Utah State University DigitalCommons@USU All U.S. Government Documents (Utah Regional U.S. Government Documents (Utah Regional Depository) Depository) 1-1-1991 Wyoming Statewide Wilderness Study Report Wilderness Study Area Specific Recommendations United States Bureau of Land Management Recommended Citation United States Bureau of Land Management, "Wyoming Statewide Wilderness Study Report Wilderness Study Area Specific Recommendations" (1991). All U.S. Government Documents (Utah Regional Depository). Paper 251. http://digitalcommons.usu.edu/govdocs/251 This Report is brought to you for free and open access by the U.S. Government Documents (Utah Regional Depository) at DigitalCommons@USU. It has been accepted for inclusion in All U.S. Government Documents (Utah Regional Depository) by an authorized administrator of DigitalCommons@USU. For more information, please contact [email protected]. U.S. Department of the Interior Bureau of Land Management Wyoming State Office September 1991 Wyoming Statewide Wilderness Study Report WILDERNESS STUDY REPORT Wilderness Study Area Specific Recommendations Prepared by: U.S. Department of the Interior Bureau of Land Management Wyoming State Office Cheyenne, Wyoming September 1991 Volume II -/ if COMPLETED Wilderness Study Areas in Wyoming TABLE OF CONTENTS Summary Analysis of WSA Recommendations Or... Creek/COdy studJ Owl Creek Study Area ••• • • •••••• •••••••••••• • ••••..•.. • ••• •• 3 Bobcat Draw Badlands Study Area •••••••••••• •• •• •• •••• • •• •• 12 Sheep Mountain Study Area • •• • •• ••..• • ••• •• •• • ••• • .... .... 24 Red Butte Study Area • •• • •• •• • • •••••••••••••• ••• . •• •••••••• 34 McCullough Peaks Study Area •••••.•.•...••••••••••••..•..•. 4~ Wa.bakie Study CASPER ISTRICT Honeycombs Study Area •• • •••••••••• • •• ••••. •• •• •••• • ••• ••. 54 Cedar Mountain Study Area •••••••••••• • •.••••• • •••• •• •• . ... 64 I Medicine Lodge Study Area • •• •••••••••••• •• • ••••• •• • ••• •••. 75 . Alkali Creek Study Area • •• •• • • •••••••••• ••••••• • • . • ••• •• •• 86 Trapper Creek Study Area •• • •• • .•.•••••••••••• • ••.. ... .• • • 97 Lauder Study I Sweetwater Canyon Study Area ••••••••• •• •.•••••••••••••... 110 Copper Mountain Study Area •••••••••••••• •• ••• • ••• ••• •• . .. 121 Sweetwater Rocks (Lankin Dome) Study Area •••• •• .•• • ••• •• • 129 Sweetwater Rocks (Split Rock) Study Area • ••• ••• • ••. .•. ..• 139 Sweetwater Rocks (Savage Peak) Study Area ••• •• ..•. • ••• •• • 149 Sweetwater Rocks (Miller Spring) Study Area •••••• •.•• . ••• 158 Dubois BadlaDda/Wbiakey Mountain Study Dubois Badlands Study Area • •• •• • • ••••••• •. ••• • ••• ••• •• ••• 1 68 Whiskey Mountain Study Area •• • ••••••• • ••• .•••• .•• ••• • •••. 177 lEI Adobetown/rerris MountaiDs Study 7 \ Adobetown Study Area •• •• •• • •• •• • •••••• •• •• • ••• •• ••• •• •••• 184 , .33 Ferr is Mountains Study Area •• • •••••••••• ••• . • .• ••• •••• •.. 196 ,_ .34 1.1~1 \ .19 \ '- -----------=---=..::::::- Great Divide Study -- ----------':.-..-~ ------ Encampment River Canyon Study Area • ••••••.•.••••• •••• •... 206 A-Grass Creek/Cody Wilderness EIS t Divide Wilderness EIS G-Gr •• Prospect Mountai n Study Area •••••••••••••••••••• • ••••.... 214 1. Owl Creek 19. Encampment River Canyon 2. Bobcat Draw Bad lands 20. Prospect Mountain Bennett Mountains Study Area ••••.•••• •• •• •• ••• • •. •• • • •• • 222 3. Sheep Mounta in 21 . Bennett Mountain 4. Red Butte "-Rock Springs Wilde,ness EIS Rock Springs District study 5. McCullough Peaks 22. Lake Mountain Lake Mountain Study Area •• • •• • •••••• •• •••• . .•.•.••••••• . 2 32 B -Washakie Wilderness EIS 23. Raymond Mountain Raymond Mountain Study Area •. •••••••••••••••••. • . •••••• •. 240 6. Honeycombs 24. Buffalo Hump Buffalo Hump Study Area • • •••• •• • •••••• • •• ••• • •••• •• ••• •.. 248 7. Cedar Mountain 25. Sand Dunes South Pi nnacles Study Area • •••• • •••••••• ••• • •• •••••. •.•• 258 8. Medicine Lodge 26, Alkali Draw 9. Alkali Creek 27. South Pinnacles Sand Dunes Study Area •• ••• . • .••••••••••••••••••...•.••••• 265 10. Trapper Creek 28. Alkali Basin/East Sand Dunes Alkali n BaSin/East Sand DuneB Study Area • • •••• ••••••••• .. 276 C -WhilklY Mountain·Dubois Badlands Wildern"s EIS 29, Red Lake Alkali Draw Study Area • •• • ••.•••••••••• • ••••• . •.•.•••••• • 284 11 . Wh iskey Mountain 30. Honeycomb Buttes Red Lake Study Area ••• •• • •• •• . •••.. • •.••••• ••• ..• •. • •... 293 12. Dubois Badlands 31. Oregon Buttes Honeycomb Buttes Study Area • •• • •• •• •• • ••••••• •. .•. .. .• ••. 302 32. Whitehorse Creek D - Lander Wild"ness EIS 33. Devil's Playground/Twin Buttes Oregon Buttes •• •••••••.• . •••••• •• • •• • ••• • •••••••••. • •••.• 313 13. Sweetwater Canyon Wh i tehorse Creek Study Area . .• ••• • •• • ••• ••• ... • . •.