Agua Tibia Wilderness

Agua Tibia Wilderness, (Spanish for warm water) (abbreviated as ATW), is mostly contained within the Cleveland National Forest, Palomar Ranger District. It is located in Riverside County, California and San Diego County, California. The wilderness was originally protected as the Agua Tibia Primitive Area until January, 1975 when it was added to the National Wilderness Preservation System with the passage of Public Law 93-632 by the United States ... more

Agua Tibia Wilderness, (Spanish for warm water) (abbreviated as ATW), is mostly contained within the Cleveland National Forest, Palomar Ranger District. It is located in Riverside County, California and San Diego County, California. The wilderness was originally protected as the Agua Tibia Primitive Area until January, 1975 when it was added to the National Wilderness Preservation System with the passage of Public Law 93-632 by the United States Congress and has a total of 17,961 acres. Between its inception and 1984, the ATW was San Diego County's only officially designated wilderness area. Its approximate boundaries are: There are no permanent streams in the ATW. The highest landform is the Agua Tibia Mountain, elevation 4,770 feet. Though the summer climate is typical of the Temecula Valley—hot, with limited shade, and no water sources—for 110 years, there were no fires in the ATW. That changed in the last two decades, with the 1987 Palomar Mountain Fire, the 1989 Vail Fire, the... less