The Wilmington Wild Forest (WWF), formerly a sub-unit of the much larger Taylor Pond Wild Forest, consists of 14,000 acres of state forest preserve lands in Towns of Wilmington, Jay and Keene in Essex County and the Town of Black Brook in Clinton County. The core area of the Wilmington Wild Forest is located on the east-facing slopes of Whiteface Mountain between the Whiteface Mountain Ski Center, the Whiteface Veterans’ Memorial Highway, Route 431 and Route 86. Another large segment – the Stephenson Range Tract – lies north of Route 431 and Gillespie Drive and south of the Forestdale Road. Smaller, isolated segments include the Hamlin Mountain, Clements Mountain, and Beaver Brook Tracts, as well as a segment near the hamlet of Black Brook. The area offers numerous recreational opportunities, including hiking, camping, mountain biking, rock climbing, fishing and hunting in the warmer months, and cross country skiing, ice climbing, trapping and snowmobiling in the winter months. The West Branch AuSable River – world renowned for trout fishing – runs adjacent to portions of the wild forest.
