Property Acquisition Helps Secure Washington's Wild Sky Wilderness

SNOHOMISH COUNTY, Wash., Nov. 16 (AScribe Newswire) -- The Wilderness Land Trust and The United States Forest Service announce the protection of a 113-acre property in the Wild Sky Wilderness in Snohomish County, Wash., with the transfer of the property from The Wilderness Land Trust to the United States for inclusion in the 106,000-acre Wild Sky Wilderness.

The property is located in the Bitter Creek drainage a few miles upstream of the North Fork Skykomish River. The Skykomish drains a vast watershed on the edge of the Cascades just outside of Seattle. The property contains a thick canopy of Douglas fir, silver fir, cedar, and mountain hemlock and expansive views of the surrounding mountain peaks.

The transfer completes a process that started in August of 2006 when The Wilderness Land Trust purchased the property from a private seller. The Trust's acquisition of the property helped the Wild Sky designation move forward to a successful completion in 2008. The purchase also allowed the Forest Service to terminate an existing road right of way that had been used in the mid 1900s for timber harvests. The old road can now be used for a trail into the wilderness.

"This acquisition would not have been possible without the strong partnership of the Wilderness Land Trust and the support of the many within the environmental community. This is a wonderful legacy for the Wild Sky Wilderness," said Rob Iwamoto, Forest Supervisor for the Mt. Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest.

"The Wilderness Land Trust is pleased to assist the Forest Service with this transaction. With the private property now becoming part of the wilderness and the road going away, the quick-growing Cascade forest will soon return the Wild Sky to its natural condition," said David Kirk, Senior Lands Specialist for the Trust. "These transactions take a while, but the long-term result of secured wilderness makes it all worthwhile. I highly recommend a hike up into this area."

The Wilderness Land Trust acquires unprotected private land within wilderness, returning it to public ownership to guarantee that future generations can enjoy the enduring resources of wilderness. The Trust is a small, highly specialized non-profit organization established to buy and protect wilderness land. Since it was founded in 1992, the organization has preserved more than 344 parcels comprising more than 31,000 acres of wilderness inholdings in 76 designated and proposed wilderness areas. Read more at http://www.wildernesslandtrust.org