Trailhead into the Chumash Wilderness, immediately west of the summit of Mount Pinos

The Chumash Wilderness is a wilderness area in the mountains of Ventura County, California, USA. It is completely within the Los Padres National Forest, and includes most of the highest terrain in Ventura County. Although the mountains in the wilderness are not part of a named range, they are within the larger Coast Ranges of the western United States. The nearest towns are the unincorporated communities of Frazier Park to the east, Lockwood Valley and Cuddy Valley to the south, and the Pine Mountain Club to the north. Image File history File linksMetadata Size of this preview: 680 × 599 pixelsFull resolution (1282 × 1130 pixel, file size: 630 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) File links The following pages on the English Wikipedia link to this file (pages on other projects are not listed): Chumash Wilderness Metadata This file contains... Image File history File linksMetadata Size of this preview: 680 × 599 pixelsFull resolution (1282 × 1130 pixel, file size: 630 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) File links The following pages on the English Wikipedia link to this file (pages on other projects are not listed): Chumash Wilderness Metadata This file contains... A mountain peak located in the Los Padres National Forest between the California counties of Ventura and Kern. ... Ventura County . ... View into the Los Padres backcountry, Santa Barbara and Ventura Counties, California: everything in this picture is within the Los Padres National Forest Los Padres National Forest is a forest located in southern and central California, which includes most of the mountainous land along the California coast from Ventura to... The Pacific Coast Ranges are the series of mountain ranges that stretch along west coast of North America from Alaska to Mexico. ... Frazier Park is a census-designated place located in Kern County, California. ... Pine Mountain Club is a census-designated place located in Kern County, California. ...

The wilderness spans 38,150 acres, and extends from just west of the summit of Mount Pinos (8,831 ft/2,692 m) to Cerro Noroeste (Mount Abel) to the west, and south into the badlands north of Lockwood Valley Road. Since Mount Pinos, Cerro Noroeste, and the Pine Mountain Club are developed with paved roads, they did not qualify for inclusion in the wilderness, which wraps partially around them. The highest point in the Chumash Wilderness is Sawmill Mountain, at 8,818 ft (2,688 m). A mountain peak located in the Los Padres National Forest between the California counties of Ventura and Kern. ... Cerro Noroeste (or Mount Abel) is located in Southern Californias Kern County, a mile north of the Ventura County border. ... Pine Mountain Club is a census-designated place located in Kern County, California. ... Sawmill Mountain is a mountain peak and the highest point in Kern County. ...

The wilderness was created by the U.S. Congress in 1992 as part of the Los Padres Condor Range and River Protection Act. The same legislation also established the Sespe, Matilija, Garcia, Machesna Mountain, and Silver Peak wildernesses.

Major trailheads into the wilderness can be found at Mount Pinos as well as Cerro Noroeste/Mount Abel. From the Mount Pinos parking area, the wilderness trailhead is approximately 2 miles (3 km) along a dirt road with a locked gate.

Vegetation within the wilderness includes chaparral at lower elevations, and conifers at higher elevations. Some of the badlands near the southern edge of the wilderness are almost barren of vegetation, and include steep slopes with knife-edge ridges. Snow is frequent from fall until late spring at the highest elevations. Rain is rare in the summer, and fire possible. Chaparral is a shrubland plant community found primarily in California, USA, that is shaped by a Mediterranean climate (mild, wet winters and hot dry summers) and wildfire. ...

Characteristic fauna of the wilderness include black bear, mountain lion, as well as the endangered California condor; the wilderness is at the heart of the historic range of these large scavengers. Binomial name Ursus americanus Pallas, 1780 For the Eurasian Black Bear, see Asiatic Black Bear. ... Binomial name Puma concolor (Linnaeus, 1771) The puma (Puma concolor) is a type of large cat found in North, Central and South America. ... Binomial name Gymnogyps californianus Shaw, 1797 Synonyms Genus-level: Antillovultur Arredondo, 1976 Pseudogryphus Species-level: Vultur californianus Shaw, 1797 Gymnogyps amplus L. H. Miller, 1911 The California Condor, Gymnogyps californianus, is a species of bird in one of the vulture families. ...

External links

• Wildernesses within the Los Padres National Forest
• Description at Wilderness.net