The Klamath National Forest encompasses nearly 1.7 million acres of land straddling the California and Oregon border in the Klamath-Siskiyou Mountain Ranges. In the mountains to the west, the terrain is steep and rugged, while the east-side has gentler, rolling terrain of volcanic origin, sprinkled with buttes and valleys. Elevations range from 450 to 9,001 feet above sea level at Thompson Peak, on the Siskiyou-Trinity County divide. The Klamath National Forest is one of America’s most biologically diverse regions, due to the blending of four floristic provinces and boasts a center of coniferous diversity (19 species) in the Russian Wilderness. The Klamath National Forest Herbarium aims to preserve and record the many rare and endemic species unique to the region.