Sespe Wilderness is a vast protected backcountry in Los Padres National Forest in Southern California, covering much of Ventura County across the eastern Topatopa and southern Sierra Pelona mountains. Designated by Congress in 1992, it includes the Sespe Condor Sanctuary and one of the region’s largest roadless wild landscapes. Its steep sandstone terrain, deep valleys, and elevation changes support varied habitats, from chaparral to oak woodland and riparian corridors. Sespe Creek, one of Southern California’s last free-flowing streams, provides habitat for southern steelhead trout. The area also holds rich biodiversity, including more than 40 endangered species, and preserves the traditional homeland and archaeological legacy of the Chumash people.