Jedediah Smith Wilderness

Jedediah Smith Wilderness spans nearly 124,000 acres of federally protected backcountry in Wyoming, offering visitors genuine solitude and primitive outdoor experience far from roads and motorized access. The landscape is rugged and wild—a place for hiking and backpacking where silence and self-reliance are the defining features.

Recreation here is non-motorized and human-powered only: hiking and backpacking are the primary ways to explore. There are no developed trails, maintained campsites, or facilities. This is Leave No Trace country where visitors must be entirely self-sufficient, experienced in navigation and wilderness camping, and committed to protecting the landscape through minimal-impact practices.

Access requires a high degree of backcountry competence. No roads penetrate the wilderness; entry points lie outside its boundary. Summer and early fall offer the best window for travel, though snow and cold arrive early in the high country. Winter conditions render much of the area inaccessible to most visitors. Come prepared for isolation, variable weather, and the reality that help is far away. This wilderness rewards those who seek genuine remoteness and accept the physical and mental demands it asks.