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N E W S L E T T E R O F T H E A R I Z O N A W I L D E R N E S S C O A L I T I O N

WILDA R I Z O N A

WILDA R I Z O N A

Gett ing Wi ld in the Tumacacor i H igh lands

Take Act ion ! Protect a Wi ld Co lorado R iver

L ike a Pebb le in a Pond

Awestruck in Agua Fr ia N.M.

Words f rom a Wi lderness Warhorse

A R I Z O N AWILD2 www.azwild.org

Hello wild ones! This summer and fall havebeen busy — full of fun, celebration, andprogress. I hope that some of you had theopportunity to enjoy your special wild

places, as I have. In August, I spent a few days backpacking in the

Tumacacori Mountains—through areas that are withinour wilderness proposal fea-tured in this issue. I traveledwith Dave Parsons, the retireddirector of the Mexican WolfRecovery Program who led theeffort to reintroduce theMexican gray wolves back tothe wild in eastern Arizona.

We knew that Peck Canyonwas the location where the last Mexican wolf had beencaptured before they became extirpated from theUnited States. That sense of history seemed like reasonenough for going there. Within a relatively short hike,I was absolutely stunned by the beauty and solitudethis area offers. While I have often hiked at these ele-vations in other parts of the state, I was completelysurprised by the lushness and incredible diversity ofthis area — epiphytes hanging in the trees, water tur-tles in the creeks, and the thought that jaguars havebegun to return to those hills.

I have also had the opportunity to hike in the BlueRange Primitive Area where I worked for much of myForest Service career. It seemed that, with my new job,I had abandoned the Blue in recent years, even thoughI still live there. It was particularly interesting to seehow quickly the forests are regenerating after the largefires that were allowed to burn during the past twosummers. One of the wonderful benefits of wildernessand large undeveloped roadless areas is that the ForestService can allow fires to fulfill their natural role whenthere aren’t structures, campgrounds, power lines, andcommercial timber to protect from fire. There are por-tions of the Blue Range where wild fires have beenallowed to burn as many as five separate times since1979, thus restoring a place where fire is occurring innear natural intervals.

This year marked the 40th anniversary of theWilderness Act, a milestone worth celebrating. Inaddition to the celebration that we co-sponsored inFlagstaff on September 3rd (the actual anniversarydate), a group of us traveled to Washington, D.C., totake part in the national celebration. One of our Boardmembers, Doug Hulmes, received accolades for hisperformance as John Muir before a crowd of wilder-ness supporters at The Wilderness Society. Later, dur-ing a gala dinner at the National Press Club, we

learned from our national leaders and our elders thatprotecting wilderness was not a partisan issue fortyyears ago, and we realized that it shouldn’t be that waytoday. We listened to Terry Tempest Williams, RobertRedford, Christopher Reeve, Senator Robert Byrd,Congressman John Dingell, and a fiery Stewart Udall,Secretary of the Interior during the formative years ofthe National Wilderness Preservation System. Fittingly,we shared our table with legislative staff from theoffices of Republican Senator John McCain andDemocrat Congressman Raul Grijalva.

For the next few days, our group of eight met withthe offices of the entire Arizona Congressional delega-tion to educate them about the value of our existingwilderness areas (90 separate units in Arizona!) andabout our Tumacacori Highlands proposal that deserveprotection today. They asked hard questions, but theanswers seemed to come easily to our group. BirdieStable and Ellie Kurtz, who both reside near theTumacacori Highlands, made a particularly compellingcase in favor of wilderness designation.

I truly believe that wilderness areas benefit every-one and that the greatest obstacle to designating addi-tional federal wilderness is misinformation. Our goalas an organization is to demonstrate strong local andbusiness support for our wilderness proposals and toconvince our elected representatives: designatingwilderness is not only the right thing to do—it’s awildly popular thing to do.

For the Wild,

Arizona Wilderness Coalition Main Office928-339-4525P.O. Box 529, Alpine, AZ 85920

Communications Office602-571-26038628 E. Wilshire Drive, Scottsdale, AZ 85257

Central Mountains-Sonoran and WesternDeserts Field Office 928-717-6076P.O. Box 2741Prescott, AZ 86302

Grand Canyon Field Office928-638-2304P.O. Box 1033Grand Canyon, AZ 86203

Sky Islands Field Office520-624-7080P.O. Box 41165Tucson, AZ 85717

AWC StaffDonald Hoffman, Executive Director,

dhoffman@azwild.orgKaturah Mackay, Communications Director,

kmackay@azwild.orgJason Williams, Central Mountains-Sonoran

Regional Director, jwilliams@azwild.orgKim Crumbo, Grand Canyon Regional Director,

kcrumbo@azwild.orgMatt Skroch, Sky Islands Regional Director,

mskroch@azwild.org

AWC Board of DirectorsJoni Bosh, National Board Director, Sierra ClubKelly Burke, Executive Director, Grand Canyon

Wildlands CouncilDavid Hodges, Executive Director, Sky Island

AllianceDouglas Hulmes, Professor of Environmental

Studies, Prescott CollegeBart Koehler, Director, Wilderness Support

Center, The Wilderness SocietyCary Miester, The Audubon Society, Yuma

ChapterMax Oelschlaeger, The Frances B McCallister

Endowed Chair in Community, Culture, andthe Environment, Northern ArizonaUniversity

President: Rob Smith, Board President,Southwest Regional Staff Director, Sierra Club

Vice-President: Matt Skroch, Program Director,Sky Island Alliance

Secretary: Brian Segee, Staff Attorney, Defendersof Wildlife

Treasurer: Dale Volz, Executive Committee andTreasurer, Sierra Club, Grand Canyon Chapter

Mission StatementThe Arizona Wilderness Coalition’s (AWC)

mission is to permanently protect and restorewindreness and other wild lands and waters inArizona. We coordinate and conduct inventories,educate citizens about these lands, enlist com-munity support, and advocate for their lastingprotection.

We need your help! To get involved pleaseconsider joining the Arizona WildernessCoalition. See back page for details.

OUT OF THE BLUE

Wild Strides in a Big City

Take Action! Protect a Wild Colorado . . . . . . . .Getting Wild in the Tumacacori Highlands . . . . . The Good, The Bad, and the Not-So-Ugly . . . . . Like a Pebble in a Pond . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Backcountry SUV . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Wilderness to Watch . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Short Takes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Words From a Wilderness Warhorse . . . . . . . . .

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Executive Director

Cover photo © Matt Skroch, Sky Island AllianceDesign by Mary Williams/marywilliamsdesign.com

What is Wilderness? Wilderness is an area of undeveloped federal land

that appears “to have been affected primarily by theforces of nature, with the imprints of mans’ work sub-stantially unnoticeable,” as written in the WildernessAct of 1964. Unlike national parks, wildlife refuges, ormonuments, wilderness designation from Congressprovides the highest level of natural resource protec-tion available in the world. The Wilderness Act creat-ed the National Wilderness Preservation System topreserve the last remaining wild lands in America.Currently, about 4.7 percent of all available land in theUnited States is protected as wilderness. In Arizona,wilderness designation protects approximately 6.2percent of our land and wildlife habitat.

From (l) to (r): Brian Segee, Defenders of Wildlife; Rachel Kondor,

Office of Rep. Raul Grijlava (D-AZ); Don Hoffman, AWC; Heather

Wicke, Office of Sen. John McCain (R-AZ); Douglas Hulmes,

Professor of Environmental Studies, Prescott College.

Photo: Gretchen HoffmanPhoto: Janie Hoffman

ContentsF A L L / W I N T E R 2 0 0 4 - 0 5

Runners for Wilderness, based in Colorado. “This is afeeble plan driven by political and economic pressure,rather than protection of the park’s natural resources andwilderness experience.”

