By Bob Difley
If not for Americans with vision, like Teddy Roosevelt for instance, who had an eye for the country’s unique scenic beauty and cultural heritage and wished to protect it, many of our most spectacular national parks would be crowded with strip malls full of gift shops, high-priced vacation condominiums, and other construction projects designed, not to protect the sites for all to enjoy, but to provide income to a wealthy few.
Yet today, the ten year-old National Landscape Conservation System, that received permanent protection under the Omnibus Public Lands Management Act in 2009, struggles with an inadequate budget and local groups that fight the designations, opposing road removal or cattle grazing restrictions the BLM imposed to protect the natural characteristics of the properties.
What will happen next, whether the NLC will be able to continue to protect and add to the 27 million acres of national monuments,conservation areas, wilderness study areas, wild and scenic rivers, and historic trails in the 11 Western states plus Alaska (and one historic trail in Maryland) that are part of its jurisdiction, will be determined by a “rendevous” in Las Vegas beginning November 12 “to help build continuity between grassroots organizations working to protect their local national conservation lands and to make policy recommendations to help the BLM”.
To lend your support, visit an NLC site in your state as well as when you travel. Let the powers know that you support the protection of these national heritage sites to be enjoyed forever by us–the owners of these public lands–and for all who visit, camp, hike, paddle, study, and just enjoy these remarkable destinations.
Unlike national parks, National conservation lands tend to be at lower elevations, where visitors will find dirt trails, rugged landscapes, wide-open country, sweeping vistas, and peaceful solitude. The system includes “red-rock deserts and rugged ocean coastlines, deep river canyons and broad Alaskan tundra. Many areas are remote and wild but others are surprisingly accessible. . . . It safeguards American Indian cliff dwellings and cultural sites, and preserves the remaining traces of our Nation’s historic trails and pathways. The mission of the National Landscape Conservation System is to conserve, protect, and restore these nationally significant landscapes that are recognized for their outstanding cultural, ecological, and scientific values.”
To learn more about the national conservation lands in your state visit the BLM’s web page where you can also search by type–such as Wild and Scenic Rivers, Wilderness Areas, and National Scenic and Historic Trails.
Check out my website for more RVing tips and destinations and my ebooks, BOONDOCKING: Finding the Perfect Campsite on America’s Public Lands, Snowbird Guide to Boondocking in the Southwestern Deserts, and 111 Ways to Get the Biggest Bang out of your RV Lifestyle Dollar.
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Bob Difley
Thanks to you all for the great input and contribution to the conversation. Intelligent, thought out, responses to questions enable us all to better understand both sides of an issue and to make more reasonable and balanced decisions.
David
I agree that the goal of the National Landscape Conservation System is to close off all areas to vehicles. This means that most retired citizens & all handicaped persons will NEVER EVER get to see the these public lands that merit being included in the National Landscape Conservation System.
It is one thing to stop development of public lands where one is talking about golf courses, shopping mall, subdivisions, playing on every yard with ATVs, etcetara. It is quite another thing to shut off all use by the public except for the young & very fit who can hike miles & miles to camp.
Another problem with the wild & senic river portion of the National Landscape Conservation System regulations is that once a waterway is designated as a Wild & Senic River then all tributaries are also designated Wild & Senic which is absolutely absurd.
We need to protect within reason our National Landscape & Wild Senic Rivers but the National Landscape Conservation System as it is interpreted & enforced today is not the way to go. The law establishing the National Landscape Conservation System need to be repealed & a much more common sence non-extremist law passed in its stead.
hoppe
Addition to Soapbox: Bob,,,
one of the additional problems for those of us who do use OUR public lands. We tend, not only to lose the use of them, but when some lovely SOB in the Whitehouse has rich buddies that want their own mountian,,,,,, uh oh,…… nobody cared that the BLM of Forest Service gets told to do a land swap. Weeeeeelll, we don’t know if we’ll get a vacant lot in Southpark in exchange.
