Powderhorn Wilderness

Powderhorn Wilderness is a 62,050-acre protected high-country area in southwestern Colorado, northeast of Lake City, managed mostly by the Bureau of Land Management with a smaller section in Gunnison National Forest. Rising from West Fork Powderhorn Creek to Calf Creek Plateau, it contains one of the largest expanses of tundra in the contiguous United States and protects an important Gunnison River watershed, including the forks of Powderhorn Creek, Calf Creek, lakes, and beaver ponds. Its landscape reflects San Juan volcanism and later glaciation, while its elevations support alpine tundra, subalpine forest, and wildlife including mule deer, elk, bears, mountain lions, marmots, and pikas.

Lake City, Colorado · United States