Umpqua/Willamette National Forests

"Just 30 miles from Eugene, there is a very special place, a place almost entirely untouched by human hands...." -A 1980 brochure for the proposed Hardesty Mountain Wilderness Area

Hardesty Mountain has a history of being in the cross-fire of Oregon's wilderness wars. A lowland ancient forest, this area has long been at the center of controversy, with citizens trying to save it and federal bureaucrats trying to cut it down.

THE AREA
The unprotected roadless forests of Hardesty Mountain encompass over 6000 acres of land on the Willamette and Umpqua National Forests. Its ancient forests are home to elk, deer, owls, eagles, and cougars. And on the Umpqua side of the roadless divide is the headwaters for Cottage Grove's drinking water supply. The water quality in this undisturbed forest is exceptional.

Hardesty Mountain is also an important recreational resource for the towns of Eugene, Springfield, Cottage Grove, and Oakridge. The area offers nearly 20 miles of hiking trails through ancient forests, meadows, and rocky ledges on high ridges. One of the area's mountain peaks, Mt. June, offers views of the Cascades from Mount Jefferson to Mount Thielson, as well as views of the Coast Range and southern Willamette Valley.

THE HISTORY
In the 1970's, a small group of Springfield and Eugene residents formed the Hardesty Mountain Study Group. This group worked with the Oregon Wilderness Coalition (now Oregon Wild) to try to protect the Hardesty Mountain area in a wilderness protection bill. The group also published a hiking guide to the area and educated people about its wilderness values.

In 1984, the Oregon Wilderness Act was enacted, protecting numerous wilderness areas around the state. Unfortunately, the proposed Hardesty Mountain wilderness area was left out of the bill. In the final negotiations over the bill, Senator Hatfield offered Rep. Jim Weaver a choice to protect either Hardesty Mountain or the Waldo Lake area. Weaver chose the larger Waldo Lake area. (Source: The Wilderness Movement and the National Forests: 1980-1984, a Forest Service History Series Document, FS-410, August 1988).

After Hardesty Mountain was left out of the 1984 Wilderness bill, it has been vulnerable to several logging threats over the years. In 1990, the Forest Service moved the boundary of the roadless area, shrinking it substantially, even though the area is still unroaded (See 1990 Umpqua National Forest Plan FEIS at Appendix C-11).