Stanislaus National Forest is a U.S. National Forest which manages of land in four counties in the

Sierra Nevada The Sierra Nevada () is a mountain range in the Western United States, between the Central Valley of California and the Great Basin. The vast majority of the range lies in the state of California, although the Carson Range spur lies primarily ...

in Northern

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

. It was established on February 22, 1897, making it one of the oldest national forests. It was named after the

Stanislaus River The Stanislaus River is a tributary of the San Joaquin River in north-central California in the United States. The main stem of the river is long, and measured to its furthest headwaters it is about long. Originating as three forks in the high ...

Geography

The forest is located primarily in eastern

Tuolumne County Tuolumne County (), officially the County of Tuolumne, is a county located in the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 census, the population was 55,620. The county seat and only incorporated city is Sonora. Tuolumne County comprises the ...

, adjacent to the northwestern part of

Yosemite National Park Yosemite National Park ( ) is an American national park in California, surrounded on the southeast by Sierra National Forest and on the northwest by Stanislaus National Forest. The park is managed by the National Park Service and covers an ar ...

, but parts of it extend (in descending order of forestland area) into Southern

Alpine County , other_name = , settlement_type = List of counties in California, County , image_skyline = , image_flag = Flag of Alpine County, California.svg , flag_size = , image_seal ...

, Northern

Mariposa County Mariposa County () is a county in the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 U.S. Census, the population was 17,131. The county seat is Mariposa. It is located in the western foothills of the Sierra Nevada mountains, north of Fresno, east of ...

and Eastern

Calaveras County Calaveras County (), officially the County of Calaveras, is a county in both the Gold Country and High Sierra regions of the U.S. state of California. As of the 2010 census, the population was 45,292. The county seat is San Andreas. Angels C ...

. Forest headquarters are located in

Sonora, California Sonora is the county seat of Tuolumne County, California. Founded during the California Gold Rush by Mexican miners from Sonora (after which the city is named), the city population was 5,226 during the 2020 Census, an increase of 221 from the ...

. There are local ranger district offices in Groveland, Hathaway Pines, and Pinecrest. The

Emigrant Wilderness The Emigrant Wilderness of Stanislaus National Forest is a wilderness area in the Sierra Nevada. It is bordered by Yosemite National Park on the south, the Toiyabe National Forest and the Hoover Wilderness on the east, and State Route 108 ...

is located entirely within its boundaries. Portions of the Carson-Iceberg Wilderness, including the

Dardanelles Cone Dardanelles Cone is a mountain peak in the Carson-Iceberg Wilderness on the Stanislaus National Forest. It lies near Sonora Pass in the Sierra Nevada (U.S.), Sierra Nevada of California. It is between California State Route 4, State Route 4 and C ...

, and the

Mokelumne Wilderness The Mokelumne Wilderness is a federally designated wilderness area located east of Sacramento, California. It is within the boundaries of three national forests: Stanislaus, Eldorado and Toiyabe. First protected under the Wilderness Act of 19 ...

are also within the Stanislaus National Forest.

Features

It contains 78 lakes and of rivers and streams. It has of non-motorized trails and of roads, of which are paved. The forest contains some of

old growth An old-growth forestalso termed primary forest, virgin forest, late seral forest, primeval forest, or first-growth forestis a forest that has attained great age without significant disturbance (ecology), disturbance, and thereby exhibits un ...

, which includes

Lodgepole Pine ''Pinus contorta'', with the common names lodgepole pine and shore pine, and also known as twisted pine, and contorta pine, is a common tree in western North America. It is common near the ocean shore and in dry montane forests to the subalpine, ...

(''Pinus contorta''),

Jeffrey Pine ''Pinus jeffreyi'', also known as Jeffrey pine, Jeffrey's pine, yellow pine and black pine, is a North American pine tree. It is mainly found in California, but also in the westernmost part of Nevada, southwestern Oregon, and northern Baja Califo ...

(''Pinus jeffreyi'') and

White Fir ''Abies concolor'', the white fir, is a coniferous tree in the pine family Pinaceae. This tree is native to the mountains of western North America, including the Cascade Range and southern Rocky Mountains, and into the isolated mountain range ...

(''Abies concolor'').

Recreation

The proximity of the Stanislaus National Forest to the

San Francisco Bay Area The San Francisco Bay Area, often referred to as simply the Bay Area, is a populous region surrounding the San Francisco, San Pablo, and Suisun Bay estuaries in Northern California. The Bay Area is defined by the Association of Bay Area Go ...

makes it a popular recreation destination. The volcanic and granite formations in the

wilderness Wilderness or wildlands (usually in the plural), are natural environments on Earth that have not been significantly modified by human activity or any nonurbanized land not under extensive agricultural cultivation. The term has traditionally re ...

exist alongside heavy cattle grazing. Whitewater

rafting Rafting and whitewater rafting are recreational outdoor activities which use an inflatable raft to navigate a river or other body of water. This is often done on whitewater or different degrees of rough water. Dealing with risk is often a ...

and

kayaking Kayaking is the use of a kayak for moving over water. It is distinguished from canoeing by the sitting position of the paddler and the number of blades on the paddle. A kayak is a low-to-the-water, canoe-like boat in which the paddler sits fac ...

can be found in the wild and scenic

Tuolumne River The Tuolumne River (Yokutsan: ''Tawalimnu'') flows for through Central California, from the high Sierra Nevada to join the San Joaquin River in the Central Valley. Originating at over above sea level in Yosemite National Park, the Tuolumne ...

and Cherry Creek. Other rivers flowing out of the Stanislaus include the Clavey River, the

, as well as the

Merced River The Merced River (), in the central part of the U.S. state of California, is a -long tributary of the San Joaquin River flowing from the Sierra Nevada (U.S.), Sierra Nevada into the San Joaquin Valley. It is most well known for its swift and st ...

along the southern boundary. Two ski resorts, Dodge Ridge and Bear Valley, operate here under a special use permit.

2013 Rim Fire

The

Rim Fire The Rim Fire was a massive wildfire that started in a remote canyon in Stanislaus National Forest, in California. This portion of the central Sierra Nevada (U.S.), Sierra Nevada spans Tuolumne County, California, Tuolumne and Mariposa County, C ...

was ignited on the Stanislaus National Forest in August 2013, and eventually grew to become the third-largest fire in California history. The fire was named after the Rim of the World Vista on

California State Route 120 State Route 120 (SR 120) is a state highway in the central part of California, connecting the San Joaquin Valley with the Sierra Nevada, Yosemite National Park, and the Mono Lake area. Its western terminus is at Interstate 5 in Lathrop, and its ...

, where the fire was initially reported.

References

External links