French Pete Trail runs through a low-elevation old-growth valley in western Oregon whose forest became a major battleground in the Pacific Northwest wilderness movement. Following French Pete Creek through lush stands of ancient Douglas fir and cedar, the route passes a landscape especially vulnerable to logging. The broader area was protected in 1938, opened to timber sales in 1957, and then became a national symbol in the fight over preserving old-growth valleys. Opposition to a 1968 logging plan, backed by conservation groups, local residents, and Oregon politicians, helped lead to wilderness protection in 1978, making French Pete an important turning point in American conservation.