Equally alarming, the river’s popularity results inheavy, concentrated use at camps and favorite hikinglocations, harming the canyon’s fragile desert and ripari-an environments. Moreover, rumbling outboard motorsand crowded boats diminish the wild, isolated experi-ence of floating the river. Many dories and non-motor-ized rafts drift solitarily and undisturbed, until two orthree motorized parties pass to disrupt the natural peaceof their trip. With more trips passing each other, boatcongestion builds up at popular trails and campsites, cre-ating crowds of people on an otherwise remote trip.

“It is clearly possible to manage this internationaltreasure in a manner that allows for human enjoymentwhile protecting the premier wilderness river experiencein the world,” says Don Hoffman, AWC’s ExecutiveDirector. “AWC has repeatedly provided the Park man-agers with a progressive wilderness alternative thatwould maintain the current visitor-use levels for com-mercial passengers, but also would reduce noise, reducegroup size, reduce encounters with other groups,improve resource conditions, increase self guided boat-ing opportunities, and phase out motors over a reason-able time. The Grand Canyon deserves that and so doesthe public.”

A R I Z O N AWILD 3www.azwild.org

by Kim Crumbo

In the shadow of the 40th anniversary of theWilderness Act, National Park Service officials atGrand Canyon National Park continue to stompon the letter and spirit of their own 1980 wilder-

ness recommendation for managing the Colorado River.In the draft environmental impact statement for theColorado River Management Plan (CRMP) released inearly October (http://www.nps.gov/grca/crmp), the ParkService’s alternatives continue to allow large motorboattours and fail to protect the rapidly disappearing wilder-ness experience on the river.“The document presents thelegal and moral grounds for why they should be protect-ing wilderness, but their preferred alternative does notacknowledge or accomplish that,” says Kim Crumbo,Grand Canyon Regional Director for the ArizonaWilderness Coalition and former wilderness coordinatorat Grand Canyon National Park from 1980 to 1999.

For 24 years, the National Park Service has laboredunder its own agency obligation to protect the ColoradoRiver’s wilderness attributes from harm—including sub-tle resources like natural quiet and the opportunity forsolitude. The ponderous, 813-page Draft EnvironmentalImpact Statement (DEIS) for the CRMP presents a vari-ety of management options and offers a preferred alter-native that fails once again to safeguard the river from thedeteriorating effects of motorized use.

The new CRMP was supposed to address a variety of“Major Issues and Areas of Controversy,” including pro-tecting wilderness, for which the Grand CanyonWilderness Alliance—a coalition of 23 organizationsrepresenting 5.5 million members—vigorously advocat-ed. Yet the draft EIS avoids mentioning the preservationof wilderness character as an issue. The “PreferredAlternative” (Alternative H) simply perpetuates heavymotorized use at the expense of wilderness values suchas wildlife, soils, archaeological sites, natural quiet, andoutstanding opportunities for solitude and primitiverecreation.

The document states that existing motorboats aremerely a “transient disturbance of wilderness values onthe river” and do not preclude wilderness designation forthe Colorado. Yet engines are the reason that a wilder-ness designation for the river has yet to be formalized.Motorboats will have to be phased out before full wilder-ness designation from Congress can be granted.

“It’s very simple to see what they’re doing here: byignoring its duty to protect natural sounds and opportu-nity for solitude for the rest of the public, the park cancater to motors and large groups to continue operatingon the river,” says Crumbo. “You don’t find the kind ofwilderness that’s in the Grand Canyon just anywhere, yetthat’s what the park has put on the chopping block indeference to river concessionaires’ desire for excessiveprofits.”

The Colorado River supports a $29 million dollar-a-year tour industry that gives 70 percent control of recre-ational river access to motorized, large-sized trips. Thepark’s preferred alternative still reserves the bulk of riveraccess to motorized commercial companies. The majori-ty of those who wish to enjoy a less crowded, slowerwilderness river trip must wait in an uncertain lotterysystem.

“The issues that have plagued the river for the last 30years are not addressed in this plan, including that ofpreserving the last greatest wilderness experience in thelower 48 states,” says Jo Johnson, Co-Director for River

At Grand Canyon, Theme ParkUproar Plagues Wild River

TAKE ACTION Support Wilderness for the Colorado River in Grand Canyon National Park!

Attend an open house and submit comments. Comments on the draftEIS will be accepted through January 7, 2005.

Write a letter to the Park Service that supports a wilderness alternativefor managing the river. Use the talking points to include in your letter. Addpersonal touches and experiences you have had at the river.

Pay special attention to the comment guidelines laid out by the Park athttp://www.nps.gov/grca/crmp/public/index.htm. If comments do not fol-low their format, they may potentially be discarded.

Please send your comments in writing to CRMP Project, Grand CanyonNational Park, PO Box 129, Grand Canyon AZ 86023, or comment on-line at http://www.nps.gov/grca/crmp.

All meetings will be in an open house format, and there will be no for-mal presentation. The public is invited to stop by at any time from 4:00p.m. to 8:00 p.m.

Craft-Your-Own-Letter Talking Points1. In your letter, tell the Park Service that their pre-

ferred “Alternative H” is unacceptable because it fails torestore the Grand Canyon wilderness experience on theColorado River and perpetuates noisy, crowded motortrips.

2. Ask the Park Service to select Alternative B/C —the Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) non-motorized “Alternatives B and C,” plus some criticalchanges necessary to protect wilderness character.

Unlike the agency’s “Preferred Alternative H,”Alternative B/C:

—Protects the Wilderness Character of theColorado River in Grand Canyon by providing levelsof recreational use consistent with a wildernessexperience. The Park Service’s current “PreferredAlternative H ” fails to protect the unique wilderness val-ues of the Colorado River in Grand Canyon. Ask thePark Service to protect the river’s natural, cultural, andexperiential values, including wilderness.

—Reduces group size to less than 20 people. Theagency’s insistence for group size of 32 people in the pre-ferred “Alternative H” is contrary to providing a wilder-ness experience. As Park Service research confirms, theoverwhelming majority of river runners prefer to travelin groups of less than 20 people (DEIS, Appendix G).The group size of people traveling together is an impor-tant factor that the NPS can control to protect the Park’swilderness character (DEIS, p.29). The size of one’sgroup is an important consideration in the field of recre-ational use management and affects each boat passenger,as well as other groups encountered (DEIS, p. 29). Asalso emphasized in the DEIS, group size also affects parkresources because larger groups need more space foractivities. When large groups camp at ever-diminishingbeaches, they are forced to spread out into the old high-water zone. This intrusion puts sensitive resources atrisk. Smaller groups have flexibility to use small or largesites. Larger groups are more likely to disturb largerareas. Ask the Park Service to reduce the maximumgroup size to 20 people or less.

—Phases out the use of powerboats. In 1980, over90% of Grand Canyon National Park was recommendedfor designation as wilderness. The Colorado River corri-dor was recommended as potential wilderness pendingthe removal of motorboats as a use that is incompatiblewith wilderness values [DEIS, page 6]. Powerboats seri-ously impact the wilderness experience (NPS 1979:I-25)and Park Service policy requires the agency to remove

Boats crownd in for a landing spot at Havasu Eddy on the

Colorado River.

