Surprise Canyon Wilderness
Surprise Canyon Wilderness shares its entire eastern border with Death Valley National Park. It contains small alluvial slopes that gradually rise from the west into the jagged ridges and steep sides of the Panamint Mountains. Canyons cut deeply into the mountains to form the interior of the Wilderness. Old four-wheel-drive tracks crawl through Jail, Hall, and Surprise Canyons and into the park; these non-Wilderness corridors carve the area into four sections. Elevations climb eagerly from about 1,000 feet in the west to more than 7,000 feet in the east, bestowing extraordinary vistas of the Panamint Valley from mountain summits. Creosote bush scrub and desert holly grow on alluvial fans.
Description from Wilderness Connect (wilderness.net).
| Designation | Wilderness |
| Managed by | Bureau of Land Management |
| State | California |
| Size | 24,433 acres |
| Designated | 1994, by Congress |
| Center point | 36.12° N, 117.20° W |
| Night sky | Very dark ground, a faint glow at most (Black Marble reading 27) |
Boundary map
Boundary, simplified to about 0.005 degrees
The outline is the agency boundary simplified for display, so small parcels and inholdings may not show. The agency page has the authoritative map.
Weather by month
Large units span more than one climate. The station stands in for the center point, and the outer parts of the boundary can be warmer or colder.
Where to camp
No federal campground is within ten miles of the boundary in the Campsite Atlas index. Camping inside a wilderness is usually allowed away from trails and water, with no facilities; the managing agency page has the permit and group-size rules.
Explore
Nearby on the other atlases
Guidebooks for California
We earn a small commission if you buy through these links. It does not change what we list.
Titles come from Open Library's catalog, matched by subject heading or by title.
Reference
Questions people ask
How big is Surprise Canyon Wilderness?
24,433 acres.
Source: Wilderness Connect
Who manages Surprise Canyon Wilderness?
The Bureau of Land Management.
Source: Wilderness Connect
What state is Surprise Canyon Wilderness in?
California.
Source: Wilderness Connect
When was Surprise Canyon Wilderness designated?
Congress designated it in 1994.
Source: Wilderness Connect
How do I get to Surprise Canyon Wilderness?
A point inside the boundary is at 36.124° N, 117.202° W. Death Valley National Park is 21 miles away. The official page carries directions and the office address.
Source: Wilderness Connect
Which national parks are near Surprise Canyon Wilderness?
Death Valley National Park (21 mi). Park Atlas has fees, hours and alerts for each.
Source: Nearby on the other atlases
Sources
- Boundary, name, acreage, designation year, states and description: Wilderness Connect.
- Campgrounds: the Campsite Atlas index of federal campgrounds, matched to this boundary at build time.
- Trailheads and sites: the Forest Service Recreation Opportunities layer, points inside the boundary.
- Night sky: NASA Black Marble (VIIRS, 2016 composite) sampled at zoom 6 around the center point.
- Weather, alerts, air quality, river flow and earthquakes load live in your browser from NWS, AirNow, USGS and iNaturalist when you open the page.