Proposal Areas

Wildcat Mountain

11,100 acres (17.3 square miles)

Setting
This proposed Wilderness Area occupies lands in the upper Fryingpan River drainage on the northern border of the Hunter-Fryingpan Wilderness Area. The proposed Wilderness Area contains land that fills in corridors around roads that follow Chapman Gulch, South Fork of the Fryingpan River, and the Fryingpan River. The proposed Area occupies narrow strips of riparian vegetation with small meadows.
The Wildcat Mountain Wilderness Area occupies steep, timbered, northeast-facing slopes above the confluence of the North Fork of the Fryingpan, and the main Fryingpan River. In addition, the proposed Wilderness Area also contains the flat valley bottom of the Chapman area, and features lakes and wetland meadows. Wildcat Mountain itself is a granite-topped ridge that divides Ivanhoe Creek from the Fryingpan River. As a whole, the proposed area features large areas of Engelmann spruce/subalpine fir forest and scattered aspen stands. Elevations in the proposed area range from about 8,000 feet near Thomasville, to 12,094 feet on Wildcat Mountain.

What's special about it?
The Fryingpan River corridor is lined with public and private recreational developments, including Thomasville, Diamond J Ranch, Norrie Colony, Chapman Campground, Nast, and Ivanhoe Reservoir. This degree of development along the valley bottom makes it all the more important to protect what habitat remains relatively undisturbed nearby.  The proposal area provides people with hiking, camping, fishing, hunting, and skiing opportunities in an area that would be premanently protected in a way that would forever provide quality experiences for these activities. The Betty Bear Hut, cherry stemmed into this proposed Wilderness Area, is a popular backcountry skiing destination.

Potential threats
There is potential for further development of private lands along the Fryingpan River. There has been extensive development of water diversion tunnels in the vicinity. The Chapman Gulch, South Fork, Fryingpan Lakes, and Ivanhoe Lake Roads were all constructed to access the ends of various tunnels which combine to divert water from the Fryingpan drainage underneath the Continental Divide to the Arkansas River basin. There is  no better way to protect the water quality of important watersheds like this than through a Wilderness Designation. There is also accessible timber in these areas that may one day attract commercial attention.

How to get there
The proposed Wildcat Mountain Wilderness Area is located immediately southeast of Thomasville, 10 miles west of Leadville, and 10 miles northeast of Aspen. Approach it from the Fryingpan Road (FS 105), which begins in Basalt.

• Drive up the Fryingpan Road, past Ruedi Reservoir. Just past Thomasville, the proposed Wildcat Mountain Wilderness Area begins on your right. At the Norrie Colony, turn onto the Norrie Road (FS 504; improved dirt). You may turn right onto FS 504.1E to reach Chapman Gulch Trailhead (1920), or stay on the Norrie Road to its terminus at the South Fork Trailhead (1940) on the South Fork of the Fryingpan River. The latter trail travels south to meet the Lost Man Loop Trail and State Highway 82.
• Further up the Fryingpan Road is the Chapman Campground, which provides foot access into the proposed Wilderness Area via a non-system trail that leads to the Sawyer Lake Trail (1926). Past the campground, Nast Road provides access to the Granite Lakes Trail (1922).
• Past Nast, the Fryingpan Lakes Road (FS 505; improved dirt) penetrates deeply into the proposed Wilderness Area. This road ends at the Fryingpan Lakes Trailhead (1921). To reach the eastern end of the proposed Area, stay on the Fryingpan Road (FS 105), and follow signs to Hagerman Pass. Just before the road gets rough below the pass, turn right on FS 527 and go to Ivanhoe Reservoir along the eastern boundary of the proposed Area. The road past the reservoir winds westward up to the Betty Bear Hut of the 10th Mountain Hut Association.
• The USGS 7 1⁄2' quads for the proposed Wildcat Mountain Wilderness Area are Meredith, Nast, Mount Champion and small amounts on Homestake Reservoir, and Mount Massive.