Wilderness is an area “…where the earth and its community of life are untrammeled by man, where man himself is a visitor who does not remain…”

The Wilderness Protection Act of 1964 established federally-managed lands preserved as large, roadless tracts where mechanized vehicles and equipment are not permitted, where permanent evidence of modern human occupation is not allowed, and where future development is not considered. In 1976 about eighty percent of Joshua Tree National Monument was designated wilderness. The 1994 California Desert Protection Act added 163,800 acres of wilderness, bringing the park total to 585,000 acres.

In designated wilderness, facilities and improvements such as trails, signs, and campsites may be provided only where they are necessary to protect resources and the public’s health and safety. Wilderness areas offer opportunities for a primitive and unconfined recreational experience. They provide visitors with greater solitude and quiet, with opportunities to explore where few others have ventured.