rise of the mountains create intense rainshowers, (called orographic
and means terrain-induced), caused by the lifting of storms as they approach the steep topography. The watersheds are flooded regularly as a result. There are weather anomalies here also; less coastal fog than other coastal parts of the state, and the prevailing wind is from the northeast-east instead of westerly.
's mainstem is 62 miles (99.8 km) in length and has more than 74 tributaries. It has historically had large runs of salmon
and steelhead trout
, but due to past logging, road building and severe floods in 1955 and 1964, all of which impacted the river, fish numbers have declined. The coho salmon is a federally listed threatened species (Southern Oregon/Northern California populations) that use the Mattole River and its tributary, Mill Creek. Increased sediment and lack of tree cover reduced the quality and quantity of fish habitat by increasing summer water temperatures. The Environmental Protection Agency added the Mattole River to the state's list of impaired watersheds in 1992.
The Mattole estuary
is where the waters of the land meet and mix with the tidewaters of the Pacific Ocean, and acts as a settling basin for both river sediment
and sand from ocean waves, and will eventually fill to become a meadow. The Bureau of Land Management designated the Mattole Estuary as an "Area of Critical Environmental Concern" in 1981. This area, now at more than 650 acres (2.6 km²), has significant cultural, historic, wildlife and habitat resources.
The watershed
, or catchbasin of the river has been seriously impacted from past road building, and restoration efforts include abandonment of some roadways as well as reshaping and upgrading of others.
Other fish species in the Mattole River include the Pacific lamprey, threespine sickleback, and the starry flounder.
The historic Punta Gorda Light
house located near the estuary of the Mattole River.
Restoration efforts by both public land agencies and nonprofit groups has been going on since the 1970s with the restoration projects focused on the Mattole River, its estuary, tributaries, and the river's lower reach area.
trees. Reforestation was not practiced and a large percentage of the previously harvested land was left to regenerate naturally. Tanoak and madronetrees now dominate what had once been old-growth
Douglas-fir forest. Several areas were planted after acquisition by the BLM, including the Bear Trap Creek area (125,000 Douglas-fir trees on 200 acre (0.809372 km²) since 1985.) Other vegetation in the area include knobcone pine
, laurel, manzanita, poison oak, blackberry, Oregon grape and salal
.
Several varieties of mushrooms occur in the King Range including matsutake
, which grows under the closed-canopy tanoak stands. The edible matsutake mushroom is collected for personal and commercial use and a collection permit is required.
Another important plant found here is beargrass, used by Native Americans historically and continuing in the present, for basketry. The BLM's Final Environmental Impact Report recommends beargrass habitat improvements, such as controlled burning and brush removal, to increase growth which would reduce harvesting pressure on existing limited distribution of the plant.
Other native coastal grasses include reedgrass (a state-listed rare plant), oatgrass and bentgrass, all of which form the coastal prairie plant community.
established the California Coastal National Monument (CCNM) on January 11, 2000 under the authority of the Antiquities Act of 1906
.The purpose of the CCNM, as stated in the Presidential Proclamation, is to protect and manage biological and geological resources by protecting “all unappropriated or unreserved lands and interest in the lands owned or controlled by the United States in the form of islands, rocks, exposed reefs, and
pinnacles above mean high tide within 12 nautical miles (22.2 km) of the shoreline of the State of California.” The proclamation also functions to elevate California’s offshore lands to a national level of concern and focuses management on protection of geologic features and lifeforms. The CCNM has more than 20,000 rocks and islands and extends more than 1000 acres (4 km²) along California's coast.
The bill (H.R.2277) sums up the reason for the wilderness with four points:
The Lost Coast National Recreation Trail is almost 25 miles in length and is mostly level beachwalking. The trail is described by the nonprofit group, American Trails, as a " serious backpacking trek." Much of the route is along the beach but there are some challenging sections. Large and often slippery boulders must be negotiated in some areas. At several places along the trail, creeks bisect as they drain from the westside canyons into the ocean. Campsites along the trail are on sandy river shoals at these creek crossings, just above sea level and some yards back from the shoreline. These are also the only fresh water locations along the trail. Tide table
s are needed as parts of the trail are impassable at high tide.
