The wilderness territories of the world are special places. They're pretty much the last few places on Earth where the impact of humanity is still small, and where we're able to see Mother Nature in her truly wild form without outside interference. These places are protected by strict control and legislation due to their importance in promoting the conservation of certain species, biodiversity, and they could even lead to the discovery of new medicines in the future.
* Uttarakhand, Himalayas, IndiaUttarakhand is home to some of the world’s highest mountain peaks and the entire wilderness region is a breathtaking place. Whether you are an amateur or experienced mountain climber, the Uttarakhand wilderness offers you a choice of both. The Nanda Devi peak towers above the wilderness territory; a peak that remains inaccessible to most mountain climbers. Still, the area offers fairly accessible nature experiences and includes a number of parks, such as the Valley of the Flowers National Park. Hiking the Choukhamba and Kedarnath mountains you may find yourself crossing paths with Hindu groups on pilgrimage journeys.
* Gila Wilderness, New Mexico & United StatesOccupied by the Mogollan people around AD 1000, the Gila Wilderness still contains some ancient and cultural ruins. It was proclaimed a protected wilderness area in 1924, making it the world’s oldest. The region is home to the Mogollan Mountain Range, canyons, grasslands, forests and even hot springs. Some of the more dangerous wildlife found in the Gila include bear, mountain lion, and the Mexican gray wolf. The Gila Wilderness offers plenty of hiking trails, some covering extensive distances in complete isolation of all civilization. Hiking organizations and local rangers can assist in your choice of trail, and can offer you important information to ensure safe hiking across the Gila.
* Patagonia, Argentina & ChilePatagonia was once home to the planet’s largest and greatest dinosaurs. Today, you can follow in the footsteps of the dinosaurs with the Dinosaur Route in the northwestern region of Patagonia. Crossing both Argentinian and Chilean borders, the Patagonia wilderness is an impressive and majestic place, offering snow-capped mountain peaks, intense history including the 7370 BC Cueva de las Manos rock engravings, and plenty of friendly wildlife. One of the best ways to experience Patagonia is through trekking and hiking in the wilderness, offering an uninterrupted nature experience as well as encounters with local communities and rural family lifestyles.
* Sossusvlei, NamibiaTwo world firsts are to mention for Sossusvlei: its sand dunes are the highest sand dunes in the world, and it lies within the Namibia desert, which at 80 million years, is the world’s oldest desert. Thousands of red sand dunes blotch the Sossusvlei salt pan with the Namibia desert as surrounds. And if scrambling to the top of the sand dunes watching the sun rise over no-man’s land is not yet striking enough, there’ are even more attractions: perfect skies for stargazing, the world’s second largest canyon for hiking, shipwrecks to explore along the skeleton coast and abundant collections of Africa’s best wildlife.
* Tasmanian Wilderness, AustraliaThe Tasmanian wilderness is a thriving nature planet on its own –a safe haven for many of the threatened species and marsupials including the Tasmanian devil, the world’s tallest flowering plant, the swamp gum, as well as the most peculiar 250-millin year old mountain shrimp. The Tasmanian wilderness covers almost a fifth of the entire Tasmania Island. Since the early 1980s, the Tasmanian wilderness was listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and this listing continues till today. In 2013, an additional 170,000 hectares of wilderness were added to the formal heritage area. The Tasmanian wilderness offers a blast of outdoor adventure for the adrenaline junkie but also more relaxed outdoor enjoyment if you purely want to enjoy the splendor of Down Under.