The Wild Cascades The Journal of the Conservation Council summer/Fall 2002

Sitka valerian in Eldorado Basin, and Johannesburg Mountain in background — Photo by Kevin Geraghty

20  The Wild Cascades • Winter 1999-2000 The Wild Cascades • Summer/Fall 2002   The North Cascades Conservation Council was formed in 1957 “To protect THE WILD CASCADES  Summer/Fall 2002 and preserve the North Cascades’ scenic, scientific, recreational, educational, and wilderness values.” Continuing this mis- sion, NCCC keeps government officials, In This Issue environmental organizations, and the general public informed about issues 3 The President’s Report — Marc Bardsley affecting the Greater North Cascades Ecosystem. Action is pursued through legislative, legal, and public participation 4 Park Plans Manipulation of Stehekin River — Carolyn McCon- channels to protect the lands, waters, nell plants and wildlife. Over the past third of a century 4 Charter Forests the NCCC has led or participated in campaigns to create the North Cascades 5 it Can Happen Here! Privatization of Parks in National Park Complex, — Yvonne Zacharias, Vancouver Sun Wilderness, and other units of the Na- tional Wilderness System from the W.O. 6 a Declaration on the Principles of Parks — Valhalla Wilderness Douglas Wilderness north to the Alpine Society Parks Campaign (B.C.) Lakes Wilderness, the Henry M. Jackson Wilderness, the Chelan-Sawtooth Wilder- 7 Commercialization of the Wilderness Deeps — Harvey Manning ness and others. Among its most dramatic victories has been working with British 10 NCCC Board Meeting May 20, 2002 Columbia allies to block the raising of Ross Dam, which would have drowned 11 snowmobiles Trespass Big Beaver Valley.

12 Wild Sky Wilderness: — Senate Bill S.2565 MEMBERSHIP

16 sky Wilderness Update — Rick McGuire The NCCC is supported by member dues and private donations. These sup- port publication of The Wild Cascades arvey anning 17 Preserving Our Walking Trails — H M and lobbying activities. (NCCC is a non- tax-deductible 501(c)4 organization.) 20 West Side Fire – Rick McGuire Membership dues for one year are: $10 - low income/student; $20 - regular; $25 22 Modern Times — H.M. - family; $50.00 - Contributing; $100 - patron; $1000 - Sustaining. A one-time 23 despatches from the Privatizing Front life membership dues payment is $500.  24 despatches from the Fee-Demo Front The North Cascades Foundation supports the NCCC’s nonpolitical efforts. The Wild Cascades Donations are tax-deductible as a 501(c)3 organization. Please make your check(s) Journal of the North Cascades Conservation Council out to the organization of your choice. Editor: Betty Manning The Foundation can be reached through Printing by EcoGraphics NCCC mailing address: The Wild Cascades is published three times a year (Spring, Summer/Fall, Winter). NCCC members receive this journal. Address letters, comments, send articles to: North Cascades Conservation Coun- The Wild Cascades Editor cil North Cascades Conservation Council P.O. Box 95980 University Station, , WA 98145-2980 University Station Seattle, WA 98145-2980 The Wild Cascades is printed on recycled paper with soy-based ink. NCCC Website www.northcascades.org

  The Wild Cascades • Summer/Fall 2002 NCCC Board

President Marc Bardsley Founded in 1957 SEATTLE, Board Chairman Patrick Goldsworthy Vice President The President’s Report Summer/Fall 2002 Charles Ehlert

Treasurer Years ago, the suppression of every wildfire bigger than a flame-up in your Tom Brucker skillet was considered a holy act. When certain communist-inspired conserva- Secretary tionists pointed out that, perhaps, fires in the Wilderness might be allowed to burn — the Forest Service was aghast. Subsequently, many of the federal forest Phil Zalesky -fighting agencies got religion and began touting how clever they were to let some wildland fires burn. This lasted of course until the allegedly catastrophic fire in Yellowstone National Park in 1988. Since then, there has been a confus- Bruce Barnbaum ing or at least inconsistent number of policies about when and where to sup- Polly Dyer press wildfires. And since being proactive is a virtue, many prescribed burns have been performed around the country. There are many good and bad rea- John Edwards sons for these but they are now considered by many experts to be the best way to restore more natural conditions in our forests. There are more than a few Dave Fluharty opinions on whether this is correct. Even more to the point, what is “natural”? In any event, it has now been proposed that prescribed burns in both true Karl Forsgaard and in candidate Wilderness areas might be a way of outdoing Mother Nature. Someone tell me, am I being paranoid again or is this yet one more fundamen- Kevin Geraghty tal misunderstanding of the Wilderness Act? I see two situations which need Kevin Herrick to be debated: Wilderness fires that are fairly close to “civilization” and Wilder- ness fires that are truly out in the middle of nowhere. While I tend to be less Conway Leovy than sympathetic with those who have built their summer cabins and homes in the forest adjacent to our Wilderness areas, I understand that there is not a lot Harvey Manning of support to let them suffer the consequences of living in a wildfire zone. On the other hand, perhaps a huge fire in the true wilderness from time to time is a Betty Manning more natural act than a number of scientifically designed burns with an unclear goal. Carolyn McConnell Let those of us who, from time to time, review the Fire Management plans of public agencies keep in mind what Wilderness is about. Rick McGuire

Thom Peters

Ken Wilcox

Laura Zalesky

The Wild Cascades • Summer/Fall 2002   stehekin Park Plans Manipulation of Stehekin River Carolyn McConnell