A new self-service permit system is now in place affecting hikers and backpackers who plan to spend at least one night in the back country, including the Lost Coast Trail.
The free permits, which also serve as California campfire permits, are available in self-service boxes at King Range trailheads, the King Range Project office, and at the Bureau of Land Management Arcata Field office in Arcata, California
.
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
, United States. The area was set aside with the passage of the Northern California Coastal Wild Heritage Wilderness Act
Northern California Coastal Wild Heritage Wilderness Act
The Northern California Coastal Wild Heritage Wilderness Act is a U.S. federal law enacted in 2006 that enlarged existing wilderness boundaries and created new wilderness areas for protection under the National Wilderness Preservation System...
of 2006 (Public Law 109-362). The Bureau of Land Management
Bureau of Land Management
The Bureau of Land Management is an agency within the United States Department of the Interior which administers America's public lands, totaling approximately , or one-eighth of the landmass of the country. The BLM also manages of subsurface mineral estate underlying federal, state and private...
is the responsible agency and is currently working on a Management Plan for the King Range Wilderness. This section of California's coastline is known as the "Lost Coast
Lost Coast
The Lost Coast is a mostly undeveloped section of the California North Coast in Mendocino and Humboldt Counties, which includes the King Range. It was named the "Lost Coast" after the area experienced depopulation in the 1930s...
", a landscape too rugged for highway building, which forced the construction of State Highway 1
California State Route 1
State Route 1 , more often called Highway 1, is a state highway that runs along much of the Pacific coast of the U.S. state of California. It is famous for running along some of the most beautiful coastlines in the world, leading to its designation as an All-American Road.Highway 1 does not run...
and U.S. 101 inland. The King Range Wilderness is the longest undeveloped coast, outside of Alaska, in the United States.
The Act of 2006 also set aside an area three geographical miles offshore as the Rocks and Islands Wilderness. It is the smallest wilderness area in the National Wilderness Preservation System
National Wilderness Preservation System
The National Wilderness Preservation System of the United States protects federally managed land areas designated for preservation in their natural condition. It was established by the Wilderness Act upon the signature of President Lyndon B. Johnson on September 3, 1964...
, with a total size of five acres.
The King Range is part of the Coast Ranges mountains and has the greatest relief in the shortest distance of all coast ranges in the state. In the lateral distance of three miles (5 km), the King Range rises from sea level to over 4000 feet (1,219.2 m).
There are four areas of botanical significance: Old growth forest
Old growth forest
An old-growth forest is a forest that has attained great age , and thereby exhibits unique ecological features. An old growth forest has also usually reached a climax community...
of Douglas-fir
Douglas-fir
Douglas-fir is one of the English common names for evergreen coniferous trees of the genus Pseudotsuga in the family Pinaceae. Other common names include Douglas tree, and Oregon pine. There are five species, two in western North America, one in Mexico, and two in eastern Asia...
on the east slopes of King Range, dune system of the Mattole River
Mattole River
The Mattole River is a river on the north coast of California, that flows northerly, then westerly into the Pacific Ocean. A short section of the river flows through upper Mendocino County, but the vast majority of its 62-mile run is through southern Humboldt County...
, undisturbed coastal prairie, and coastal stands of reedgrass
Calamagrostis foliosa
Calamagrostis foliosa is a species of grass known by the common name leafy reedgrass.It is endemic to northern California, where it grows in the forests and scrub on the coastline. This perennial grass produces a tuft of stems 30 to 60 centimeters tall. The leaves are mostly located about the base...
.
Wildlife include black-tailed deer
Deer
Deer are the ruminant mammals forming the family Cervidae. Species in the Cervidae family include white-tailed deer, elk, moose, red deer, reindeer, fallow deer, roe deer and chital. Male deer of all species and female reindeer grow and shed new antlers each year...
, black bear
American black bear
The American black bear is a medium-sized bear native to North America. It is the continent's smallest and most common bear species. Black bears are omnivores, with their diets varying greatly depending on season and location. They typically live in largely forested areas, but do leave forests in...
, mountain lion, and the re-introduced Roosevelt elk
Roosevelt elk
The Roosevelt elk , also known as Olympic elk, is the largest of the four surviving subspecies of elk in North America...