In case nobody remembers, during the Chaney/Bushy era they were talking of doing a slicky deal to sell off some Public Lands. Ostensibly to help defray the deficit. Don’t think it got done, not sure Personally I don’t want to pay for wars with our Public Lands.
Don’t want to see them torn up either.
DUANE sONNENBERG
I couldn’t disagree with about half of what you said more. the closing and designating of vast areas of land by the federal Gove does not open up and of that land to the public for enjoyment. It hides it from everyone save a few hardy younger persons with stamina for hiking and backpacking. most of the wilderness roads are not invasive and would disappeaf if not maintained. Nature has a way of restoring itself very quickly when left to itself. Primitive roads, when properly constructed and maintained do not destroy the wilderness, they make it accessable to the public. Of course you must regulate it to some degree to assure that those visiting will police themselves, but that is better than Federal government controle and closure. I also agree with Larry Ray obove. I visited Mt. Rushmore and Yellowstone as a teenager and could not believe the commercialization when we returned 50 years lateer as a Senior Citizen tourist. Additionally, the Western States have been bearing the brunt of the confiscation of property to designated wilderness areas. If it is taken at all it should be purchased from the states and landowners and guarantees put in place that assure access for reasonable public use.
Dan Chiild
Bob,
I have to completely disagree with your position in regards to more land closure. Have you seen what has happened to the millions of acres that are now designated “wilderness” in the west? This is land that is completely closed to anyone except those on foot or horseback – not even a wheelchair is allowed as it is “mechanical transportation.” Wilderness is the land of no use.
Don’t get me wrong, I am fully supportive of protecting our lands when there are truly special conditions – Yellowstone and the Grand Canyon are great examples. The enviro-whackos are in a land grab attack mode. If these lands they want to “protect” are being abused so badly, how do the qualifiy for wilderness? Wilderness by federal definition is “un-touched” by humans. If the land were damaged and needed protection as they purport, it WOULD NOT QUALIIFY for wilderness designation! That is why those of us who use public lands are fighting so hard to keep existing roads and lands open! The land should be available to enjoy, not locked up so nobody can ever get to it again.
The consistent closure of of lands to use by RVers and offroad vehicle users has pushed them onto smaller and smaller areas – which definitely does result in damage to the land as too many are being forced to use an area that is way to small for the demand. Many, many people enjoy vehicular travel on public lands and All Terrain Vehicle (ATV) use is the largest growth recreational activity in the United States over the past 20 years! There is a real demand for more open area and closing more and more to the uses that Americans want for their recreation – especially when the proposed land truly has no definitive need for protection or special features that make it truly a wonder of the world – is a travesty that the self righteous elitists continue to promote at the detriment of the average citizen.
NO MORE LAND CLOSURES! Support the Blue Ribbon Coaliation – http://www.sharetrails.org or http://www.blueribbon.org and USA-ALL – http://www.usaall.org . These two organizations are fighting for your right continue to have access to and use YOUR public lands!
Keep America’s Public Lands Open!!
Thank you.
Ron Butler
Bob,
Good material and couldn’t agree more with you. Everyone, especially RV’ers, should read the book “Wilderness Warrior” by David Brinkley. Its about Teddy’s accomplishments in establishing and expanding our national parks, forests and wilderness areas. The discouraging thing is that the matra against protecting “our” natural beauty is pretty much the same as it was then.
Larry – I could be very mistaken, but I don’t think Royal Gorge is part of the national park system. Is it? If it’s not, that is the exact thing that Bob is talking about and that Teddy saved us from.
Thanks for the reminder of what we have to enjoy.
Rick
Bob,
I hope you are quite physically fit and can hike many miles with a pack on because the goal of the National Landscape Conservation System is to close off all areas to vehicles. That not only includes 4 wheel drive vehicles but campers as well. Stay behind the chain link fence and only see what you can from the tour bus.