••••••• 323 14. Copper Mountain 34. Red Creek Badlands 15. Sweetwater Rocks (4 Areas' I-~~~:r~~~~·~no~:lt~:~ E -Adobe Town·Ferrj, Mounuin, Wild,rnes, EIS 36. North Fork 18. Adobe Town 'no Fortification Creek III 17. Ferris Mountains J - Billings Wildern,n EIS F -Scab Cteek Wikl'rn,u EIS 38. Pryor Mountain 18. Scab Creek 39. Bighorn Tack-on j/ SUMMARY ANALYSIS OF SPECIFIC Devils Playground/Twin Buttes Study Area ••..•• • •.. .• • . .. 332 Red Creek Badlands Study Area • • • •• . • • • • • • • •• • . • •••••••• · 339 WSA RECOMMENDATIONS Buffalo study Gardner Mountain Study Area •• • •• • ••••••• •• •••• .•• .• ••• • ·· 349 North Fork Study Area .• •• • • •• •• • • • ••• • • • .• •• • • •••••.••... 358 Fortification Creek Study Area • • •• • ••• . • • •• •• ••.•... • ..• . 366 Billing. study Pryor Mountain Study Are a •• ••• •• •• •• ••• • •• •• •• • •....• •• • . 376 Bighorn Tack-On Study Are a . • • • • • • •• •• •• . • ••• •• ••• •• .• .... 385 386 Appendix - Scab Creek ISA Report •••• . ••••••• • ••• . •••••••••••• • •••.. l - l 396 Appendix 2 - InholdingB and Acquisitions Table •• • • • •• ••••• • • . ••• • ••• 2-1 400 WORLAND DISTRICT ii jv OWL CREEK WILDERNESS STUDY AREA (W5A) 1. THE STUDY AREA - 710 acres The Owl Creek WSA (WY-OIO-I04 a, b, C) consists of three units totalling 710 acres (see map). The WSA is located in Hot Springs County, approximately 60 miles west of Thermopolis, Wyoming. The boundary of tract A is formed by the washakie Wilderness to the north, the South Fork of Owl Creek and the Wind River Indian Reservation to the west, by Klicker Creek to the south, and private land on the east. Tract B is adjacent to the Washakie Wilderness, which forms the north boundary and private land surrounds the rest of tract B. The east boundary of tract C extends along Rock Creek and the Washakie Wilderness on the west. The north boundary is formed by a short segment of private property and the south boundary is located along the south section line of section 31. The unit is c omposed of three separate tracts located near the owl Creek Mountains and the Absaroka Mountains near a peak called the Washakie Needles. The landscape is dominated by a major ridge line that divides the main drainages of Rock Creek and the South Fork of owl Creek. Several steep, BLANK PAGE rugged spur ridges extend laterally from the main ridge, and are sharply separated by a number of deep side-draws that drain into the relatively wide, flat bottoms of the main drainages. Tracts 104a and 104c are composed of moderately vegetated spur ridges that drop sharply from about mid-slop9 down to the wide bottoms of the South Fork of Owl Creek and Rock Cree k . The steep slopes are covered with irregular dense patches of mixed conifers intersper sed with exposed areas of bare, rocky soil . conifers mingle with linear patches and isolated pockets of aspen along the steeper draw bottoms. Track 104b is a long, narrow str ip located above the timber line along the crest and upper western slopes of the main ridge line div iding the South Fork of Owl Creek and Rock Creek. Severe weathering and erosion on the s teep rocky slopes and cliffs are accentuated by the complete lack of vegetation along the ridge line. Elevations in the unit range from almost 10,900 feet along the bare ridge crest in tract 104b to 9,200 feet in the southeast corner of tract 104c along t he Rock Creek bottom, and 9,000 feet a l ong the South Fork of Owl Creek in the southern tip of tract 104a. The WSA was studied under section 603 of the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976 (FLPMA) and was included in the Grass Creek/cody Wilderness Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) filed in August 1990. There were two alternatives analyzed in the EIS, No Wilderness and All wilderness. The All Wilderness Alternative is the r ecommendation of this report . 2. RECOMMENDATION AND RATIONALE - 710 acre. reco_ended for wilderness o acre. reco_ended for nonwilderness ... ----' All Wilderness is the recommendation for this WSA. This is considered to be the environmentally preferable alternative as it will r esult i n the least change from the natural environment over the long term. The recommendation was based partly on the fact that the area is natural in appearance and provides an outstanding resource base for wilderness-dependent opportunities and experiences. There are a few imprints in the area but they do not detract from the natural character of the area. This natural setting '~~~..--+----~~~~ ______ +-______ ~ __ -dQL~ __~~~~ of remote rugged topography challenges the recreationist seeking a primitive, N nonmo torized-type experience, as well as providing outstanding opportunities for solitude. when added to the adjacent Washakie Wilderness, the area is '3505 large enough