Photo: Chris Brown, chrisbrownphotography.com

Monday, November 22Flagstaff, Arizona

Coconino Community College,Administration Building 2800

S. Lone Tree Rd. www.coconino.edu/campuses/lonetree.html

Tuesday, November 30Phoenix, Arizona

Glendale Community College,Student Lounge, 6000 W. Olive

Avenue, Glendalewww.gc.maricopa.edu/map/

old maps and roadless boundaries to determine justwhat had occurred on the landscape during the lasttwenty years. What they found, after all the pieces

were put together, was shocking. Theroadless area remained completelyintact. In fact, some of the roads onold maps had even disappeared.Notwithstanding the relatively fewillegal roads cut by ATV’s and four-wheelers, the Tumacacori Highlandshad stood still in time. The biologicaldata on the Highlands was even moreimpressive. The place, as of today,hosts the last three confirmed jaguarsightings in the United States - mostrecently this past summer.

Numerous other species, such asthe five-striped sparrow, Sonoranchub, Mexican vine snake, and SantaCruz beehive cactus don’t occur any-where else in the United States. Thelist for sensitive or endangered speciesin the Tumacacori Highlands is longerthan Fife Symington’s rap sheet. Infact, the area hosts one of the highestdiversity of plants and animals in theentire United States. That’s just thebeginning.

In 1968, when the famous authorand vagabond Edward Abbey chosethe Tumacacori Highlands for hissummer fire lookout position, he did-n’t know much about the area.Perched at 6,200 feet on AtascosaLookout in the heart of the wilder-ness, Abbey’s ramshackle lookoutafforded views of the vast and wildlandscape around him. It didn’t takehim long to appreciate the Highlandsglory. While America mourned thedeath of Robert Kennedy on June 5thof that year, Abbey took note of it and

lazily added “A great grimy sunset glowers on the west.Plains of gold, veils of dust, wind-whipped clouds.

by Matt Skroch

The tenacious roar of the elusive jaguarpierces the moist night air as coatis andwhite-tailed deer twitch and nervouslyblink in the darkness. A

five-foot long arboreal vine snake –bright yellow and green - slithersthrough the trees with its forkedtongue seeking out the next treebranch for lizard á la carte. ElegantTrogons squawk from sycamore trees,while blackhawks fly overheadsearching for frogs. This is nature atits best. This is what you may find inthe Tumacacori Highlands of south-eastern Arizona.

There are places so unique in thisworld that the thought of alteringtheir majestic features borders onblasphemy. The TumacacoriHighlands undoubtedly fall into thiscategory. Located fifteen miles north-west of Nogales, Arizona, in the SkyIslands region of the SouthwesternUnited States, the Highlands encom-pass a swath of broken, sub-tropical-ly influenced country comprisingthree adjacent mountain ranges.Here, the Pajarito, Atascosa, andTumacacori Mountains combine toform the largest remaining unprotect-ed roadless area in all of Arizona’s sixnational forests. Once recommendedfor wilderness designation by theU.S. Forest Service, but overlookedwhen the train left the station inWashington D.C., the TumacacoriHighlands have been patiently await-ing their turn to belong to theNational Wilderness PreservationSystem.

In 1998, the Sky Island Alliancebegan its volunteer inventory in theHighlands. Not knowing exactly what they’d find, theTucson-based nonprofit was interested in checking

A R I Z O N AWILD4 www.azwild.org

this “non-conforming” use (NPS 2001). Non-motorizedcraft (oar-powered craft, dories, and paddleboats) easilyprovide a safe, enjoyable wilderness experience for allriver runners (Myers et al. 1999). In spite of the agency’srequirement to eliminate motors, the Park Service’s pre-ferred alternative perpetuates powerboat use for the nextten to 15 years (DEIS, page 51). Ask the Park Service tophase out motorized use over a reasonable time periodnot to exceed 10 years.

—Reduces the number of encounters betweenboats to a level that is compatible with a wildernessexperience. The Park Service’s own research shows themajority of river users prefer less than three encounterswith other groups each day. The preferred “AlternativeH” grossly exceeds this level. Motor trips generally expe-rience more river encounters per day because they trav-el faster and farther (DEIS Appendix G). Studies inwilderness and backcountry settings show agreementamong visitors that encounter levels should be low inwilderness (DEIS Appendix G). In general, wildernesspreferences are for fewer than 2 or 3 encounters per day,with many preferring no encounters at all (DEISAppendix G). Reducing the number of daily launches tono more than four non-motorized trips per day shouldreduce the number of encounters to acceptable levels(Shelby and Nielson 1979). Ask the National ParkService to reduce the number of encounters expectedbetween groups of river runners to 3 or less a day.

—Eliminates noisy helicopter passengerexchanges. Grand Canyon’s natural soundscape is con-sidered a disappearing resource that requires restoration,protection, and preservation so that natural sounds arenot masked or obscured by the wide variety of humancaused noise impacts (DEIS, p. 128). Natural sounds areconsidered an inherent component of the scenery, natu-ral and historic properties, and proposed wilderness thatconstitute the bulk of the park (94%), and consequentlynatural sound, the DEIS concludes, is vital to the visitorexperience at the park. Natural sounds can provide valu-able indicators of the health and “naturalness” of theecosystems found here (DEIS, p. 127). Although theNPS admits helicopter noise significantly impacts thenatural soundscape of the wild canyon, the preferred“Alternative H” allows for up to 10,000 people on 2,000flights in and out of the river corridor each year. Viablealternatives including the use of horses or mules—awilderness-compatible, traditional use— should beaddressed. Ask the Park Service to eliminate helicopterexchanges in Grand Canyon.

—Provides Appropriate Levels of CommercialRiver Running Services. The Park Service should pro-vide commercial services only when they are demon-strated as necessary and appropriate and the minimumrequired for providing recreational rafting opportunitiesconsistent with the purposes of wilderness. Only thenshould the agency establish use allocation between com-mercial and non-commercial river runners. Ask the ParkService to open up the river for the general public,including more trips for low-income, disabled, and non-commercial boaters, and reduce the 20-year waitingperiod for public use of the park.

Thank you! Please continue to check our website atwww.azwild.org for additional information.

* * * *

References Cited:Shelby, Bo, and Doug Whitaker. 2004. River Running in the

Grand Canyon: Current Situation and Social Impacts of Alternatives(Draft). Colorado River Management Plan and Draft EnvironmentalImpact Statement Technical Memorandum.

National Park Service. 1979. Final Environmental Statement:Proposed Colorado River Management Plan, Grand Canyon NationalPark, Arizona. Copy on file at the Grand Canyon National ParkScience Center.

National Park Service. 2004. Draft Environmental ImpactStatement Colorado River Management Plan(http://www.nps.gov/grca/crmp).

Getting Wild in theTumacacori HighlandsThe Lowdown on Arizona’s

Next Winderness Area

“Woke up this morning on an island in the sky, surrounded by clouds. Wild swirling banks ofvapor, flowing and passing to reveal brief glimpses of rocky crags, dripping trees, the goldengrassy hillsides far below.”

Author/vagabond Edward Abbey, from atop Atascosa Lookoutin the Tumacacori Highlands

Elegant Trogan

Photo: Cheryl Fisher

The Mexican vine snake, a sub-

tropical species found nowhere

else in the U.S., makes its home

in the Tumacacori Highlands in

suothern Arizona.

Photo: Trevor Hare

Jaguar have been sighted frequent-

ly in the Tumacacori Highlands—

captured on film by several night

vision cameras.

Photo: Rick Willians

Photo: Matt Skroch

delegation. A small minority remains opposed to awilderness designation, as always with any proposalthat has guts. They include a small number of misin-formed ranchers, treasure hunters looking for lostgold, and miners who’d rather take a bulldozer to themountain.

The Friends of the Tumacacori Highlands contin-ues to work with Representative Raul Grijalva (D),Representative Jim Kolbe (R), Senator John McCain(R), and Senator Jon Kyl (R) to smooth the way for pas-sage of a bill in Congress. Representative Grijalva,whose district encompasses the future Wilderness,remains committed to the proposal and continues toadvocate for its designation.