Larry Ray
Sorry Bob, but I hate to disabuse you about the commercial aspect of sites, but have you been to MT. Rushmore in the Black Hills of South Dakota, and Royal Gorge in Colorado, to name a few places? I was laid over in Rapid City for a weekend back in 1986, so my dispatcher told me to “drop my trailer” and go visit Mt Rushmore, which I did. It hadn’t been commercialised yet. There was a large parking lot and a very enjoyable experience without having to drop bucks for parking and Park entrance fee plus a high priced restaurant and high priced tourist junk. I and my first wife visited Royal Gorge back in 1966 and all that was there was the bridge across the Gorge. You parked your car, walked out on the historic structure, took a few pictures and enjoyed the experience. I and my current wife visited there a couple of years ago and you couldn’t even SEE the bridge from the entrance for the multitude of amusement booths, fast food and other commercial endeavors, plus the entrance fee was twenty bucks per carload, which consisted of just me and my wife. We were disgusted and left without going in. We won’t ever go back, and I tell everyone that expresses interest about going our experience. Colorado is bad about that sort of thing. On that long ago trip, we also visited Garden of the Gods and Pikes Peak, but we won’t be going to those places again because they’re probably commercialised too. I hate to see places despoiled in that fashion. This “soak the tourist” thing is going to bite those people in the butt one of these days and I’m hoping it’s soon. The town I live in just passed a continuance of the lodging tax at our hotels and motels. I didn’t vote for it because seemingly everywhere else has a lodging tax and what you take in here from the lodging tax, you spend lodging elsewhere when you travel. Before my wife & I bought our 5th wheel, we spent the night in Denver at a Best Western on a trip a few years ago. We had a coupon for 20 percent off for the room, but by the time we paid the state sales tax, the city tax and the lodging tax, that coupon was gone, plus more gouging. I’m surprised the county didn’t have a tax. Oops! Me and my big mouth! Hope no county people see this. LOL We’ve never spent another night there except in our camper. I grew up in the fifties in a family as poor as church mice and so did my wife and money came hard. We work hard for our money and hate to see it go to waste giving it to gougers. Compulsive gambling is not a problem in my family. LOL I don’t begrudge fuel taxes because I like to drive on nice roads like everyone else, as long as the highway department gets it and not after the schools & everyone else dips into it too, like Ilinois.
hoppe
That blade does cut both ways. Hate to see abuse of public lands by ‘toys’, but if you close the area to wheeled vehicles then virtually No one gets to see and enjoy the area. Wilderness areas are often sought after here in Colorado by the Monied property owners who are adjacent to the BLM and Nat Forest areas.
We also have the few who want to purchase their own tract of wilderness and they bemoan the fact that the ‘public lands’ even exixt. Guess they’s prefer strip mines and clear cuts.
NO CAMPING signs have also turned into a plague here in Colorado. Seems to be a standard clause of the Private Campground Companies that manage our Nat Forest Campgrounds here. They post these lovely signs with in 4 or 5 miles of an ‘established’ campground to force people to use the ‘up close and personal’ CGs where they can charge you for what’s often not much more than a parking spot that’s almost level.
Sorry bout the ‘soapbox’ .
One nerve left, and they are standing on it.
We need the Forest Service to be allowed to do their jobs.
Gary Case
Do not do this. It will lead to closers that you can’t even imagine. Look around, I have seen ancient Indian trails over 3000 years old being closed. Soon Yellowstone will be closed except for buses to tranport you to Old Faithful. Be very careful in letting areas be closed .They will never be opened again.
W6PEA
Bob;
Thanks for posting the information. Very interesting read.
Richard Van Dyke
Great Read! I am always eager to learn as much as I can to be a better steward of our environment. We at the American Evergreen Foundation (AEF) Offer our “Conservation through Participation” programs with a never ending goal to reach out, involve and enlighten.