“Mountains and rivers without end.”

At the heart of our mission area is the Proposed Great Burn Wilderness, a vast and remote landscape filled with high mountain lakes, free-flowing streams, and three distinct ecosystems.

Wildlife

The Great Burn contains high-quality habitat for many wildlife species that need tracts of continuous wildlands to survive. It is also home to threatened and endangered species, as well as two native mountain goat herds.

Landscape

Our mission area lies at the hub of a complex of undeveloped wildlands in the northern Rocky Mountains, providing a key wildlife corridor between the Selkirks and the Greater Yellowstone ecosystem.

Human History

The Great Burn is the ancestral home of the Nez Perce, Salish, Kootenai, Ktunaxa, and Coeur d’Alene tribes. In 1910, a wildfire there sparked a movement that led to the creation of the modern Forest Service.

What makes it special?

Nick Littman has worked on our trails crew and our weeds crew, and he’s also led student trips. Here, he explains why he kept coming back to the Great Burn every summer.

Our Mission Area

We have crews on the ground each season in more places than just the recommended wilderness. Our mission area spans from Lookout Pass to Lolo Pass, encompassing nearly 1.9 million acres.