This Land is My Land

Real change will only happen when we fall in love with our planet. Only love can show us how to live in harmony with nature and with each other and save us from the devastating effects of environmental destruction and climate change.

Thich Nhat Hahn

I usually try to keep politics out of my posts, but a recent decision by the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee should send chills into every aching bone of a hiker’s body. The bill forces the sale of more than 250 million acres of public land, including Forest Service and Bureau of Land Management lands in eleven western states over the next five years. These lands encompass recreation areas, wilderness study areas, and inventoried roadless areas. They include of course the hiking trails we all enjoy, even campgrounds, and would essentially eliminate many of our National Scenic Trails. Think of taking a black Sharpie to the Pacific Northwest Trail and blacking out long stretches that would no longer be accessible to the public. The trail would cease to exist.

The bill would sell off our lands quickly and without hearings or other kinds of public input. National Monuments may also be included in this proposal, selling off another 13.5 million acres, protected because their uniqueness and beauty were recognized by previous presidents.

The Forest Service Lands that surround my home in northeast Washington are all part of this proposal. One/third of the county is National Forest Service land. It is a major employer in this poorest county in Washington state, and the tourism the forests bring in represents a major boost to the economy in the summer and fall.

I try to imagine what it would be like to look out my window towards the Kettle River Mountains. The trails would no longer be there, and magnificent summits like Sherman Peak and Columbia Mountain would not be accessible to the many hikers who drive scenic Highway 20 and stop for a hike when they reach Sherman Pass. Instead of the silent night sky I would look up to see those mountains dotted with the lights of luxury condominiums, mining operations, sprawling ranches, all requiring new roads, gates across every one of them.

This is a controversy that bridges the gap between left leaning environmentalists and the more conservative outdoor sports enthusiasts who hunt and fish and ride their all terrain vehicles on public land. For a change we can all get behind the move to stop this proposal and just say no.

If you are a hiker, a hunter, a fisherman, or simply a lover of the outdoors this is your chance to take action. Call or write your senators and urge them to oppose this desecration of our public lands. This is crucial if you live in one of the western states where the sell offs would occur but also important for hikers and lovers of the outdoors all across the country. These are public lands. As Woodie Guthrie sang, “This land is my land. This land is your land.” Now is the time to sing that message loud and clear, loud enough so that our elected representatives will hear it in Washington DC. Consider sharing this post so that you can spread the message. We cannot be silent.

The photo you see above was taken last summer on a backpacking trip in the Goat Rocks Wilderness. It provides a high vantage point of Gifford Pinchot National Forest, which extends from Mount Rainier National Park to the Columbia River. Gifford Pinchot was the first head of the National Forest Service, created in 1905. He was a forester and a passionate advocate for forest management and protection, as well as being a close friend of Theodore Roosevelt, who shared his conservation ethic.

What would these early conservationists be thinking now? I know the answer to that question because I am thinking the same thing. My heart is breaking.