Mineral resources of the Mount Zirkel Wilderness and northern Park Range vicinity, Jackson and Routt counties, Colorado

Abstract

In accordance with the provisions of the Wilderness Act (Public Law 88-577, Sept. 3, 1964) and related acts, the U.S. Geological Survey and U.S. Bureau of Mines have been conducting mineral surveys of wilderness and primitive areas. Studies and reports of all primitive areas have been completed. Areas officially designated as "wilderness," "wild," or "canoe" when the act was passed were incorporated into the National Wilderness Preservation System, and some of them are presently being studied. The act provided that areas under consideration for wilderness designation should be studied for suitability for incorporation into the Wilderness System. The mineral surveys constitute one aspect of the suitability studies. This report discusses the results of a mineral survey of some national forest lands in the Mount Zirkel Wilderness and northern Park Range vicinity, Colorado, that are being considered for wilderness designation, and of an equal amount of surrounding land that has not been considered for wilderness designation. Since the initial writing additional wilderness adjacent to the original Mount Zirkel Wilderness has been established by Public Law 96-560, Dec. 22, 1980, and the adjacent Davis Peak Roadless Area was classified as further planning during the Roadless Area Review and Evaluation (RARE II) by the Forest Service, January 1979. Both are shown on the index map figure of this report but are not otherwise referred to herein; the area of each is completely covered by the geologic, geochemical, and geophysical studies contained in this report.