Wild Connections has three program areas:
     - Wildlands Conservation
    - Roadless Area Defense
    - Biodiverstiy Protection
These programs evolved from our early history as Upper Arkansas and South Platte Project (UASPP) when we focused on inventorying the boundaries and wilderness qualities of 100 roadless areas in the two watersheds.



Wildlands Conservation

•  Beaver Creek, Grape Creek, McIntyre Hills, Badger Creek and Browns Canyon are part of the larger Colorado Canyon Country Wilderness Proposal that was created by citizens from across the state.

 

•  Our partner Central Colorado Wilderness Coalition is working on future Wilderness designations for the areas above plus other high quality wild lands.  

•  Wild Connections organizes advocacy efforts and provides GIS support for the legislation that is pending in Congress.

• The Reclaiming Wildways program, begun in 2009, uses volunteers to rehabilitate closed montorized routes and recover native vegetation in selected areas of high conservation value.

• The Trout Creek project (2009-2010) restired 7.8 mile of trail corridor, recalimed 8.6 acres of habitat and constructed 335 erosion structures in Trout and Eagle Creeks on the west slope of the Rampart Range.

• The Green Mountain project (2011-2012) will recover a decommissioned route and restore a wet meadow in this roadless area east of Lost Creek Wilderness

 
Roadless Area Defense

Travel Management Planning
Roadless areas in central Colorado are islands in the midst of a sea of private land development and heavily used agency lands. Roads and motorized trails fragment habitat and affect wildlife as more and more people travel and recreate in the Pike-San Isabel and on BLM lands.

• Motorized Vehicle Use Maps that officially define the routes that are open to motorized use.  These are reviewed annually and become the basis for future travel management planning.

• Wild Connections partipates in the Arkansas Canyons Travel Management Plan and the South Rampart Travel Management Plan, and will work on others TMPs when the Forest Service or BLM iniaties this process. We provide GIS analysis; volunteer teams to field check key routes, and organizing for public comments.

 

• Ensuring that the Wild Connections Conservation Plan becomes and integral part of the Pike-San Isabel management of the forest is our key strategy fro protecting biodiversity for the long term. 
  
• Pawnee montane skipper butterflies (Hesperia leonardus montana) are one of three threatened species in the Trout Creek restoration area.  An annual census of these rare butterflies helps establish population trends.