Our Mission
To preserve the beauty and biodiversity of the earth and to provide programs so that children may know the wonder and joy of nature.
The Preserve System
Our growing preserve system safeguards forests, deserts, mountains, rivers, and coastlines through permanent land conservation and active stewardship.
Conservation Projects
Beyond our preserves, we lead and support conservation initiatives that protect connected landscapes, wildlife corridors, rivers, and public lands.
Land Acquisition Projects
Explore our current land acquisition projects and learn how you can help conserve land for future generations.
Rewilding Nature
Across the West, rivers have been dammed and diverted, wildlife corridors severed, and native species pushed to the brink. Explore our work to restore wildness and ecological balance.
Visit a Preserve
Our preserve system welcomes more than 1.5 million visitors each year to protected forests, deserts, mountains, rivers, wetlands, and coastlines across California and Utah, with preserves and programs open to the public free of charge.
Community Programs & Events
From guided hikes to photography workshops to summer activities for kids, The Wildlands Conservancy's free community programs & events offer something for everyone.
School Field Trips
Free field-trip programs give students hands-on outdoor learning experiences that foster curiosity, scientific discovery, and a deeper connection to the natural world.
About The Wildlands Conservancy
About Us
Our Core Principles & Beliefs
Meet Our Team
Our Financials
The financial information provided here is derived from our audited financial statements.
Rana Creek Preserve
With its iconic California oak woodland landscape, a journey through Rana Creek Preserve is like going back in time before highway traffic, strip malls, and power lines marred coastal California.
Wind Wolves Preserve
Wind Wolves Preserve is in an ecologically unique region where the Transverse Ranges, Coast Ranges, Sierra Nevada, western Mojave Desert and San Joaquin Valley influences converge.
Mission Creek Preserve
Located in a transition zone between the Sonoran and Mojave deserts, the 4,760-acre Mission Creek Preserve has a rich species composition with flora and fauna representing both deserts.
Pioneertown Mountains Preserve
The 25,500-acre Pioneertown Mountains Preserve descends from the high piney 7,800-foot ridges into the Pioneertown Valley.
Whitewater Preserve
Whitewater Preserve is 2,246 acres surrounded by the Bureau of Land Management’s San Gorgonio Wilderness and includes the year-round Whitewater River.
Two Rivers Preserve
Two Rivers Preserve is an awe-inspiring landscape within an ancient volcanic caldera full of glacial moraines, river-carved canyons, mountain meadows, and grand vistas of the Sierra Nevada and Sweetwater Mountains.
West Walker River Preserve
Situated in the Antelope Valley farming community, just off highway 395 in the Eastern Serra town of Coleville
Eel River Canyon Preserve
Given its location along the Grand Canyon of the Eel river, where the National Wild and Scenic Eel River carves its way through a deep and wild gorge
Emerald Waters Reserve
The 3,036-acre Emerald Waters Reserve is split between Humboldt and Trinity Counties and fronts on the Eel River for 4.5 miles.
Spyrock Reserve
The 5,832-acre Spyrock Reserve has five miles of frontage on the National Wild and Scenic Eel River in Mendocino County.
Beaver Valley Headwaters Preserve
The 6,094-acre Beaver Valley Headwaters Preserve in Siskiyou County protects two-and-a-half miles of the East Fork Scott River, providing habitats for Coho salmon, king salmon, and steelhead trout.
Eel River Estuary Preserve & Sounding Seas Dunes Reserve
The southern estuary of the Eel River in Humboldt County contains a diverse array of habitats and a grand arena of life
Seawood Cape Preserve
Seawood Cape encompasses 128 acres including almost a mile of California’s world famous rugged rocky coastline that is replete with barking sea lions and basking harbor seals.
Bearpaw Reserve
Bearpaw Reserve is 600 acres of steep, spectacular mountains with a seasonal 110-foot waterfall. Vegetation includes incense cedars, ponderosa and coulter pine, chaparral, and oracle oaks.
Bluff Lake Reserve
Located at 7,600 feet, Bluff Lake Reserve has towering pines, a 20-acre lake, a meadow, and majestic outcrops of quartz monzonite.
Galena Peak Wilderness Reserve
In 2018, The Wildlands Conservancy separated the 1,280-acre Galena Ridge from its Oak Glen Preserve, positioning this rugged rocky landscape to be managed like the adjoining San Gorgonio Wilderness.
Oak Glen Preserve
Nestled in a glen, situated at 5,024 feet, in the shadow of 8,700-foot Wilshire Peak, lies The Wildlands Conservancy’s 909-acre Oak Glen Preserve.
Estero Americano Coast Preserve
Acquired by The Wildlands Conservancy in 2015 through a visionary public-private partnership—including the State Coastal Conservancy, Sonoma County Ag + Open Space, the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation, Sonoma Land Trust, and individual donors.
Jenner Headlands Preserve
Jenner Headlands is a spectacular 5,630-acre mosaic of redwood and Douglas-fir forests, oak woodland, chaparral and coastal prairie overlooking the Pacific Ocean.
