In fact, more than 12 million people visit Wilderness each year on their own or with a guide to climb mountains, ride horses, hunt game, fish blue-ribbon trout streams, ski snowcapped peaks, raft rivers, canoe lakes, take pictures and stargaze. In short, most types of recreational uses are allowed in Wilderness, except those needing mechanical transport or motorized equipment, such as motorboats, cars, trucks, off-road vehicles, bicycles and snowmobiles. Exceptions include wheelchairs and, in Alaska, certain mechanized and motorized uses associated with traditional activities and subsistence.
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MISCONCEPTION: The word Wilderness (capital W) refers to all wild lands.

In fact, not all lands that are wild are designated as Wilderness. Wilderness lands are Federal lands that have been designated as part of the National Wilderness Preservation System by Congress and are managed by the Bureau of Land Management, Fish and Wildlife Service, Forest Service and National Park Service under the Wilderness Act of 1964, and subsequent Wilderness laws. Although some states and Native American tribes have designated lands as state or tribal wilderness, these lands are not managed under the Wilderness Act and therefore do not qualify as part of the National Wilderness Preservation System. Additionally, many people mistakenly refer to national parks, state parks, county and city open spaces, or even primitively privately-owned lands as Wilderness. These lands, although wild and valuable as compliments to lands contained within the National Wilderness Preservation System, are also not considered to be Wilderness according to the Wilderness Act.
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MISCONCEPTION: Most public land is protected as Wilderness.

Currently, the National Wilderness Preservation System contains 107,514,938 acres. However, only 4.75% of the entire United States-an area slightly larger than the state of California-is protected as Wilderness. Since 53% of America's Wilderness is found in Alaska, only 2.64% of the contiguous United States-an area about the size of South Dakota-is protected as Wilderness.

MISCONCEPTION: Wilderness is found only in big western states or in Alaska.

In fact, all but six states have federal designated Wilderness: Connecticut, Delaware, Iowa, Kansas, Maryland, Rhode Island.

MISCONCEPTION: Wilderness is only found in remote places like high-elevation mountains with snow and ice or vast sandy deserts.

In reality, the National Wilderness Preservation System preserves a wide variety of ecosystems throughout the country including swamps in the Southeast, tundra in Alaska, snowcapped peaks in the Rocky Mountains, hardwood forests in the Northeast, and deserts in the Southwest. More than half of these diverse Wilderness areas are within a day's drive of America's largest cities.

MISCONCEPTION: All Wilderness areas are managed by the Forest Service.

In fact, four federal agencies in the Departments of Agriculture and Interior share the responsibility of managing the National Wilderness Preservation System: Bureau of Land Management, Fish and Wildlife Service, Forest Service, National Park Service. While the Forest Service manages the largest number of wilderness areas, the National Park Service manages the most wilderness acreage.
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