Visit Wilderness

Search for a wilderness as the destination for your next outdoor adventure.

Bob Marshall Wilderness Area, Minnesota

Why Visit Wilderness?

While wilderness can be appreciated from afar—through online content, television, or books—nothing compares to experiencing it firsthand. Activities like camping, hiking, or hunting allow you to fully enjoy the recreational, ecological, spiritual, and health benefits that wilderness areas offer. These areas provide “outstanding opportunities for solitude or a primitive and unconfined type of recreation,” chances to observe wildlife, moments to renew and refresh, and the physical benefits of outdoor exercise. In many wilderness areas, you can even bring your well-behaved dog.

Learn more about the diverse ways in which we benefit from wilderness and threats wilderness areas face today.

In the frigid waters of Icy Strait, these scenic islands break the ocean's surface near the entrance to Glacier Bay.

Pleasant Island, the easternmost, lays fairly flat and forested with muskegs; its highest point, The Knob, is at approximately 600 feet. Of the islands, only Pleasant was left unaffected by the glacial advances that occurred less than two centuries ago; today it provides a valuable area for comparative research in Glacier Bay.
At least two of the island's lakes and three of its streams hold fresh water.
Alaskans hunt deer and gather other foods with success here, only about two miles from the City of Gustavus across Icy Passage and easily accessible by boat.

Lemusurier Island, the next island west, reaches 2,180 feet above the sea, stands covered in trees and muskegs, contains streams and small lakes, and is home to deer. It's a longer boat ride to Lemusurier, but good anchorage awaits in Willoughby Cove on the southeastern shoreline.

Several dots of land make up the Inian Islands, westernmost of the Wilderness. A short distance north of the Inian Peninsula of Chichagof Island and picturesque Elfin Cove, the Inians rise to about 1,000 feet on the largest island. Substantial tree cover provides habitat for deer.

Recreational use of this Wilderness is on the rise, especially sea kayaking and hunting. Go prepared for wet weather and wet ground.

A Forest Service System trail leads from Jacks Cove to a scenic lake on Lemesurier Island.

Leave No Trace

How to follow the seven standard Leave No Trace principles differs in different parts of the country (desert vs. Rocky Mountains). Click on any of the principles listed below to learn more about how they apply in the Pleasant/Lemusurier/Inian Islands Wilderness.

Plan Ahead and Prepare
Travel and Camp on Durable Surfaces
Dispose of Waste Properly
Leave What You Find
Minimize Campfire Impacts
Respect Wildlife
Be Considerate of Other Visitors

For more information on Leave No Trace, Visit the Leave No Trace, Inc. website.

Location

Maps

Digital and paper maps are critical tools for wilderness visitors. Online maps can help you plan and prepare for your visit ahead of time. You can also carry digital maps with you on your GPS unit or other handheld GPS device. Having a paper map with you in the backcountry, as well as solid orienteering skills, however, ensures that you can still route-find in the event that your electronic device fails.

Online Maps

Interactive Map of the Pleasant/Lemusurier/Inian Islands Wilderness
FS Topographic Map
Google Earth

Alaska Wildernesses

Printed Maps

Fetching MyTopo from Database

USGS Store

Rules & Regulations

Motorized equipment and equipment used for mechanical transport is generally prohibited in all wilderness areas. This includes the use of motor vehicles, motorboats, motorized equipment, bicycles, hang gliders, wagons, carts, portage wheels, and the landing of aircraft including helicopters.

Wilderness-Specific Regulations

Learn more about why regulations may be necessary in wilderness.

Contacts

Applicable Wilderness Law(s)

Public Law 101-626

Date: November 28, 1990
Acreage: 23,140 acres

Tongass Timber Reform Act - Public law 101-626 (11/28/1990) To amend the Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act, to protect certain lands in the Tongass National Forest in perpetuity, to modify certain long-term timber contracts, to provide for protection of riparian habitat, and for other purposes

For more information (To download or see all affected wilderness areas) visit our law library for 101-626 or legislative history for 101-626.

Want to Volunteer for Wilderness?

People who volunteer their time to steward our wilderness areas are an essential part of wilderness management. Contact the following groups to inquire about volunteer opportunities. Groups are listed alphabetically by the state(s) in which the wilderness is located.