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<br />000899
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<br />MAROON BELLS - SNOWMASS WILDERNESS
<br />White River National Forest
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<br />Originally e,Wblished on February 28, 1933, as the Maroon Bells - Snowmass Primitive
<br />Area, and reclassified on May 3, 1956, as the Maroon Bells - Snowmass Wild Area, this
<br />spectacular portion of the White River National Forest has been included in the National
<br />Wilderness Preservation System since passage of the Wilderness Act in 1964,
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<br />Harold R, Borden, Supervisor of the Holy Cross National Forest, now part of the White
<br />River !\lational Forest, proposed the establishment of the Primitive Area on April 27, 1932,
<br />The propo,al and management plan were recommended in turn by Regional Forester,Allen
<br />S, Peck on February 6, 1933, and approved by Chief of the Forest Service R, Y; Stuart on
<br />February 28, 1933,
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<br />According to the management plan, the Primitive Area included 62,600 acres of the rugged
<br />Elk Mountains in the Castle, Maroon and Snowmass Creek drainages, tributaries of the
<br />Roaring Fork River, The tract was recommended for Primitive Area status because in the
<br />word, of Borden's plan ", , ,it includes some of the most picturesque and interesting, as well
<br />as awe inspiring, country in the West, Its beauties unfold, one after another, to those who
<br />care to take their pack outfits and loose themselves in the heart of the Rockies,"
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<br />The thousands who visited the Maroon Bells, Snowmass Wilderness in 1973 would
<br />undoubtedly agree with Supervisor Borden's enthusiasm for the area, although most visitors
<br />now travel by foot rather than horse_ Freeze-dried food, rip-stop nylon, and primus stoves,
<br />have largely replaced the panners, canvas, and sheet metal stoves used by pack outfits'in Mr.
<br />Borden's day, However, his description of "The narrow valleys, with steep precipitous slopes
<br />clothed in their summer dress of wild flowers, apsen and coniferous timber, and here and
<br />there clear crystal lakes, are unsurpassed for the nature lover:' is true to this day.
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<br />Mountain Sheep (Rocky Mountain Bighorn) were reported to summer and winter at
<br />Conundrum Hot Springs in the head of Conundrum Creek, a Castle Creek tributary, The
<br />management plan noted that", _ ,the sheep are so tame they can be approached in a quiet
<br />way, and observed at close range," I n more recent years sheep sightings have become rare,
<br />probably due to the very heavy use of the area by hikers, No permits for hunting Mountain
<br />Sheep in the Wilderness are issued by the Colorado Division of Wildlife, and the Forest
<br />Service has found it necessary to close the area around the Hot Springs, as well as other
<br />over-used areas, to camping,
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<br />The effects of the economic depression gripping the country in the early 1930's were
<br />evident in the rnanagement plan, Referring to the status of mining activity, and the patented
<br />(deeded) mining claims in the Primitive Area, it said, "Today, everything is quiet, Ashcroft,
<br />an old mining town just outside the Primitive Area on Castle Creek, was once alive with
<br />people, but is now abandoned, except for a lonely prospector on two, , , , Most of these
<br />mining patents are tax delinquent lands and eventually will probably be acquired through
<br />exchange. "
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