ShareExploring remote, primitive wild country brings me as close as I’ve ever come to having a religious experience. Naturalists and writers have long described wilderness in religious terms such as cathedral forests, heavenly meadows, and rock temples. So perhaps its fitting that several religious groups have stepped up and lobbied in favor of new wilderness [Continued...]
ShareTiny little fur balls stand as icons for the massive western mountains. Weighing less than half a pound (typically, about 6-7 ounces), the American Pika may seem an odd choice as an iconic species to represent the massive mountain ranges of the western United States. But these cute little fur balls thrive in some of [Continued...]
ShareHe made public statements opposing wolf recovery, and said he’d take action against them if they returned. Now, a Washington wolf is dead, he admitted killing it, and he’s looking for leniency. He doesn’t deserve it. Rather, he deserves the stiffest possible fine, and even jail time. Wolves are protected by both the federal Endangered [Continued...]
Wilderness and wildland recreation gets a huge boost from Congress's decisive votes on the Omnibus Public Land Management Act. [Continued...]
ShareWildlands are wildly popular, it seems. The U.S. Senate overwhelmingly passed the new Omnibus Public Lands Bill that would creatg new national parks and designating millions of acres as wilderness will become law sometime soon. The bill, which wraps together a host of public land proposals and programs, would protect more than 2 millions of [Continued...]
ShareThey’re baaack! When wolves returned to Wyoming, Idaho, and New Mexico, they required the aid of man. The new wolf packs were transplanted by humans and carefully nurtured in those areas. Today, some of those new packs are so successful that the animals have been removed from the Endangered Species list (notably, in the Northern [Continued...]
ShareNearly four feet long, weighing more 30 pounds. Caught on a fly. Reports are coming in of this monster steelhead being caught on a fly rod, using 17-pound tippet material, a couple weeks ago. The reports stats are thus: 44 inches in length with a girth of 23-1/2 inches. A biologist on the river, weighed [Continued...]
ShareIts been more than a month since we’ve had to report an avalanche-related death. Before this weekend, we held firm at 32 North American avalanche fatalities this season. Today, that number jumps to 33. The body of a backcountry skier in the Lake Tahoe area was found this morning in slide debris near Emerald Bay [Continued...]
ShareSome of this country’s greatest conservationists came from the hunting world. Many hunting (and fishing) organizations have been leaders in protecting the habitat and environments wildlife need to survive. But is it really conservation when you are merely protecting one or two species merely so that you have prey to hunt come spring? Should the [Continued...]
ShareForget conservation, camping, and environmental stewardship. It seems capitalism rules at the Boy Scouts of America. Boy Scout Councils throughout the country have set aside conservation causes in the pursuit of cash, but it seems particularly agregious out west. Here in Washington, the Pacific Harbor Council (located in Pacific County in Southwest Washington) hired a [Continued...]