Senator McCain, who worked with the lateRepresentative Morris K. Udall (D) on the 1990Arizona Desert Wilderness Act, continues to encouragea collaborative process to garner support for aTumacacori Wilderness. Honest, open, and construc-tive dialogue has been paramount from the beginning.

While the Senator has not yetexpressed his explicit support forthe proposal, Friends of theTumacacori Highlands are dedicat-ed to reaching that end. The samegoes for Representative Kolbe,whose district includes surround-ing areas such as Green Valley.

Wilderness has always been abipartisan effort. It is a concept andgoal that rides above the trenchesof politics and speaks to the idealsand values that Americans holddear. “Of what avail are forty free-doms,” wrote naturalist and con-servationist Aldo Leopold, “with-out a blank spot on the map?” Weseek to continue this uniquelyAmerican tradition of conservationand wilderness preservation. The

Tumacacori Highlands are the next step.

* * * *

To find out how to get involved with theTumacacori Highlands campaign for Wilderness, visitwww.tumacacoriwild.org, or call the Sky IslandAlliance at 520-624-7080.

Matt Skroch is the Field Director for the Sky IslandAlliance and sits on the board of the Arizona WildernessCoalition.

by humans, although western Europeanshave had little influence there. Immediatelyeast of the area, the Santa Cruz River Valleyhosts one of the richest American Indian andSpanish cultural zones in the United States. Ifyou look hard enough, you’ll find echoes ofthe past scribbled on cave walls or left inchards on the mesas. The area remains as animportant site for the Tohono O’odhamtribe—ancestors of the Sobaipuri Indians thatinhabited the Highlands – and they continueto advocate for the area’s protection againstthe power of development. Father Kino—theheralded explorer, founder of Tucson, andJesuit missionary—passed through or verynear the Highlands on his trek northwardinto the upper Santa Cruz River Valley in1691, where he founded the first SpanishMission in the Southwest—San Cayetano deTumacácori.

The rich cultural heritage, incredible array ofplants and wildlife, and outstanding opportunities forhiking, hunting, backpacking, horseback riding, pho-tography, and exploring put the Tumacacori Highlandson the short list for Congressional Wilderness desig-

nation. The Arizona Wilderness Coalition is

working to ensure that this jewelremains wild far into the future. Alongwith more than 100 other organizationsand businesses, AWC and the Sky IslandAlliance are working with the Friends ofthe Tumacacori Highlands to designatethe area as Congressional Wilderness.With this designation, only then willfuture generations rest assured in thewomb of time that this landscape willremain without a road, powerline, orother blight that may reduce theiropportunity to enjoy the grandeur ofsuch a place.

Support for Wilderness in theTumacacori Highlands is overwhelming.Recently the Arizona Republic declared

that “(w)e can give future generations one more reasonto thank us by adding another jewel to our wildernesstreasures: Tumacacori Highlands. When the timecomes, the entire delegation should line up firmlybehind it. Far into the future, Arizonans will be saying“thank you.”” In Tubac alone, a historic town within astone’s throw of Tumacacori Peak, 60 of 61 local busi-nesses contacted about the proposal have pledgedtheir support. Thousands of individuals help out withaction alerts and writing letters to our congressional

The big aching tooth of Baboquivari far and high onthe skyline.” Insulated from the mechanized worldaround him, Cactus Ed was in his element atop theTumacacori Highlands.

Folks still have the same opportunity that Abbeydid then – the fire lookout remains standing, with theonly maintained trail for miles around leading up to it.Some have even proposed naming the remains of theouthouse there the “Ed Abbey Memorial Shithouse.” Isuspect Ed would be proud of his old throne’s newhonor. Regardless, the hiking trail up to AtascosaLookout stands out as one of Arizona’s finest. Withviews across lichen-drenched cliffs, deep into Mexico,visitors hike down with a sense of awe. Huge oldgrowth sub-tropical oaks dot the rolling hills under-neath the peaks, while precipitous canyons such asHell’s Gate funnel water through the mountains ontheir way to the Santa Cruz River or Rio Altar inMexico. It’s a place of constant adventure and amaze-ment, only best described through the eyes, ears, andnose of those willing to bounce along on dirt roads toreach its core. What we can be assured of is theTumacacori Highlands incredible sense of solitude –

the essence of true wilderness that affords the soulsomething so rare that when we bask in its unnamedglory, we can only smile and soak it in.

The Tumacacori Highlands is not a place untouched

A R I Z O N AWILD 5www.azwild.org

The historic Tumacacori Mission stands as a relic of early

Eutopean settlement in Southern Arizona.

Photo: National Park Service

Many in the Santa Cruz River Valley are supporting the

winderness proposal for the Tumacacori Highlands, seeing it

as a tribute to the ancient cultures that once thrived int he

valley and a boost to the local quality of life and economy.

Photo: Santa Crux Valley Chamber of Commerce

Photo: Matt Skroch

Atascosa Lookout, where Ed Abbey made a brief home in the

Tumacacori Highlands.

Photo: John Gilroy

approximately double the acreage that agencies havehistorically recommended for wilderness protection.The way to celebrate is to get out and defend some ofArizona’s unprotected wilderness.

Edward Abbey said, “The idea of wilderness needsno defense. It only needs more defenders.” TheArizona Wilderness Coalition is calling for moredefenders.

Get involved!Interested in volunteering in one of Arizona’s spec-

tacular wilderness areas? Contact your local regionaloffice of AWC today!

* * * *

Jason Williams is the Central Mountains-SonoranRegional Director. (928) 717-6076, jwilliams@azwild.org

future. The Arizona State Office of BLM made anattempt to offer a limited level of protection by issuingguidance to their field offices that gave them authorityto create “Areas Managed for Wilderness Character.” Ina late summer visit to the Arizona Strip north of GrandCanyon, BLM Director Kathleen Clark expressed somedissatisfaction with this terminology. It is now uncer-tain if the word “wilderness” will even appear in finalBLM Resource Management Plans. As of this printing,the Arizona BLM offices are holding their breath for ananswer from the current Administration.

The Good News…The good news is that current Arizona Wilderness

Coalition citizen inventories indicate that more than 6million acres of Arizona public lands are eligible andworthy of wilderness designation. We anticipate thatthe current Administration’s backward policies will bereversed, either through a pending lawsuit or througha change in the White House.

The better news is that our established wildernessareas present us with many reasons to celebrate. Noadministrative policy change can undo what Congresshas enacted, which makes wilderness the most protec-tive designation for any area of public land. This year,Arizona celebrated 40 years of wilderness for 90 con-gressionally established areas totaling 4.5 million acresin here in Arizona.

This acreage is a direct result of local citizens work-ing tirelessly—compiling inventories and collaborat-ing with local and national politicians to recommend

by Jason Williams

Wilderness has had an interesting year:a 40th anniversary and an ongoingattempt from the currentAdministration to take away the pub-

lic’s ability to protect our wilderness heritage.

The Bad News… On the not so celebratory side of things, the

Bureau of Land Management (BLM) here in Arizonaand at the national level has gone from protectingWilderness Study Areas (WSAs)—areas with wilder-ness characteristics that await official designation fromCongress—to possibly deleting the word “wilderness”from their Resource Management Plans, which guideprotection mandates for a variety of public lands. InApril 2003, Secretary of the Interior Gale Nortonentered into a settlement with the state of Utah thattrashed protections for 2.6 million acres of land thathad been inventoried and recommended for WSA sta-tus. It also gave up the agency’s obligation to protectany area of BLM land as a Wilderness Study Areaacross the country. The settlement leaves approximate-ly 12 million acres of BLM lands in Arizona open tomining, logging and off road vehicle use, and nonethat will be considered for wilderness.