Mariposa Reserve
The 800-acre Mariposa Reserve is a habitat reserve surrounded by the Cleveland National Forest. It represents the best grassland and sycamore savanna in the north end of the forest.
Santa Margarita River Trail Preserve
In 2018, The Wildlands Conservancy acquired five miles of the oak- and sycamore-shaded Santa Margarita River, one of the last free-flowing wild rivers in Southern California and the southernmost range of steelhead trout.
Enchanted Rocks Preserve
Thousand-foot-high cliffs splashed with orange, white, purple, and red tower above the John Day River as it winds through iconic landscapes graced with western junipers, herds of Rocky Mountain elk, and the verdant canyons of its many tributaries.
Speaking Springs Preserve
Cottonwood Wash carves an ancient, 42-mile pathway from the towering Abajo Mountains to the historic San Juan River.
Explore the Preserve System Map
Use our interactive map to plan your next preserve visit.
Donate
All the Ways to Give
Since 1995, the generosity of The Wildlands Conservancy’s supporters has enabled us to call people back to the beauty, wonder, and inspiration of the natural world through outdoor education and the stewardship of some of California’s most remarkable and important landscapes.
Volunteer
Whether your passion is restoration or outdoor education, or you have a day to spare or a few hours a week, there’s a volunteer opportunity available for you to get involved and make a difference not just at your favorite preserve, but in your community.
Career Opportunities
Looking to join our team? Explore current opportunities with The Wildlands Conservancy.
Bluff Lake
Located at 7,600 feet, Bluff Lake Reserve has towering pines, a 20-acre lake, a meadow, and majestic outcrops of quartz monzonite.
The Reserve includes Southern California’s finest intact mountain marsh and meadow complex that contains the federally threatened Bear Valley bluegrass (Poa atropurpurea), the federally endangered Big Bear checkerbloom (Sidalcea pedata) and California dandelion (Taraxacum californicum).
Botanically the meadow is remarkable with 16 species of sedges (Carex), eight species of wire grass (Juncus) and 14 species of native grasses. Mature forests of lodgepole pine, Jeffrey pine, and white fir surround the meadow. You may recognize the scenery as the location of the original 1961 Disney film The Parent Trap, and the 2001 20th Century Fox movie Dr. Dolittle 2.
Plan Your Visit
Contact The Preserve
Reserve Hours
9:00 am to 6:00 pm
Admission
Free
Getting Here
Bluff Lake Road
Big Bear Lake, CA 92315
Access to the main parking area via FS Road 2N10 may be temporarily unavailable at any time, and without notice, for adverse weather conditions or safety precautions.
Things to Do
Hiking
Dogs on Leash
Picniking
Birdwatching
Wildlife Viewing
Wildflower Viewing
Amenities
Information Kiosks
Parking
Picnic Area
Shaded Picnic Area
Prohibitions
Fire of Any Kind
Hunting or Shooting
Charcoal BBQs
Alcohol or Smoking
Collecting
Drones
Off Highway Vehicles
Swimming
Camping
Parking Overnight
Fishing
Safety
Mountain Lion
Black Bear
Rattlesnake
No Potable Water
Resources
Leave No Trace
- Pack it in, Pack it out.
- Take any trash you make with you.
- Leave What You Find.
- Allow others a sense of discovery by leaving rocks, plants, archaeological artifacts and other objects of interest as you find them.
- Respect Wildlife.
- Learn about wildlife through quiet observation. Do not disturb wildlife or plants just for a “better look.” Observe wildlife from a distance so they are not scared or forced to flee.
- Be Considerate of Others.
- One of the most important components of outdoor ethics is to maintain courtesy toward other visitors. It helps everyone enjoy their outdoor experience.
Principles courtesy of Leave No Trace Center for Outdoor Ethics.
Conservation Outcomes
After acquiring this Reserve in 2000, Wildlands drained the lake to kill non-native catfish to restore the native aquatic systems that had been decimated by artificially stocked lakes in Southern California.
In summer, the lake now takes on a richer shade of blue from tens of thousands of damsel flies hovering on the water. Western toads, their pollywogs uneaten by fish, are sometimes seen in masses four inches deep numbering in the thousands.
Wildlands also restored the meadow, removing buildings and horse fencing. Currently, the lake and marshland are being evaluated by several state and federal conservation agencies for the release of the endangered mountain yellow-legged frog and the endangered Santa Ana River stickleback. In 2018, the Reserve’s forests of white firs, lodgepole and Jeffery pine were enrolled in the Old-Growth Forest Network.
Make an Impact
Nature is Resilient
Nature Is Resilient Given the chance, land heals. We remove what doesn’t belong, return what does, and restart the natural processes that make ecosystems whole. Your gift gives nature that chance.
Newsletter
Nature Unfolds: Stories & Scenes from the Wildlands
From land acquisitions to rewilding projects to a child’s first time in the wild — we share the work when there’s something worth sharing.