Clouser

This case is a lawsuit by holders of certain mining claims located on federal land within National Forests. The claim holders challenge rulings by the U.S. Forest Service that, among other things, refused under certain circumstances to permit them to use motor vehicles to access their claims, requiring them instead to use pack animals. On the parties’ cross motions for summary judgment, the district court granted summary judgment for defendants and plaintiffs appealed. For the reasons set forth below, we affirm.

I. BACKGROUND

A. OVERVIEW

This lawsuit is brought by three different sets of plaintiffs, all of whom have asserted rights to mine in areas located wholly within federal national forest lands. Two of the claims are located in regions designated “wilderness areas” pursuant to the Wilderness Act of 1964, 16 U.S.C. §§ 1131-1136 , and the third is located on national forest land that is part of the National Wild and Scenic Rivers System, 16 U.S.C. § 1271 . In each case, the national forest land in which the mining claims are located was at one time open to the public for exploration, prospecting, and the extraction of minerals; 1 howev *1525 er, the land was subsequently…