Date: September 27, 2007
Shenandoah National Park will honor America’s wilderness heritage during its 7th annual Wilderness Weekend, October 20 - 21, 2007. This year commemorates the 31st anniversary of Shenandoah’s wilderness designation. Celebrate wilderness by viewing Shenandoah’s wilderness from Skyline Drive, hiking a wilderness trail, joining a ranger program, or visiting a visitor center.
Wilderness Weekend is a partnership between Shenandoah National Park and the Potomac Appalachian Trail Club (PATC). PATC volunteers will be at several overlooks along Skyline Drive to share information about Shenandoah’s wilderness with visitors enjoying the park’s fall foliage.
Two special events will take place at Byrd Visitor Center, milepost 51 on Skyline Drive. The first event will be a traditional tool display and demonstration from 9:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. each day. Shenandoah National Park Trail Crews and PATC volunteers will share their expertise in the traditional tools used to maintain trails in wilderness. Visitors will be able to try their hands at using these tools and gain insight on the important role trail maintenance plays in protecting wilderness for future generations. The second event will be 30-minute ranger programs held at 11:00 am and 1:00 pm each day. These programs will explore the history and values of Shenandoah’s wilderness.
Visitors are encouraged to stop by park visitor centers for more opportunities to learn about Shenandoah’s wilderness through exhibits and films. The new highly interactive exhibit at Byrd Visitor Center, “Within a Day’s Drive of Millions,” tells the story of Shenandoah’s establishment including the significance of wilderness designation. Visitors can explore the history and meaning of wilderness through a computer touch screen exhibit, “The Spirit of Wilderness.” A newly released film narrated by Christopher Reeves, American Values: American Wilderness, will be available for viewing on request.
Shenandoah’s wilderness was designated by Congress in October 1976. Forty percent of the park, almost 80,000 acres, is wilderness and represents one of the largest wilderness areas in the eastern United States. Areas preserved as wilderness provide sanctuaries for human recreation, habitat for wildlife, sites for research, and reservoirs for clean, free-flowing water. Wilderness areas have been designated on public land across the United States. Today more than 106 million acres of public land are protected in the National Wilderness Preservation System.
For more information on Wilderness Weekend, contact Shenandoah National Park’s Education Office at 540-999-3489. For more information about Shenandoah National Park and wilderness, visit the park’s website at
www.nps.gov/shen. Byrd Visitor Center lies within the park at milepost 51 on Skyline Drive.
