The Wilderness Land Trust

Mission

We keep the Promise of Wilderness - by acquiring and transferring private lands to public ownership to complete designated and proposed wilderness areas, or directly protect wilderness values.

The Wilderness Land Trust enhances public access to designated wilderness, protects clean water and vital flora and fauna habitat, safeguards corridors for seasonal migrating wildlife, and provides opportunities for soul-nourishing solitude away from the stress of urban life.

We are a small but tenacious organization that has been effectively protecting our treasured wilderness areas across the American West since 1992. To date, we have protected over 56,000 acres by removing the threat of commercial, residential, and industrial development from the wild places you love.

Description

With President Biden's commitment to mitigate climate change and protect biodiversity by safeguarding 30 percent of America's lands and waters by 2030, the National Wilderness Preservation System is back on center stage. Opportunities abound to help realize the 30x30 vision in Washington state, and The Wilderness Land Trust is poised to lead the way.

Washington's designated wilderness areas are incredibly diverse, ranging from hundreds of small islands off the western coast to towering, glaciated mountains, to dry, wind-swept sand dunes in the south-central part of the state.

A number of them reside within the fabled North Cascades Ecosystem, one of America's largest expanses of wild public lands. Rugged and unkempt, this land is home to diverse habitats teeming with wildlife, including the charismatic gray wolf, Canada lynx, wolverine, and even the occasional grizzly bear. The old-growth temperate rainforests of western Washington are unsung heroes in the fight against climate change, storing vast amounts of carbon that would otherwise warm the planet.

Wilderness allows visitors the opportunity to unmask, breathe deep and find refuge from the modern world. These unique landscapes leave a person reveling in their raw beauty and the assurance that they will remain wild and free, now and for future generations. And yet, there are dangers within these wilderness areas that threaten their resiliency. Some 3,600 acres of privately owned lands grandfathered into Washington's wilderness areas have left them vulnerable to mineral extraction, logging, and private development.

Founded in 1992, The Wilderness Land Trust is the only organization solely dedicated to removing these threats from within and adjacent to the boundaries of designated wilderness, or directly in the path of future wilderness designations. This is accomplished by purchasing these properties from willing sellers and then transferring them over to public ownership to be incorporated into the surrounding wilderness.

In Washington State, the Trust has protected more than 1,837 acres in 6 wilderness areas. We have added 27 properties to public lands and have 9 more properties waiting to be transferred. By systematically acquiring these properties, the Trust is stitching together the fabric of the wilderness one project at a time, until it's completely free from the threat of private development.