Located above the John Day River just south of state highway 218 near Clarno, Oregon, Spring Basin Wilderness Area is a tapestry of rolling hills, providing spectacular vistas of the river and surrounding landscape.  This unique wild area offers a profusion of desert wildflowers in the spring, along with recreational opportunities for hikers, horseback riders, hunters, botanists, and other outdoor enthusiasts.

Local landowners, the Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs, and ONDA worked together to develop a Wilderness proposal that would permanently protect Spring Basin and improve access to public lands through several land exchanges.  With widespread local support for the proposal, the future of a Spring Basin Wilderness rested in the hands of Congress.

In June of 2008, Senator Wyden (D-Ore.) introduced a Spring Basin Wilderness bill. Senate bill S. 3089 proposed to designate over 10,000 acres of Spring Basin as Wilderness. This bill was included in the Omnibus Public Lands Act, which was signed into law on March 30th, 2009.