Daily Wilderness News Clips

Sportsmen push Hermosa area for wilderness status

Wed, 23 Jul 2008 07:48:58 -0700

Like much of the last of Colorado's best country, the Hermosa Creek drainage north of Durango is hardly a secret.

On a warm July weekend, Hermosa Park and trailhead, west of Durango Mountain Resort (aka Purgatory ski area), stirred with people, trailers, trucks and two huge, inflatable flamingos.

On the main Hermosa Trail, ATV jockeys pushed wakes through mud puddles. Knievel- costumed dirt bikers leapt rises, nearly colliding with hike-in anglers.

Wilderness area proposal to be reviewed: BLM recommended parcel for protective status in 1991.

Tue, 22 Jul 2008 08:31:21 -0700

U.S. Sen. Ken Salazar is carrying legislation in Congress which is due for committee review this week in an attempt to bring protection to the proposed Browns Canyon Wilderness Area.

The proposed Browns Canyon Wilderness area is a 20,000-acre parcel of U.S. Forest Service and Bureau of Land Management lands located in Chaffee County, between Buena Vista and Salida. The Arkansas River is within 200 feet of the western boundary and the area extends eastward to the forested areas of Aspen Ridge.

Westerners demand explanation, payment after admin opposes watershed, mining bills

Thu, 17 Jul 2008 11:27:59 -0700

Western senators from both sides of the aisle joined forces yesterday to criticize the Bush administration for its opposition to bills on watershed management and mining compensation.

The administration opposes S. 3085, which would require the Interior Department to create programs in which all stakeholders in a watershed convene to make collective management decisions.

A Hike In Flat Tops Wilderness: Trail Takes You To Entrance To Spring Cave

Tue, 22 Jul 2008 11:58:09 -0700

I'm the first to admit it; I am not "Avid Hiker Deb." I don't own a pair of hiking boots and couldn't find my way to Boulder even with a GPS system. In fact, my lack of a sense of direction is a running joke in the newsroom. Please cut me a little slack -- I'm from Pittsburgh where my biggest hike was a trip down Mount Washington to grab a sandwich at Primanti Brothers and cheer on the Steelers.

Wilderness protection bill moves forward: Subcommittee approves McKeon, Boxer legislation after hearing

Tue, 22 Jul 2008 11:56:36 -0700

A U.S. Senate panel took testimony Wednesday on bipartisan legislation that would protect nearly 475,000 acres of wilderness in California's Eastern Sierra and San Gabriel Mountains.

After the testimony was complete, the subcommittee marked an advance for the legislation.

Dominguez plan backers testify before Senate panel

Tue, 22 Jul 2008 11:55:16 -0700

A Delta County commissioner and a Colorado senator urged Thursday that Congress establish the Dominguez-Escalante National Conservation Area in western Colorado.

Commissioner Jan McCracken testified before the Senate Public Lands and Forests subcommittee, as did Sen. Ken Salazar, D-Colo., who sponsored the measure.

The bill, S 3065, would recognize nearly 211,000 acres of federal land in Delta, Mesa and Montrose counties on the Uncompahgre Plateau. Of that territory, 66,000 acres would be designated as the Dominguez Canyon Wilderness Area.

Senators hear California wilderness bill

Thu, 17 Jul 2008 11:26:43 -0700

A U.S. Senate panel took testimony Wednesday on bipartisan legislation that would protect nearly 475,000 acres of wilderness in California's Eastern Sierra and San Gabriel Mountains.

The bill by Democratic Senator Barbara Boxer and Republican Congressman Buck McKeon would also protect nearly 52 miles of rivers, mostly along the Amargosa and Owens Rivers in Death Valley.

Nature writer shares West Virginia adventures

Wed, 16 Jul 2008 09:49:54 -0700

If you've followed this column over the years I've been writing it, you know one of my favorite places to visit is Canaan Valley, W.Va. Each year I do my best to save a little money and take my family to this Mountain State stronghold of wilderness and natural splendor.

We don't go for long - just a few nights are all I can spare to be away from job duties. In fact, I wrote my last column from 3,800 feet on Cabin Mountain. Ahh, the magic of modern technology and a Verizon Aircard.

Swallowed up by land

Wed, 16 Jul 2008 09:48:07 -0700

What is wilderness? Answers are likely to vary according to the number of people to whom the question is posed. Many would point to the Wilderness Act of 1964, when Congress and President Lyndon B. Johnson set aside some 9.1 million acres of federal land with the intention of preserving it in its natural state forever.

This is how the act defines wilderness: "an area where the earth and its community of life are untrammeled by man, where man himself is a visitor who does not remain."

Court: Ore. land plan should consider wilderness

Tue, 15 Jul 2008 10:11:41 -0700

Federal appeals judges have told the U.S. Bureau of Land Management to take another look at its plans for about 4.5 million acres in Eastern Oregon - and to consider wilderness values when it does.

The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled Monday the bureau's plans for the area are too narrow.

The judges say the bureau should include in its management plans areas where grass, sagebrush and juniper are reclaiming unused roads.