After the Utah settlement, BLM was given newdirection that allowed them to consider citizen wilder-ness proposals and manage wilderness “characteris-tics” such as solitude, primitive recreation, and natu-ralness, but offered no protections that would main-tain an area’s eligibility to become wilderness in the

A R I Z O N AWILD6 www.azwild.org

The Bad, The Good, and the Not-So-Ugly

AWC volunteers are instrumental in helping with wildernessinventory work.

Photo: Scott Koch

Escudilla Wilderness encompasses the upper reaches of Escudilla Mountain. Aspen trees regrowth from a terrible fire in 1953, coverabout 40 percent of the area. It was here that Aldo Leopold arrived at the side of a wounded wolf “in time to watch a fierce greenfire dying in her eyes,” an experience that changed his life.

Photo: Jay Krienitz

Send Us Your Thoughts!We want to hear from you. If you have com-

ments or wish to express a point of view on anyof the topics we discuss in our newsletter, pleasesend us an email at azwild@azwild.org, with asubject line “Letters.” Please keep your letters rel-evant and brief. Thank you! We look forward tohearing from you.

Medical Services. Throughout his life,Al enjoyed hiking, running, bicycling,and was an avid reader. Among hisfavorites was the poetry of 14th centu-ry mystic poet, Hafiz, whose wordssomehow presaged Al’s own when Hafizwrote, “I rarely let the word, ‘No’ escapefrom my mouth, because it is so plain tomy soul that God has shouted, “Yes!Yes! Yes!” to every luminous movementin existence.”

Al dedicated the last decades of hislife to fostering a love for the land, cat-alyzing people, and exhibiting a joy oflife infectious to everyone around him.A primary endeavor was presenting thelife and teachings of fellow-conserva-tionist Aldo Leopold in chautauquaperformances at national parks,schools, and other venues fromCalifornia to Tennessee. Al performedhis famous version of Leopold at theArizona Wilderness Coalition’sWilderness Retreat on the Blue Rivertwo years ago.

“I am very honored that Al calledme to say good-bye and ask that I help his wife, Rita,to maintain the presence of the Aldo LeopoldFoundation here in the West,” says Donald Hoffman,AWC’s executive director. “I don’t believe I have evermet someone so universally loved as Al Carr. He was abridge to people with very diverse backgrounds andhis unassuming persona and power as an educator willbe sorely missed.”

Al brought to his character a warmth and credibil-ity based upon his own sincerity, passion for the land,and warm, intimate style. Bringing Aldo Leopold tolife allowed Al to share his own passionate commit-ment to conservation, as well as Leopold’s ground-breaking concept of the ”land ethic,” with audiencesacross the stunning country that nurtured bothLeopold and Carr. For his work, Al received the

“Teacher of the Year” Award from the LeopoldFoundation in September of this year.

Among the wisdom Al passed on through the char-acter of Aldo Leopold are these words: “Possibly in ourintuitive perception, which may be truer than our sci-ence and less impeded by words than our philoso-phies, we realize the indivisibility of the earth, its soils,mountains, rivers, forests, climate, plants and animals,and respect it collectively…not only as a useful ser-vant, but as a living being.”

In a speech before a Prescott College graduatingclass, Al began, “I wonder if you are aware of howpowerful you are? How many lives you touch every-day? Like a pebble in a pond, your thoughts andactions ripple outward to touch lives in ways you maynever know.”

The conservation community lost a truewilderness hero in early September with thepassing of Al Carr, a dedicated follower andinterpreter of Aldo Leopold’s wilderness

wisdom. He is an Arizona Wilderness Coalition“Wilderness Hero”—both in spirit and action.

Al Carr was born March 26, 1946, in the back hillsof Tennessee, by his estimation, “the second-youngestand best-looking of 12 children.” He moved toPrescott, Arizona, in 1995, where, drawn by its focus

on experiential education, he planned to enroll atPrescott College. Shortly thereafter, he was diagnosedwith melanoma and given 6 weeks to 6 months to live.His response? “They aren’t talking about me.” Andwith that knowledge and the faith of his fiancée, RitaCantu, he married and became stepfather instead.

Al worked throughout Prescott as a Prescott Collegementor, group facilitator, designer, carpenter, restorerof historic homes, and community activist. He alsoworked as a paramedic and wrote books on Emergency

A R I Z O N AWILD 7www.azwild.org

Like a Pebble in a Pond

Al gave uncanny performances of Aldo Leopold in front of many enraptured audiences.

Al performing Leopold at AWC’s summer retreat in 2002.

Photo: Don Hoffman

Arizona Condors?

They’re Back—And they need Arizona Wild.

More than 40 California Condors now call Grand Canyon home.

Help the flock prosper through your purchase of cards featuring these majestic birds in the

Grand Canyon.*

Package of 7 Condor Cards - $14.00 per pack,inc. shipping

(7 different images on 5”x 7” cards, blank inside)

To order your cards please contact:Kay Beaubien, Original Artworks, (719) 685-9313, kebco@adelphia.net

* A percentage of all Condor Card sales from this add will be donated to the Arizona Wilderness Coalition.

A R I Z O N AWILD8 www.azwild.org

by Tom Taylor

Nothing beats a good backpack trip into thebackcountry… except for one problem -the backpack.The Bureau of LandManagement (BLM) had my solution: the

Adopt-a-Wild Horse or Burro Program. I adopted mywild burro in 1989, tamed and trained her to take ahalter and lead rope, and then to carry a packsaddle.In turn, she took the load off my back!

Now we (I mean Hualapai and myself) can hikemultiple days with fresh food and beverages. We hikewith loads measured in pounds and don’t fret aboutwhich freeze-dried meal tastes best or how manyounces it weighs.

Coming off the public rangelands, BLM wild bur-ros are sure-footed and tolerant of extreme climatesand terrain, and yet within a short period of time, theybecome people-friendly. Hualapai became a willingpartner in the backcountry. Often when we meet othertrail hikers weary from traveling with loads on theirbacks, they marvel at my formerly wild burro.Hualapai welcomes the attention she gets from theseencounters.

Hiking with Hualapai has also been instrumentaltoward introducing my children to backcountry travel

and camping. Their initial exposure to backcountrytravel has been a positive experience. They’ve alwaystraveled with lighter loads and appreciate the people-friendly qualities in Hualapai.

The BLM adoption process is clear and direct, andthe staff is accessible and helpful. Just like the creditcard slogan says, “don’t leave home without it,” I toowould say to backcountry travelers “adopt a BLMburro, and don’t leave home without her!”

Tom Taylor is a dedicated AWC member and BLMVolunteer. Tom is happy to provide more informationor answer questions about wild burro adoption andbackcountry travel.

Backcountry SUVWHERE THE WILD THINGS ARE

Tom Taylor navigates a trail with Hualapai, his adopted burro. Photo: John Beckett

Email:Arizonadeserttom@aol.com Phone: (480) 964-6482

For more information on the Wild Horse andBurro Program visit:

www.wildhorseandburro.blm.gov or call 1-866-4MUSTANGS

Burros on our public BLM lands remind usof the history that first brought settlers tothe West. When the mining boom began inthe late 1800s in Arizona, there were no

cars, roads, or railroads to transport supplies and oreto and from the min-ing camps. Burrosbecame the most reli-able form of trans-portation because theycould carry heavyloads and surviveharsh desert condi-tions. When minesclosed or other meansof transportation wereeventually provided,many burros weresimply let go orescaped into the wildsof the Arizona desert.Burro populationshave survived in thedesert for the last onehundred years. A herd can reproduce at a rate of 15-20% per year and achieve a doubling in populationevery 3-4 years.

