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.
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.
Rana Creek
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.
Situated between Salinas Valley and the Santa Lucia Range in the upper Carmel Valley, Rana Creek Preserve is one of the largest historic landholdings in the range, with 12,400 contiguous acres ranging from 500 to 3,400 feet in elevation, and is critically important for flora, fauna, and people. The Preserve is co-stewarded by The Wildlands Conservancy and the Esselen Tribe of Monterey County.
The Wildlands Conservancy’s $40 million acquisition, which was completed on July 28, 2023, was funded with a mix of private and public support, including $24 million from the California Wildlife Conservation Board, the largest grant for acquisition the agency has made this year, and $2 million from the State Coastal Conservancy.
The Preserve is co-stewarded with the Esselen Tribe of Monterey County. In 2025, The Wildlands Conservancy returned 1,720-acre Tularcitos Creek parcels, a portion of the former Rana Creek Ranch south of Carmel Valley Road, to the Esselen Tribe, the original stewards of the land.
Public Access Campaign
Over the next year, The Wildlands Conservancy will plan and fundraise for infrastructure improvements that will allow us to safely invite the public to Behold the Beauty of this spectacular landscape.
Partnerships for outdoor education, conservation projects, and cultural resource management are being formed to foster access to the Preserve from diverse communities.
New Docent Program
We are happy to announce our new docent volunteer program. Docents are long-term volunteers who work independently and alongside staff to help us achieve our goals of public outreach, engagement, and land stewardship. They are Wildlands ambassadors, with a key role in sharing our organization’s mission with others.
Our Programes
Explore Upcoming Events
Please check back soon for new programs for this location or explore other programs nearby.
CONSERVATION OUTCOMES
Rana Creek Preserve contains some of the best oak woodland habitat remaining in Central California.
Nurtured by the fog and rain blowing in from Monterey Bay, the trees show little impact from recent drought, and because of careful past management, the oak forests are replete with an understory of native plants and a surprising absence of invasive plant species.
The acquisition of Rana Creek permanently protected the property from subdivision and development into luxury estates, safeguarding critical wildlife corridors and sensitive habitats for species such as steelhead trout, California red-legged frog, California condor and many others.
The Tribe’s stewardship vision includes riparian restoration, cultural fire practices, oak woodland regeneration, Indigenous food sovereignty and expanding youth education programs to reconnect future generations with their ancestral lands and cultural heritage. Protecting and caring for sacred sites will be a central focus of this work.
Make an Impact
The Earth is Sacred
We protect land through acquisition and hold it with the strongest legal means possible. Not just for now. Forever. Your gift is part of that permanent commitment.
Newsletter
Nature Unfolds: Stories & Scenes from the Wildlands
We protect land, restore ecosystems, and make sure everyone can experience the wild. When there’s something worth sharing, you’ll hear from us.
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