Leopold Institute Publications
Leopold Institute Publications
The following publications have been produced by Leopold Institute staff and cooperators. To order these publications,
free of charge, use the Publication Order Form. All orders require the Leopold Institute publication number.
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Citation for publication number 293:
Cole, David N. 1996. Wilderness recreation in the United States--trends in use, users, and impacts. International Journal of Wilderness 2(3): 14-18.
Leopold Publication Number 293
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Abstract:
     Recreation use of the National Wilderness Preservation System (NWPS) has increased sixfold since passage of The Wilderness Act in 1964. Use is currently increasing in most designated wilderness areas. However, the wilderness visitors of today, the trips they take, and their management preferences are not very different from those of a decade or two ago. Some of the impacts of recreation use are stable over an 11-year period. Conditions on long-established campsites only deteriorated slightly over 5- to 11-year periods. However, aggregate campsite impact has increased greatly due to dramatic increases in the number of campsites (53 to 123% increases in the wilderness areas studied). These findings suggest that problems with wilderness recreation are pronounced and increasing. More investment by management and commitment to dealing with problems is needed to meet wilderness recreation management goals.

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