In 1971, Congress passed the Wild Free-RoamingHorses and Burros Act. This law gave direction on theprotection, management, and control of wild horseand burro populations. Since 1971, scientists havefound that burros on our public lands have dramaticimpacts to vegetation and native wildlife. The PublicRangelands Improvement Act of 1978 gave furtherdirection on the management of wild horse and burropopulations. Under this law, the BLM is directed tomonitor rangeland conditions and remove wild horsesand burros where rangeland conditions are not satis-factory. There are many Herd Management Areas onBLM lands throughout Arizona, and many of theseareas overlap with wilderness areas created in theArizona Desert Wilderness Act of 1990. TheHarquahala Mountains Wilderness is one of these areaswere burros frequent many of the water sources insidethe wilderness. Burros are very possessive aroundwater sources and many times restrict access to otherwildlife such as desert bighorn sheep, and mule andwhitetail deer.

The BLM is currently taking a closer look at many ofthe Herd Management Areas in their ResourceManagement Plan revision processes. The agency mustabide by the mandates given to them under the 1971Wild Free-Roaming Horses and Burros Act, but many ofthe rangeland conditions are unsatisfactory. Managingfor large burro populations is a goal that conflicts withprotecting many of the threatened, endangered, andsensitive species that are native to the Arizona desert, soa reduction in herd numbers is necessary.

Your comments supporting these decisions willhelp protect our wilderness heritage and the nativespecies that depend on these areas. The great part aboutremoving burros from our BLM lands is that a well-organized and humane choice exists through the BLM’sWild Horse and Burro Adoption Program (see above).

Jason Williams

Jason is AWC’s Central Mountains-SonoranRegional Director.

Wild horses and burros can be

found in the Harquehala

Mountains Wilderness.

in the air, taste them in bitter leaves, feel them in thewind across my face, and record them as memories. Iwish this experience for all people because it is thisconnection to the land that reminds us of what itmeans to be alive.

* * * *

Marc Wise is an Environmental Studies student atPrescott College interested in understanding human rela-tionships to nature and our role in ecologicalsystems. This article was originally written in April 2004as a field reflection about his visit to the Agua FriaNational Monument. Prescott College offers Bachelors’and Masters’ degrees, as well as teacher certification.Learn more at www.prescott.edu or call 800-628-6344.

A R I Z O N AWILD 9www.azwild.org

by Marc Wise

The day glistened in the gentle morning heatof Arizona sunshine. I stepped down fromthe van to view my new surroundings. Aspart of Doug Hulmes’ Basic Ecology class

from Prescott College, we had driven approximatelyforty-five minutes to the Agua Fria NationalMonument. There, classic Sonoran Desert landscapecollided with chaparral and it stirred with life.Junipers stood on the northward hillside gazing outover their age-old companions, the saguaros of thesouthern slope. Colorbounced off the burnt redgrooves of the canyon fromdelicate blooms of nativewildflowers. Indian paint-brush, soft orange globe mal-low, the deep purple ofheliotropes, and white aster-acaea shimmered in a slightmorning breeze. Below theexposed mesas—sun-brushed with rusty hues—lay a canyon of historicalvalue.

“Well over 400 archeo-logical sites have been pro-tected through the conserva-tion of this land,” our substi-tute instructor for the day—Jason Williams of theArizona WildernessCoalition—told us.

A stout, friendly fellowwith a passion for conserva-tion, Jason held our atten-tion, pointing out the intricate ecological details of ourcurrent environment. He provided insight into theancient Hohokam tribes, as well as the many othernative people who at one time called this place homemore than a thousand years ago. Inhaling a deepbreath of desert air, we followed Jason down the drywash of Badger Springs trail.

The pebbles of the wash ground beneath my foot-steps as I followed close behind our guide. I was hop-ing to catch sight of any wildlife that we had notalready scared into hiding. The trail met the Agua FriaRiver at the one of the many points of interest and rea-sons for designating this area a national monument. Amural of rock art had been preserved on a brushedsandstone canvas beside the trail. Stick figures of ante-lope, elk, and bear danced with the ancient hunters,their creators, in a historical record of a lost people.Mesquite and metates—large, smooth stones shapedinto concave bowls for grinding corn— scattered theland. Ancient visitors to this special place found pro-tection from the heat of the southern sun under thecradling walls of the canyon, from the perennial flowof water, and from the large seep willows that drooptheir branches lazily over the riverbank.

From the junction, we could trace several ridgesoverlooking individual canyons. A current theoryexplains that ancient tribes had set up a system ofcommunication from highpoint to highpoint. Morethan three thousand people of the Perry Mesa cultureonce thrived here. Jason had previously informed theclass that before federal protection, the land fell victimto rifle practice and off-road recreation, and now bore

the scars of scattered shotgun shells and tire tracks.Federal management has always been a controversialissue and, in this particular case, monument designa-tion has been a good thing. We will look back 20 yearsfrom now and be thankful that this special place wasprotected for its natural and cultural magnificence.And if we protect at least a portion of the monumentas wilderness, it will look very much like it did whenthe people of Perry Mesa walked the washes and hunt-ed the hills. As we continued down the trail, a web of

interconnected life opened upbefore us. The canyon wrenserenaded us down the trailsending their enlighteningsongs echoing through thecanyon. A Gila woodpeckerstuck its nose out of the nestit had burrowed into an eldersaguaro cactus. The cactusand the woodpecker have amutual relationship. Thewoodpecker, in exchange fora nice home and a good meal,pick the bugs off the cactus asif it were an old cow. In turn,when the woodpeckerdecides to move on to anoth-er home, a new species ofbird will take advantage ofthe insulated, cool nestingspot that only the Gila wood-pecker can build. This givesthe woodpecker the honorarytitle of “keystone species,”because it plays an essential

role in the Sonoran ecosystem. We also learned aboutthe nocturnal pollination of the saguaros nightlybloom by the starlit flight of the bats.

I regretfully trudged back to the Prescott Collegevan, leaving many mysteries left unexplored. The feel-ing lingering with me as I bumped along up highway17 reminded me of what it felt like to be alive. Forthese retreats I am very grateful, because many peopledo not have this opportunity. They sit in classroomsand can only imagine the landscape they have readabout, the ancient people spoken of in lecture that day,or the call of the canyon wren. I experience it, take itin, and remember what I am here to protect.

I know what the essence of ecology is truly about.I do not memorize the ecological cycles: I smell them

Agua Fria: A Truly Monumental ExperienceWILDERNESS TO WATCH

WATCH!

Wilderness to Watch: The ArizonaWilderness Coalition recommends38,213 acres in three contiguous unitsfor consideration as Wilderness StudyAreas in the Agua Fria NationalMonument. AWC proposals make upless than 50% of the total monument,allowing for many other managementareas within this spectacular nationaltreasure.

Visit www.azwild.org for updateson BLM planning for this monument.

Petroglyphs dot the landscape at Agua Fria National

Monument, where ancestors of today’s Pima Indian

culture once thrived. Photo: John Beckett

Photo: Tyler Kokjohn

Photo: Mark Miller

The gila woodpecker is an important keystone species in Arizona

desert environments. Photo: USFWS

A R I Z O N AWILD10 www.azwild.org

Good News for the Blue Range!The Blue Range Primitive Area is one of the great,

if little known, wild places in Arizona. I spent themajority of my Forest Service career as its wildernessmanager. One of my last projects with Forest Servicewas to try to acquire a very special 15 acre parcel of pri-vate land at the end of the Blue River Road which formsa cherry stem—or non wilderness corridor— penetrat-ing into the Primitive Area. The last portion of the roadliterally followed the stream bed, which is also desig-nated critical habitat for the endangered loach minnow.This place was begging me to return it to the wild.