. Bird species are quail
Quail
Quail is a collective name for several genera of mid-sized birds generally considered in the order Galliformes. Old World quail are found in the family Phasianidae, while New World quail are found in the family Odontophoridae...
, grouse
Grouse
Grouse are a group of birds from the order Galliformes. They are sometimes considered a family Tetraonidae, though the American Ornithologists' Union and many others include grouse as a subfamily Tetraoninae in the family Phasianidae...
and dove. Also hawks, turkey vulture
Turkey Vulture
The Turkey Vulture is a bird found throughout most of the Americas. It is also known in some North American regions as the Turkey Buzzard , and in some areas of the Caribbean as the John Crow or Carrion Crow...
s and osprey
Osprey
The Osprey , sometimes known as the sea hawk or fish eagle, is a diurnal, fish-eating bird of prey. It is a large raptor, reaching more than in length and across the wings...
.
Marine animals include harbor seal
Harbor Seal
The harbor seal , also known as the common seal, is a true seal found along temperate and Arctic marine coastlines of the Northern Hemisphere...
s, Stellar and California sea lion
Sea Lion
Sea lions are pinnipeds characterized by external ear-flaps, long fore-flippers, the ability to walk on all fours, and short thick hair. Together with the fur seal, they comprise the family Otariidae, or eared seals. There are six extant and one extinct species in five genera...
s,and sea otter
Sea Otter
The sea otter is a marine mammal native to the coasts of the northern and eastern North Pacific Ocean. Adult sea otters typically weigh between 14 and 45 kg , making them the heaviest members of the weasel family, but among the smallest marine mammals...
.
The Honeydew Creek Wildlife Preserve protects 2980 acres (12 km²) of habitat north of King Peak for bald eagle
Bald Eagle
The Bald Eagle is a bird of prey found in North America. It is the national bird and symbol of the United States of America. This sea eagle has two known sub-species and forms a species pair with the White-tailed Eagle...
, Northern spotted owl
Northern Spotted Owl
The Northern Spotted Owl, Strix occidentalis caurina, is one of three Spotted Owl subspecies. A Western North American bird in the family Strigidae, genus Strix, it is a medium-sized dark brown owl sixteen to nineteen inches in length and one to one and one sixth pounds. Females are larger than males...
, mink and anadromous fish
Fish migration
Many types of fish migrate on a regular basis, on time scales ranging from daily to annually or longer, and over distances ranging from a few metres to thousands of kilometres...
.
Area history
The earliest prehistoricPrehistory
Prehistory is the span of time before recorded history. Prehistory can refer to the period of human existence before the availability of those written records with which recorded history begins. More broadly, it refers to all the time preceding human existence and the invention of writing...
sites in the coastal area are no older than 2,800 years, possibly because of geological uplifting and soil erosion. Early Native American
Native Americans in the United States
Native Americans in the United States are the indigenous peoples in North America within the boundaries of the present-day continental United States, parts of Alaska, and the island state of Hawaii. They are composed of numerous, distinct tribes, states, and ethnic groups, many of which survive as...
artifacts found in the King Range suggest settlement by the Wiyot, then the Yurok by A.D. 1100. More recently, the Mattole, Sinkyone and Bear River peoples have lived in the area.
From the 1570s through the 1800s, Spanish, American and Russian explorers and fur-trappers came to the area. By the 1880s, ranches and farms were supplying the demands of the mining communities and the growing settlements. Remains of old homestead ruins and their orchards can still be found throughout the King Range.
With the advent of mechanized equipment, the area became more accessible, and the Douglas-fir
Douglas-fir
Douglas-fir is one of the English common names for evergreen coniferous trees of the genus Pseudotsuga in the family Pinaceae. Other common names include Douglas tree, and Oregon pine. There are five species, two in western North America, one in Mexico, and two in eastern Asia...
forests supplied lumber and an economic boom was underway by the 1940s with Humboldt County
Humboldt County, California
Humboldt County is a county in the U.S. state of California, located on the far North Coast 200 miles north of San Francisco. According to 2010 Census Data, the county’s population was 134,623...
being the largest supplier in the state.
Fishing also became a large economic industry, especially for salmon
Salmon
Salmon is the common name for several species of fish in the family Salmonidae. Several other fish in the same family are called trout; the difference is often said to be that salmon migrate and trout are resident, but this distinction does not strictly hold true...
