The Narrows offer stunning views and are a testament to the power of water, which continues to rearrange the canyon bottom.
NPS / Sally King
Bandelier's wilderness is rocky, rugged, and beautiful.
NPS / Sally King
Established by the Wilderness Act of 1964, federally designated wilderness is the highest level of legal protection for public lands. By law, wilderness is often free from roads, buildings, mechanized equipment, and permanent human occupation. It is preserved for its wealth of values: ecological, scientific, recreational, historic, and cultural. These places are meant to be truly wild. A space reserved for wildlife to roam free. For nature to thrive on its own terms. For humans to unplug from civilization and experience solitude and connection to the natural world. Wilderness serves as a refuge to all.
Bandelier Wilderness
Visitors come to experience the many joys of wilderness. Taking a quiet walk through a piñon-juniper woodland. Looking out into a sea of tuff cliffs and canyons millions of years in the making. Hearing the pecking sound of a downy woodpecker hard at work. Gazing into the dark night skies and seeing the Milky Way and brilliant stars of deep space for the first time.
Experiences in wilderness provide us with inspiration, relaxation, adventure, and self-discovery. They link us to our roots in the natural world and help us understand the world around us. Humans have roamed these lands for thousands of years. The Ancestral Puebloans were original stewards of the land on which Bandelier National Monument now sits. They formed deep connections with the land and still do today. It is highly sacred to them. To learn more about Bandelier's affilited tribes and tribal groups, visit the Land Acknowledgement page.
Wilderness Character
The National Park Service’s primary mandate for managing wilderness is the same across all federal lands: to preserve wilderness character. The holistic concept of wilderness character protects the biophysical environment, personal experiences, and the symbolic meanings of humility, restraint, and respect. The many benefits of wilderness are rooted in its character preservation. Wilderness character includes five tangible qualities that are present in wilderness areas:
Natural: Ecological systems are substantially free from the effects of modern civilization and managed to preserve it's natural conditions.
Untrammeled: Ecological systems are unhindered and free from the intentional actions of modern human control or manipulation.
Undeveloped: Wilderness retains its primeval character and influence and is essentially without permanent improvements or human habitation.
Solitude or Primitive and Unconfined Recreation: Wilderness provides opportunities for visitors to find solitude and to challenge themselves with a primitive and unconfined type of recreation
Other Features of Value: Wilderness may also contain ecological, geological, or other features of scientific, educational, scenic, or historical value.
In 2023, new wooden signs were installed to help visitors recognize the wilderness areas and the many backcountry opportunities they can access at Bandelier.
NPS
Managing Wilderness
Bandelier National Monument manages approximately 33,677 acres, or 52.6 square miles. The Bandelier Wilderness was designated by Congress in 1976 and consists of approximately 24,424 acres today. Designated wilderness is managed in accordance with federal law and is part of the National Wilderness Preservation System. For land to become designated wilderness, a Congressional act must signed into law by the President of the United States.