In 2001, the landowner had indicated that hewould like to exchange or sell that property, known asthe Smith Place, to the Forest Service. I had told thelandowner that the Forest Service would be very inter-ested in acquiring that land as it would extend the por-tion of the Blue Range managed as wilderness by near-ly two miles. We agreed that in would be a shame forthat land to ever lose its wild character to human devel-opment. Unfortunately the bureaucratic wheels movedtoo slowly to satisfy the landowner. I retired to work forthe AWC and he abandoned the idea.

In 2002, as an AWC wilderness advocate, I askedthe landowner if he was still interested in turning thatproperty over to the Forest Service, and he gave me 6months to make it happen. Fortunately I contactedCharlie O’Leary at the Trust for Public Land (TPL) whotook an immediate interest in the acquisition. We werequickly able to work out an agreement where the gen-erous landowner would benefit from the tax advantagesof donating the property to TPL. TPL would then gothrough the tedious process of selling the land to theForest Service. I couldn’t have been more pleased.

In September 2004, TPL was able to finalize the saleof the land to the Forest Service. Literally out of theBlue, I received a call from Charlie O’Leary to inform usthat the wild core of the Blue Range Primitive had beenexpanded as we had anticipated. Charlie then indicat-ed that his Board of Directors had decided to make avery significant grant to the AWC to reward us for car-ing for the Blue Range and to support our currentwork. This was totally unexpected and very humbling.It confirms that our mission to protect Arizona’s wildplaces is appreciated by a broad range of partners, citi-zens, and fellow advocates.

–Don Hoffman

Upcoming Event: John Muir Comes to Scottsdale!

The Arizona Wilderness Coalition is please to wel-come wilderness legend John Muir to Scottsdale,February 3, 2005, at the Civic Center LibraryAuditorium, from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. Refreshments andmingling beginning at 6 p.m.

Complete with Scottish brogue, character actor andchatauqua expert Doug Hulmes portrays the life andtimes of history’s most famous wilderness advocate,giving audiences a glimpse into the beginnings of con-servation ideology in 19th century America. Mr.Hulmes is currently professor of Environmental Studiesat Prescott College, where he teaches courses in ecolo-gy, environmental education, and environmental histo-ry and philosophy. He is the co-recipient of the 1990National Wilderness Education Award, sponsored bythe U.S. Forest Service and the Izaac Walton League.He has received numerous other awards for his JohnMuir presentation. Mr. Hulmes currently sits on theboard of the Arizona Wilderness Coalition.

This educational event is open to the public andwill raise funds for the Arizona Wilderness Coalition tocontinue its valuable wilderness protection work. Call602-571-2603 for more information on tickets andevent details, or visit www.azwild.org.

SHORT TAKESOpen Houses for Colorado River: We Need You There!!

See story on page 3. We need your support formanaging the wilderness character of the ColoradoRiver through Grand Canyon National Park. The park’spreferred alternative, released in October, does notprotect natural resource and wilderness values;instead, motors will stay on the Colorado River despitepark claims to manage “for a wilderness-type riverexperience”.

The Park Service has recommended most of thepark—including the river corridor—for wildernessprotection since 1980, when they first proposed tophase out raft motors to restore the wilderness experi-ence. Yet the park’s current recommended alternativeand six others continue motorized use on the river. Theproposed plan seems more about allowing motorizedindustries to operate unconditionally than it is aboutprotecting the river and providing an enduring wilder-ness experience for present and future generations.

Need Gift Ideas for the Holidays? Look No Further.

The Enduring Wilderness: Protecting Our NaturalHeritage Through the Wilderness Actby Doug Scott, Policy Director, Campaign forAmerica’s Wilderness, Fulcrum Publishing, August2004, 200 pages, $12.95

An up-to-the-minute look at how America has pre-served nearly 106 million acres of diverse wildernessareas in 44 states by statutory law … and how muchmore will be preserved. Written by a wilderness lob-byist (since 1966), strategist, and historian, this bookis a one-stop place for activists, students, and others tolearn what wilderness preservation is all about. All roy-alties for this book go to grassroots environmentalorganizations.

What others have said about this book:

“Holy, Holy, Holy!”—Kurt Vonnegut

“An invaluable guidebook to saving America’s wilder-ness. A must for ordinary citizens who care about sav-ing our wilderness heritage for future generations.Hopeful, practical, and compelling.”

—Christopher Reeve“Doug Scott is a coyote who is as comfortable in thehalls of Congress as he is in the great wilds of thisnation. This book is a celebration not only of the 40thanniversary of the 1964 Wilderness Act by one of ourgreat advocates of conservation, but an astute reminderas to why open space matters to the soul of America.Beautiful wild words from a wild mind.”

—Terry Tempest Williams,Author of The Open Space of Democracy (Orion, 2004)

To order “The Enduring Wilderness,” please email orcall Don Hoffman at dhoffman@azwild.org, 928-339-4525, or mail your check to Box 529, Alpine, AZ 85920.The cover price is $12.95 plus $4.00 for shipping andhandling up to two books.

Rewilding North Americaby Dave Foreman, Founder andDirector of The Rewilding Institute

Dave Foreman sets out a vision that isbold, scientifically credible, practicallyachievable, and hopeful. It is a vision andstrategy based on the functional role of large carnivores inmaintaining and restoring healthy ecosystems and theneed for conservation action on a continental-scale.

What others are saying about this book:

“If ‘Rewilding North America’ can’t stop the rising tideof extinction, then nothing will.Realistic in its assess-ment of the causes of extinction and the challengesahead, Foreman’s ethically leavened and scientificallygrounded arguments for rewilding promote hope.More than a ‘book of the year,’ Rewilding NorthAmerica makes clear the conservation and restorationagenda for the century.”

—Max Oelschlaeger, author of The Idea of Wilderness, F.B. McAllister Chairof Community, Culture & Environment, NorthernArizona University

“You know that proverbial squirrel that could walkhalfway across the continent without ever leaving a tree?Dave Foreman is plotting to make sure it happensagain—a long time in the future doubtless, but if we getbehind his efforts it will be a real possibility.”

—Bill McKibben, author of Enough: Staying Human in an Engineered Age

To order a copy, visit http://rewilding.org/. Signed copiesavailable. Proceeds to benefit the Rewilding Institute.

T-Shirts Make Perfect Gifts! Show your support for Arizona

Wilderness with these sporty athleticblend t-shirts, featuring the colorful tap-estry logo of the Arizona WildernessCoalition.

Cost: short sleeve = $15.00, longsleeve = $20.00. Add $3.00 shippingand handling per shirt. To order, emaildhoffman@azwild.org or call 928-339-4525.

PLEASE ACT NOW: Write comments and come to theopen-houses. A strong showing will help turn the tidetowards real protection for the heart of Grand CanyonNational Park.

For the DEIS go to: http://www. nps.gov/grca/crmp/. For talking points to help you craft a person-alized letter to Park Service officials, please refer tostory on page 3.

Open House Schedule:Monday, November 22, 20044:00-8:00pm (Any time during this time frame.)

Flagstaff, ArizonaCoconino Community CollegeAdministration Building – Commons Area2800 S. Lone Tree Rd.

www.coconino.edu/campuses/lonetree.html

Tuesday, November 30, 20044:00-8:00pm (Any time during this time frame.)

Phoenix, ArizonaGlendale Community CollegeStudent Lounge6000 W. Olive Avenue, Glendalewww.gc.maricopa.edu/map/

Comments will be accepted through January 7, 2005.Please send your comments in writing to CRMPProject, Grand Canyon National Park, PO Box 129,Grand Canyon AZ 86023, or comment on-line athttp://www.nps.gov/grca/crmp.

