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Colorado Wilderness Assessment: Summary of 2009 Data Collection DRAFT – 2/17/2010

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Colorado Wilderness Assessment: Summary of 2009 Data Collection DRAFT – 2/17/2010 Colorado Wilderness Assessment: Summary of 2009 Data Collection DRAFT – 2/17/2010 Colorado Wilderness Assessment Summary of 2009 Data Collection DRAFT – 2/17/2010 Dusty Vaughn, M.S. Candidate, Utah State University i Colorado Wilderness Assessment: Summary of 2009 Data Collection DRAFT – 2/17/2010 Contents Introduction .................................................................................................................................................. 1 Campsite Data Inventory .......................................................................................................................... 1 Condition-Effort Rating System: ........................................................................................................... 1 Campsite Inventory Figures .................................................................................................................. 2 Exceeding Standards ................................................................................................................................. 2 Visitor Use Levels ...................................................................................................................................... 3 Data Acquisition ........................................................................................................................................ 4 Data Gaps .................................................................................................................................................. 4 Colorado’s Wilderness Areas: ....................................................................................................................... 6 Buffalo Peaks Wilderness Area ................................................................................................................. 7 Byers Peak Wilderness Area ..................................................................................................................... 8 Cache la Poudre Wilderness Area ............................................................................................................. 9 Collegiate Peaks Wilderness Area ........................................................................................................... 10 Comanche Peak Wilderness Area ........................................................................................................... 12 Eagles Nest Wilderness Area .................................................................................................................. 13 Flat Tops Wilderness Area ...................................................................................................................... 14 Fossil Ridge Wilderness Area .................................................................................................................. 15 Greenhorn Wilderness Area ................................................................................................................... 16 Holy Cross Wilderness Area .................................................................................................................... 17 Hunter-Fryingpan Wilderness Area ........................................................................................................ 18 Indian Peaks Wilderness Area ................................................................................................................. 19 James Peak Wilderness Area .................................................................................................................. 20 La Garita Wilderness Area ....................................................................................................................... 21 Lizard Head Wilderness Area .................................................................................................................. 22 Lost Creek Wilderness Area .................................................................................................................... 23 Maroon Bells-Snowmass Wilderness Area ............................................................................................. 24 Mount Evans Wilderness Area ................................................................................................................ 26 Mount Massive Wilderness Area ............................................................................................................ 27 Mount Sneffels Wilderness Area ............................................................................................................ 28 Mount Zirkel Wilderness Area ................................................................................................................ 29 Neota Wilderness Area ........................................................................................................................... 30 i Cover Photo: Trappers Lake in the Flat Tops Wilderness Area, by Dusty Vaughn Colorado Wilderness Assessment: Summary of 2009 Data Collection DRAFT – 2/17/2010 Never Summer Wilderness Area ............................................................................................................. 31 Powderhorn Wilderness Area ................................................................................................................. 32 Ptarmigan Peak Wilderness Area ............................................................................................................ 33 Raggeds Wilderness Area ........................................................................................................................ 34 Rawah Wilderness Area .......................................................................................................................... 35 Sangre de Cristo Wilderness Area ........................................................................................................... 36 Sarvis Creek Wilderness Area ................................................................................................................. 37 South San Juan Wilderness Area............................................................................................................. 38 Spanish Peaks Wilderness Area .............................................................................................................. 39 Uncompahgre Wilderness Area .............................................................................................................. 40 Vasquez Peak Wilderness Area ............................................................................................................... 41 Weminuche Wilderness Area ................................................................................................................. 42 West Elk Wilderness Area ....................................................................................................................... 44 Appendix A: Lists of National Forest Datasets ............................................................................................ 45 Arapaho-Roosevelt National Forests ...................................................................................................... 46 Grand Mesa-Uncompahgre-Gunnison National Forests ........................................................................ 48 Medicine Bow-Routt National Forests .................................................................................................... 51 Pike-San Isabel National Forests ............................................................................................................. 58 Rio Grande National Forest ..................................................................................................................... 60 San Juan National Forest ......................................................................................................................... 64 White River National Forest .................................................................................................................... 67 Appendix B: Campsite Data Inventory Questionnaire ................................................................................ 69 Appendix C: Campsite Inventory Condition-Effort Ratings ......................................................................... 70 Appendix D: Campsite Inventory Figures .................................................................................................... 71 Appendix E: Exceeding Standards Table and Maps .................................................................................... 73 Appendix F: Visitor Use Table and Maps .................................................................................................. 109 ii Colorado Wilderness Assessment: Summary of 2009 Data Collection DRAFT – 2/17/2010 Introduction Following the U.S. Forest Service Region 2 Wilderness Recreation Forum Core Team’s recommendations and the Chief’s 10YWSC, a comprehensive geographic information system (GIS)-based assessment is being conducted to collect existing data that could be utilized to rapidly assess and map wilderness conditions. This assessment is being organized by Ralph Swain of the Regional Office, Dr. David Cole of the Aldo Leopold Wilderness Research Institute, and Dr. Christopher Monz and myself of Utah State University. As part of this project, I met with the Wilderness Manager and Rangers for each Ranger District that contains a portion of one of Colorado’s thirty-five Wilderness Areas during the summer of 2009. During these meetings, I collected the following information which
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