Gila National Forest
Overview
United States National Forest
National Forest is a classification of federal lands in the United States.National Forests are largely forest and woodland areas owned by the federal government and managed by the United States Forest Service, part of the United States Department of Agriculture. Land management of these areas...
in New Mexico
New Mexico
New Mexico is a state located in the southwest and western regions of the United States. New Mexico is also usually considered one of the Mountain States. With a population density of 16 per square mile, New Mexico is the sixth-most sparsely inhabited U.S...
in the southwestern United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
established in 1905. It covers approximately 3.3 million acres (5150 sq. mi., 13,000 km²) of public land, making it the sixth largest National Forest in the continental United States. Part of the area, the Gila Wilderness
Gila Wilderness
Gila Wilderness was designated the world's first wilderness area on June 3, 1924. Along with Aldo Leopold Wilderness and Blue Range Wilderness, the wilderness is part of New Mexico's Gila National Forest. The wilderness is approximately from north to south and east to west...
, was established in 1924 as the first designated wilderness by the U.S. federal government. Aldo Leopold Wilderness
Aldo Leopold Wilderness
Aldo Leopold Wilderness, along with Gila Wilderness and Blue Range Wilderness, is part of New Mexico's Gila National Forest. It became part of the National Wilderness Preservation System in 1980 by an act of the United States Congress and has a total of...
and Blue Range Wilderness
Blue Range Wilderness
Blue Range Wilderness, along with Aldo Leopold Wilderness and Gila Wilderness, is part of Gila National Forest. It is located on the western border of New Mexico where it adjoins the Blue Range Primitive Area of Arizona and west of U.S. Route 180 between Reserve and Glenwood. The wilderness is...
are also found within its borders.