A R I Z O N AWILD 11www.azwild.org

by Bart Koehler

I’ve beenblessed to beable to followmy calling by

helping to permanent-ly protect many areasand millions of acresof wild places over aspan of 33 years sincethe 1970s. As I lookback at all theseadventures, and lookout to the wild hori-zons ahead, I wantedto share a few nuggetsof wilderness wisdomafter all these years ofventuring along rough and rocky campaign trails.

The Dynamics on Capital HillInterestingly enough, our halls of government retainthe same basic ratios of House and Senate seats to thenumber of constituents as we did more than 200 yearsago. With our growing population, the multitudinousdemands on Congress, combined with unimaginableworkloads, travel schedules, and hectic daily lives, it’sabsolutely amazing that laws of any substance areenacted in Washington.

We are now seeing statesmen like Senator HarryReid (D-NV) building bigger bills that combine sever-al issue-related proposals into one hefty piece of legis-lation, including the designation of significant newwilderness areas as an integral part of the package. Itmakes sense that, when you package a number of keypieces of legislation together, you have more horse-power to ultimately reach the critical approval neededfor enactment.

Purist vs. Pragmatist:A Lesson on Compromise

A close look at the history and content of theWilderness Act shows that it is riddled with hard-fought compromises. I revere this landmark law, but Ialso know that it is neither pure nor perfect. Even if itwere perfect in our wildest dreams, it never wouldhave made it to Lyndon Johnson for his signature 40years ago. Many of the wilderness areas subsequentlyenacted into law included one type of compromise oranother.

Some may view the history of wilderness laws as aseries of major compromises that shore up a long list oflosses we’ll never regain. A quick and dirty list: hard-rock mining exemptions; water use and the President’sauthority to approve dams and other projects; grazing inthe 1964 bill and then adopting subsequentCongressional Grazing Guidelines in 1980 & 1990 leg-islation; wildlife management language in the ArizonaDesert Wilderness Act of 1990; and exceptions for pre-established motorized use in places like the BoundaryWaters Canoe Area. This list can go on and on…and on.

Others see the Wilderness Act in a more positivelight: that indeed, there were deliberate and carefulcompromises made in the original Wilderness Act, butthat they were made in a responsible way. If the addi-tional areas added to the National WildernessPreservation System were both significant and worth-while—compromise or not—then it would be far bet-ter to have them protected as Wilderness, howeverimperfect they may be, rather than watch Congress

cast these areas aside, assuring them a perilous future.Pure “hard line in the sand” approaches have

worked well in Southern Utah’s Redrock Country andalong Alaska’s Arctic National Wildlife Refuge CoastalPlain. But the more pragmatic “get what you can andlive to fight another day” approaches without hesita-tion have also worked well in Black Rock and ClarkCounty, Nevada; Priest and Three Ridges, Virginia;California; and the Tongass Timber Reform Act.Currently, a number of us are following theseapproaches in our work on the Owyhees, LincolnCounty, Nevada, and the Boulder White Clouds.

But frankly, if we absolutely insist that all futurewilderness bills must be as pure as the driven snowthen we’ll simply get frozen out of the public process,labeled “extremists” and every other stereotypical anti-environmental tag known to man.

Moreover, it is my strong belief that wildernessadvocates then and now have not damaged the basicinitial integrity of the Wilderness Act during decadesof hard-won battles. I’ll say this now, and say it again:I have an ever-growing sense of urgency that if we donot protect a very significant number of meaningfulnew wilderness areas in a rapid-fire way, we will losemore and more unprotected wild places to motorizedrecreationists. What did Aldo Leopold say?“Wilderness is a resource which can shrink but notgrow. …the creation of new wilderness in the fullsense of the word is impossible.”

Anti-Wilderness Foes, Who Are Ye?Over time, I’ve come to strongly believe that wilder-ness advocates should make an honest effort to helpsmall rural communities and rural citizens who arelocated adjacent to proposed wilderness areas. Helpingthese people become less fearful of wilderness andmore secure within their work and communitiesshould serve to open doors and attitudes to wildernessover time.

In the past we routinely fought big sawmills, hard-rock mining multi-nationals, behemoth oil and gascorporations, and sometimes a snowmobile grouphere or there. Today it seems, our battles are beingfought against a different array of interests - - some ofwhich didn’t even exist when the Wilderness Actbecame law. Here are a few of them:

Mountain Bikers: We can thank the authors ofthe Wilderness Act for prohibiting mechanical trans-port. Each year these users lay claim to additionaltrails that penetrate deeper into special places, yet wehave had some successes working with local leaders inimportant areas.

Snowmobilers: With new and lighter machines,they can go further and higher into the wilds.

Off-Road Vehicle Users: (Also ATVs andMotorcycle users) With brand names such as“Grizzly”, these sleeker, bigger, and faster machinescan access further into intact wildernessareas.Tragically, in a number of key Forest Service-pro-posed wilderness areas, these machines and their rid-ers have established use in the area for a generation ormore, making it doubly difficult to remove their con-stituents when a wilderness bill is on the table.

Ranchers: Once we could usually rely on manyranchers to support Wilderness and actually help leadthe charge toward passage. Today, pro-Wildernessranchers are few and far between. This is partly due tothe fact that many conservation groups abandonedtheir earlier emphasis on working with grassroots and

rural citizens, and thus left this territory wide open forthe so-called “wise use” groups to move in and gainfoothold. Wilderness advocates must work proactivelywith people who live and work in rural counties.

Outfitters and Horse Packers: These folks wereonce in the vanguard of wilderness advocacy actions.Some feel badgered by watchdog groups, and manyhave been driven away from working coalitions. Westill find a rare supporter among these folks, but sadlymany of them simply refuse to support Wilderness, asthey did years ago, sometimes because of ever-rigidrestrictions brought to bear by agencies and somegroups. It’s important to note that praise for the tradi-tion of horse use in wilderness can be traced back toThe Wilderness Society (TWS) founder Aldo Leopoldin the early 1920’s.

So Many More Conservation Groups Across AVery Wide Spectrum:

Back when I first worked for TWS, there were very fewgroups out there working on wilderness protection.So, being organizers at heart, we helped jumpstartmany grassroots groups. Today, it seems as though ifyou have an email address and maybe a working web-site, your group is granted instant legitimacy — some-times with disastrous, splintering results.

Meeting the Challenges AheadThe Wilderness Society has set a tremendous goal ofadding millions and millions of acres to the NationalWilderness Preservation System. We at the WildernessSupport Center work at the “Art of the Possible,” totake advantage of existing conditions to get where wewant to go - - or create new conditions to help get usthere. We also follow the concepts of what I call“Coyote Planning:” when you see the possibility ofprotecting a special wild place, pounce on it, then pickit up and run with it all the way across the Capitol Hilllawn, down Pennsylvania Avenue, and up and over thefence to the White House Lawn.

We strive to see the day when Congressional lead-ers of every stripe can fully engage in efforts to enactprogressive wilderness laws. By involving our lawmak-ers more in the process of creating a momentumtoward wilderness legislation, they may actually cometo enjoy enacting new wilderness laws. With everynew Congressional session a “time in the sun” fordeserving wilderness laws, we hope to reach our laud-able goal of 200 million new acres of wilderness.

We know that this will be no easy task. It’s a heckof a lot easier to say “no” than to take a deep breathand say “yes” to wilderness. But I believe that whenyou bask in the sun, you can’t be afraid of your ownshadow. And if things get really rough, always remem-ber to ride a bucking horse uphill.

Bart Koehler serves on the AWC Board of Directors andis Director of The Wilderness Support Center inDurango, Colo.

Words from a Wilderness Warhorse

(l) Bart Koehler with good friendDave Foreman (r).

Photo: Don Hoffman

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