View Park - Ishi Wilderness - General

If you go to Ishi from the south (through Cohasset) be prepared for a very rough road and the need of some 4wd skills. More practical is the route from the north. Go to Red Bluff then go east towards Lassen NP. Good directions are on the FS map they sell, but my advice is to have the DeLorme gazetter as there are lots of wrong turns you can make on the unmarked private land around the wilderness. Good news is the remoteness of this area makes for some serious solitude!

View a more detailed map of Ishi Wilderness and the surrounding area or get directions. Map provided by Yahoo!

Deer Creek looked great for kayaking and fly fishing, at least in the spring. Wildlife viewing, hiking, backpacking, and enjoying wonderful canyon views are what we experienced.

no fees at all

"The Ishi Wilderness now contains a total of 41,339 acres and is managed by the Bureau of Land Management and the U.S. Forest Service. All of the wilderness is in the state of California.Public land becomes wilderness through legislation passed by the United States Congress in the form of public laws. For the Ishi Wilderness, this process began in 1984 when 41,840 acres were designated by Public Law 98-425.The Ishi Wilderness is part of the 106 million acre National Wilderness Preservation System. This System of wild lands contributes significantly to the ecological, economic, and social health of our country. Wilderness provides clean air and water, a shelter for endangered species, sacred places for indigenous peoples, a living laboratory for research, and a classroom for exploring personal values while experiencing risk, reward, and self-reliance. In wilderness, you can enjoy challenging recreational activities like hiking, backpacking, climbing, kayaking, canoeing, rafting, horse packing, bird watching, stargazing, and extraordinary opportunities for solitude. In an age of "...increasing population, accompanied by expanding settlement and growing mechanization," you play an important role in helping to "secure for the American people of present and future generations the benefits of an enduring resource of wilderness" as called for by the Congress of the United States through the Wilderness Act of 1964. Please follow the regulations listed below and use Leave No Trace techniques when visiting the Ishi Wilderness to ensure protection of this unique area. Area Management:Unless otherwise specified, no motorized equipment or mechanical transport is allowed. This is true for all federal lands managed as designated wilderness." - WILD & Recreation.Gov

This sums it up, but basically only go in the spring and fall caues the summers are too hot. Make sure you have a vehicle with good ground clearance and 4wd if it's been raining so you can get there in one piece. Oh, our experience was that the trails are not well marked on the ridges, so bring a GPS or plan lots of map and compass time. Make sure to have lots of water on the ridges in case you get turned around and loose time...it's very easy to do! The canyons are especially wonderful though, and we were fortunate enough to catch the newt breeding season in full swing (literally saw balls of 4-6 newts every 20 ft on the river!). Keep pets on leash as there was TONS of mountain lion scat everywhere (also saw black bear and coyote scat, but no animals). Ticks were also a problem but only with our dog...good news is that I don't think there is lyme's there.