.
On December 10, 1929, President Herbert Hoover
Herbert Hoover
Herbert Clark Hoover was the 31st President of the United States . Hoover was originally a professional mining engineer and author. As the United States Secretary of Commerce in the 1920s under Presidents Warren Harding and Calvin Coolidge, he promoted partnerships between government and business...
issued Executive Order 5237 at the request of the state that withdrew several parcels from settlement as public land. California's State Division of Beaches and Parks saw recreational potential in the King Range, but the land remained unclassified until the 1950s. Congressman Clem Miller
Clement Woodnutt Miller
Clement Woodnutt Miller was a U.S. Representative from California, He was a grandson of Charles R. Miller and a nephew of Thomas W...
introduced a bill in 1961 to establish the national conservation area, and had support from organizations such as the Sierra Club
Sierra Club
The Sierra Club is the oldest, largest, and most influential grassroots environmental organization in the United States. It was founded on May 28, 1892, in San Francisco, California, by the conservationist and preservationist John Muir, who became its first president...
and the Mattole Action Committee. Although Congressman Miller died in a plane crash in 1962, another member of Congress, Don Clausen, continued Miller's work and the bill was signed into law by 1970.
Climate
The area gets some of the highest rainfall totals in the continental United States, with over 100 inches (2,540 mm) of rain yearly in the Mattole River valley. In addition, coastal fog brings moisture during the summer months.Although the inland areas can have summer temperatures over 100oF, the cold waters of the Pacific Ocean moderates coastal temperatures to an average of 60oF. The extreme vertical rise of the mountains create intense rainshowers, (called orographic
Orographic lift
Orographic lift occurs when an air mass is forced from a low elevation to a higher elevation as it moves over rising terrain. As the air mass gains altitude it quickly cools down adiabatically, which can raise the relative humidity to 100% and create clouds and, under the right conditions,...
and means terrain-induced), caused by the lifting of storms as they approach the steep topography. The watersheds are flooded regularly as a result. There are weather anomalies here also; less coastal fog than other coastal parts of the state, and the prevailing wind is from the northeast-east instead of westerly.
Mattole River and estuary
The Mattole RiverMattole River
The Mattole River is a river on the north coast of California, that flows northerly, then westerly into the Pacific Ocean. A short section of the river flows through upper Mendocino County, but the vast majority of its 62-mile run is through southern Humboldt County...
's mainstem is 62 miles (99.8 km) in length and has more than 74 tributaries. It has historically had large runs of salmon
Salmon
Salmon is the common name for several species of fish in the family Salmonidae. Several other fish in the same family are called trout; the difference is often said to be that salmon migrate and trout are resident, but this distinction does not strictly hold true...
and steelhead trout
Trout
Trout is the name for a number of species of freshwater and saltwater fish belonging to the Salmoninae subfamily of the family Salmonidae. Salmon belong to the same family as trout. Most salmon species spend almost all their lives in salt water...
, but due to past logging, road building and severe floods in 1955 and 1964, all of which impacted the river, fish numbers have declined. The coho salmon is a federally listed threatened species (Southern Oregon/Northern California populations) that use the Mattole River and its tributary, Mill Creek. Increased sediment and lack of tree cover reduced the quality and quantity of fish habitat by increasing summer water temperatures. The Environmental Protection Agency added the Mattole River to the state's list of impaired watersheds in 1992.
The Mattole estuary
Estuary
An estuary is a partly enclosed coastal body of water with one or more rivers or streams flowing into it, and with a free connection to the open sea....
is where the waters of the land meet and mix with the tidewaters of the Pacific Ocean, and acts as a settling basin for both river sediment
Sediment
Sediment is naturally occurring material that is broken down by processes of weathering and erosion, and is subsequently transported by the action of fluids such as wind, water, or ice, and/or by the force of gravity acting on the particle itself....
and sand from ocean waves, and will eventually fill to become a meadow. The Bureau of Land Management designated the Mattole Estuary as an "Area of Critical Environmental Concern" in 1981. This area, now at more than 650 acres (2.6 km²), has significant cultural, historic, wildlife and habitat resources.
