Indian Heaven Wilderness

Indian Heaven Wilderness is a protected nature reserve covering roughly 20,000 acres of forested plateau scattered with volcanic peaks and dotted with around 150 lakes, ponds, and wetlands. The entire area sits within Gifford Pinchot National Forest and offers varied water features across the high country.

The United States Forest Service protected this area as designated wilderness in 1984 to preserve its natural character and ecological resources. The designation safeguarded a landscape that had been used by Indigenous peoples for thousands of years.

Native tribes gathered here for thousands of years to fish, hunt, and harvest berries in the high country. The area remains connected to the traditions and lifeways of these Indigenous peoples.

The Pacific Crest Trail runs through the area, providing the main hiking route and access to most of the lakes and ridges. Visitors should arrive prepared for mountain weather changes and limited facilities or services once inside the wilderness.

The area sits atop a volcanic field with roughly 60 eruptive centers along a fissure zone stretching for miles. The most recent eruptions happened thousands of years ago, but they shaped the plateau and water features visible today.