Living & Playing in Wyoming’s Wild Country

A Primer on Appreciating and Protecting
the Wild Country of Wyoming

What Wilderness Does For You

Wilderness serves local residents and visitors in many ways.  It provides a diversity of users--hunters, fishers, backpackers, backcountry skiers--outstanding experiences in nature.  It is a basis for the scientific research that allows us to understand the natural systems that support humans and wildlife.  It provides the ecosystem goods and services that benefit all.

Wilderness offers sustainable recreation for many kinds of people from all over the world:  cross-country skiing, snowshoeing, hiking, fishing, hunting, photography, wildlife viewing, horseback riding and packing, scientific research, rock climbing, mountaineering, backpacking, religious experience, education outdoor labs and schools, volunteer and service opportunities, bird watching, star-watching, journaling, painting, solo experiences.

If you live in Wyoming, you have directly benefited from the protection of wild lands:

Economic development in northeastern Wyoming will increasingly depend upon pristine landscapes and the natural attractions wilderness provides:  hunting, fishing, horse-packing, hiking, camping, rock climbing, and quiet retreats. 
Sonoran Institute Study

Outdoor recreation in Wyoming contributes more than $4.4 billion annually to local economies, supporting 52,000 jobs. 
Wyoming office of Travel/Tourism


Nearly 500,000 people hunt and fish annually in Wyoming; another million participate in wildlife viewing. 
U.S. Department of Interior


Total hunting dollars in Wyoming is over $7.5 million. 
Wyoming Game and Fish Department


According to a recent study, personal income grows much faster in communities adjacent to public lands managed for conservation than lands managed for resource development.  Sonoran Institute Study

 

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