The watershed
Drainage basin
A drainage basin is an extent or an area of land where surface water from rain and melting snow or ice converges to a single point, usually the exit of the basin, where the waters join another waterbody, such as a river, lake, reservoir, estuary, wetland, sea, or ocean...
, or catchbasin of the river has been seriously impacted from past road building, and restoration efforts include abandonment of some roadways as well as reshaping and upgrading of others.
Other fish species in the Mattole River include the Pacific lamprey, threespine sickleback, and the starry flounder.
The historic Punta Gorda Light
Punta Gorda Light
Punta Gorda Lighthouse is a lighthouse in United States, south of Cape Mendocino, California. Access is by vehicle and one and an hour hike on foot...
house located near the estuary of the Mattole River.
Other waterways
The streams flowing into the Pacific from the west side have both anadromous and resident fish as well as amphibians and reptiles. The largest of these waterways are Big Creek and Big Flat Creek. All the coastal streams have been identified as unique in habitat and variety of species .Restoration efforts by both public land agencies and nonprofit groups has been going on since the 1970s with the restoration projects focused on the Mattole River, its estuary, tributaries, and the river's lower reach area.
Vegetation
In the 1970s and 80s, the Bureau of Land Management purchased and/or exchanged more than 25000 acres (101.2 km²) of lands within the national conservation area under the authority of Section 5 of the King Range Act. Most of the timber had either been harvested historically, or had been cut just before acquisition. Harvest methods included high grading, or removal of the best trees, leaving scattered large Douglas-firDouglas-fir
Douglas-fir is one of the English common names for evergreen coniferous trees of the genus Pseudotsuga in the family Pinaceae. Other common names include Douglas tree, and Oregon pine. There are five species, two in western North America, one in Mexico, and two in eastern Asia...
trees. Reforestation was not practiced and a large percentage of the previously harvested land was left to regenerate naturally. Tanoak and madronetrees now dominate what had once been old-growth
Old growth forest
An old-growth forest is a forest that has attained great age , and thereby exhibits unique ecological features. An old growth forest has also usually reached a climax community...
Douglas-fir forest. Several areas were planted after acquisition by the BLM, including the Bear Trap Creek area (125,000 Douglas-fir trees on 200 acre (0.809372 km²) since 1985.) Other vegetation in the area include knobcone pine
Knobcone Pine
The Knobcone Pine, Pinus attenuata, is a tree that grows in mild climates on poor soils. It ranges from the mountains of southern Oregon to Baja California with the greatest concentration in northern California and the Oregon-California border....
, laurel, manzanita, poison oak, blackberry, Oregon grape and salal
Salal
Gaultheria shallon is a leathery-leaved shrub in the heather family , native to western North America. In English it is known as salal, shallon, or in Britain simply Gaultheria.-Ecology:...
.
Several varieties of mushrooms occur in the King Range including matsutake
Matsutake
Matsutake is the common name for a highly sought after mycorrhizal mushroom that grows in Asia, Europe, and North America...
, which grows under the closed-canopy tanoak stands. The edible matsutake mushroom is collected for personal and commercial use and a collection permit is required.
Another important plant found here is beargrass, used by Native Americans historically and continuing in the present, for basketry. The BLM's Final Environmental Impact Report recommends beargrass habitat improvements, such as controlled burning and brush removal, to increase growth which would reduce harvesting pressure on existing limited distribution of the plant.
Other native coastal grasses include reedgrass (a state-listed rare plant), oatgrass and bentgrass, all of which form the coastal prairie plant community.
California Coastal National Monument
President Bill ClintonBill Clinton
William Jefferson "Bill" Clinton is an American politician who served as the 42nd President of the United States from 1993 to 2001. Inaugurated at age 46, he was the third-youngest president. He took office at the end of the Cold War, and was the first president of the baby boomer generation...
established the California Coastal National Monument (CCNM) on January 11, 2000 under the authority of the Antiquities Act of 1906
Antiquities Act
The Antiquities Act of 1906, officially An Act for the Preservation of American Antiquities , is an act passed by the United States Congress and signed into law by Theodore Roosevelt on June 8, 1906, giving the President of the United States authority to, by executive order, restrict the use of...
