About Friends of
Westwater Canyon
In 1995, a Utah Wilderness bill was before the U.S. Congress which would have deleted 1,800 acres along the first mile and a half of Westwater Canyon from wilderness protection. Characterized by looming red cliffs of Wingate sandstone and a bench of lands near the historic miners’ cabin, this area had been included in the early 1980s Wilderness Study Area designation.

The possibility of this bill passing caused Skip Edwards, a BLM river ranger at Westwater Canyon for six years, to resign from the BLM and devote his time to lobbying Congress to defeat the bill.

It soon became evident that the preservation of these remote wild lands was going to take the continuing efforts of many. In 1997, a group of supporters incorporated Friends of Westwater as a non-profit organization to achieve a number of goals:

1. Preserve the unique desert river canyon of Westwater,
2. Educate the public as to qualities of Westwater,
3. Work with the Bureau of Land Management to ensure Westwater Canyon is not impaired by development and indiscriminate destruction of its natural resources.

Ongoing Support
The preservation of Westwater Canyon enjoys the ongoing support of many commercial and conservation organizations such as: the Utah Guides and Outfitters Association, Colorado Plateau River Guides Association, Colorado River Outfitters Association, Utah Rivers Council, Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance, American Rivers, Mineral Policy Center, Western Mining Action Project and Friends of Westwater. In addition, hundreds of individuals have taken action on behalf of Westwater.
Become a Friend of Westwater now
Friends of Westwater is working to acquire the Westwater Ranch at the head of the Westwater Canyon Wilderness Study Area on the Colorado River in Utah to preserve it from future development. Westwater Canyon needs your voice. Please sign up as a "Friend of Westwater" and register your support for this important work. Click here.