.The purpose of the CCNM, as stated in the Presidential Proclamation, is to protect and manage biological and geological resources by protecting “all unappropriated or unreserved lands and interest in the lands owned or controlled by the United States in the form of islands, rocks, exposed reefs, and
pinnacles above mean high tide within 12 nautical miles (22.2 km) of the shoreline of the State of California.” The proclamation also functions to elevate California’s offshore lands to a national level of concern and focuses management on protection of geologic features and lifeforms. The CCNM has more than 20,000 rocks and islands and extends more than 1000 acres (4 km²) along California's coast.
Rocks and Islands Wilderness
The Rocks and Islands Wilderness is within the National Monument, just offshore of the King Range, and protects important habitat for sea birds and marine mammals as well as the coastal scenic beauty. The bill to designate the wilderness area was introduced by Representative Sam Farr on June, 1999 and became part of the Northern California Coastal Heritage Wilderness Act passed by Congress in 2006.The bill (H.R.2277) sums up the reason for the wilderness with four points:
- The California coastal rocks and islands are a critical component of a unique ecosystemEcosystemAn ecosystem is a biological environment consisting of all the organisms living in a particular area, as well as all the nonliving , physical components of the environment with which the organisms interact, such as air, soil, water and sunlight....
of California. - The California coastal rocks and islands comprise a narrow flight lane in the Pacific FlywayPacific FlywayThe Pacific Flyway is a major north-south route of travel for migratory birds in America, extending from Alaska to Patagonia. Every year, migratory birds travel some or all of this distance both in spring and in fall, following food sources, heading to breeding grounds, or travelling to...
, providing protected nest sites as well as feeding and perching areas for millions of seabirdSeabirdSeabirds are birds that have adapted to life within the marine environment. While seabirds vary greatly in lifestyle, behaviour and physiology, they often exhibit striking convergent evolution, as the same environmental problems and feeding niches have resulted in similar adaptations...
s. - This unique ecosystem is also important for the continued survival of endangered or threatened sea mammals, such as stellar sea lions and elephant sealElephant sealElephant seals are large, oceangoing seals in the genus Mirounga. There are two species: the northern elephant seal and the southern elephant seal . Both were hunted to the brink of extinction by the end of the 19th century, but numbers have since recovered...
s. - Designation of the California coastal rocks and islands as wilderness would add a significant natural component to the National Wilderness Preservation SystemNational Wilderness Preservation SystemThe National Wilderness Preservation System of the United States protects federally managed land areas designated for preservation in their natural condition. It was established by the Wilderness Act upon the signature of President Lyndon B. Johnson on September 3, 1964...
.
Other points of interest
The 3 miles (4.8 km) long Black Sands beach, although not within the wilderness, it is an access point to the Lost Coast Trail.The Lost Coast National Recreation Trail is almost 25 miles in length and is mostly level beachwalking. The trail is described by the nonprofit group, American Trails, as a " serious backpacking trek." Much of the route is along the beach but there are some challenging sections. Large and often slippery boulders must be negotiated in some areas. At several places along the trail, creeks bisect as they drain from the westside canyons into the ocean. Campsites along the trail are on sandy river shoals at these creek crossings, just above sea level and some yards back from the shoreline. These are also the only fresh water locations along the trail. Tide table
Tide table
A tide table, sometimes called a tide chart, is used for tidal prediction and shows the daily times and height of high water and low water for a particular location...
s are needed as parts of the trail are impassable at high tide.
A new self-service permit system is now in place affecting hikers and backpackers who plan to spend at least one night in the back country, including the Lost Coast Trail.
The free permits, which also serve as California campfire permits, are available in self-service boxes at King Range trailheads, the King Range Project office, and at the Bureau of Land Management Arcata Field office in Arcata, California
Arcata, California
-Demographics:-2010 Census data:The 2010 United States Census reported that Arcata had a population of 17,231. The population density was 1,567.4 people per square mile...
.
Bureau of Land Management reports
- BLM King Range NCA-Wilderness Retrieved 4 February 2009
- BLM King Range NCA Main Page. Retrieved 13 February 2009
Legislation
- Text of legislation, section 460y, Government Printing Office(GPO)website. Retrieved 11 February 2009
- Wilderness.net Acreage data page Retrieved 4 February 2009