The Stehekin Valley is deep and nar- The Stehekin River is a candidate for Environmental Assessment, due to begin row, sheer cliff walls descending to a bend- Wild and Scenic status and lies entirely late this summer. ing strip of river plain barely a mile wide. within the North Cascades National Park That tiny bit of flat land is, of course, Complex, all but about nine of it within In other Stehekin news, the eager- the river’s course. It’s also the Stehekin official wilderness. The Park therefore has ness of WeavTech to install private phone Road’s course, and since the road stays put no business degrading this spectacular service in the valley seems to have waned. and the river doesn’t, inevitably the two river at large taxpayer cost to allow a tiny At a meeting in February, many residents run into each other every few years in one number of vehicles to travel closer to expressed distaste for the project and place or another. Short of channelizing the road’s dead-end. The river is bound the transformation it would bring to this and destroying this wild river—the valley’s to threaten the road again, and unless isolated community. So it must have been life force—anyone maintaining the road the Park changes course, the number of galling to the company when WeavTech has got to accept that fact. intrusions into the river will only grow. It was presented with a bill for the meeting The Park Service does not. While the is time that the Park, in keeping with its costs and told by the Park Service that it NPS likes to trumpet its new, scientific mandate, adopted the principle that it will would have to foot the bill for the cost methods of manipulating river flow—no not manipulate the river. of an Environmental Assessment—about more rip rap, it’s “barbs” now—it still Nor is the only solution abandoning $15,000-20,000—or, worse, an Environ- comes down to pushing the river around. the road although that is an option the mental Impact Statement. This may be In the eleven miles of lower river, there Park should consider in the long term. why the Park Service has heard nothing are now ten Park-placed barbs to protect The road could be shifted away from the more from the company on the project. the road, plus five permitted private barbs river. Facing a steepening price tag and opposi- (that’s not counting the many private, il- Indeed, there is an historic roadbed tion from the very customers it hopes to legal logs, rip-rap and so on). This fall, the on bluffs just above the current road. attract, Weavtech may be reconsidering. Park plans another river manipulation. Given the logic of federal road funds, get- Too, word in Stehekin is that the bank The river is threatening a stretch of ting approval and funding for this project WeavTech was seeking financing from road about six miles upvalley from the would require leadership and ingenuity. may have soured on the project as well Lake Chelan. It is also threatening private Elsewhere in the National Parks system, — perhaps in response to the community homes in an area called McGregor Mead- Park administrators have shown such resistance. ows (anyone who pays attention knows leadership. It is time those in Stehekin did Kudos to the community and to the that river-front meadow is once-and-future too. Park Service for appropriately requiring river bottom), although the Park denies Please write Superintendent Paleck WeavTech to pay its share of the public that it has any motive other than protect- urging him to reconsider his plans. Ask ing the road. to be placed on the mailing list for the

fee demo CHARTER FORESTS

The passage of permanent Fee-Demo charter forests can only work when why Henry is spinning in his grave, since authorization, coupled with authorization coupled with Fee-Demo. this is a regional think tank of the (na- of a “Charter Forest Pilot Demonstra- Not to go into lurid details of the tional) Cato species. tion Program” have been recently listed scheme, the public, insofar as it has heard To simplify, Michael Anderson of the by Undersecretary of Natural Resources a word on the subject, has a right to be Wilderness Society in Seattle has asked, and Environment Mark Rey, former vice confused, since an advocate for charters is “Are you comfortable having the local president of the National Forest Products Randal O’Toole, an economist who made Boise Cascade sawmill manager make Association, as among President Bush’s something of a reputation as an environ- decisions on whether to log your favorite highest priorities for the Forest Service. mentalist by his critique of the Forest national forest?” Terry Anderson, Bush’s public lands Service, but has since signed on with the Cut away the brush and that’s what a policy advisor, frankly admits that private Thoreau Institute in Oregon — which is charter forest does.

  The Wild Cascades • Summer/Fall 2002 It Can Happen Here! PRIVATIZATION OF PARKS IN BRITISH COLUMBIA

Vancouver Sun ment-funded interpretive programs and come here to live for the quality of life. As Yvonne Zacharias, park brochures, were carried out. for the tourists, we are advertising our- Wednesday, July 31, 2002 In a news release, the Valhalla selves as supernatural B.C., yet we don’t A leaked government document ob- Wilderness Society decried the plan. It have a good recreational site for them to tained by the Valhalla Wilderness Society says much of the province’s backwoods go to.” indicates the province is planning a major beauty will be inaccessible or acces- A document prepared by the Golden withdrawal from the parks system by the sible only to those who can pay a fee. It economic development office provides year 2004 while paving the way for more predicts users of trails will either have to details of the deterioration. involvement by the private sector. maintain them themselves or pay to use “Sites and trails are being destroyed While the details are sketchy, park them, and people will now have to pay to through decay, over-use or blatant vandal- rangers and supervision in campsites will use picnic sites. ism, while unmanaged [or unpoliced] be a thing of the past if the government It is particularly concerned with activity has created situations of lawless- carries through on the plan. With the the government’s plan to discontinue ness in the backcountry,” the document removal of subsidies, campsite fees are the requirement of permits for low-risk says. “Awareness is already spreading sure to rise by April of next year. Facility commercial activities. “We are wondering amongst travelers and tourists that Brit- maintenance by the government would what low-risk means,” said Pugh. With no ish Columbia’s famous wilderness is no cease by April of 2004. Private business requirement for permits, she expressed longer a safe clean destination but is now would be invited in to parks and other concern over degradation of the environ- to be avoided.” protected areas. ment. Tourists visiting travel information Dated Feb. 19 of this year, the brief As for the over-all government plan, centres are being told that “the backcoun- document entitled “stop doing protected “we’ve been watching this and expecting try they came to visit is either inaccessible, areas” is described as section work plans some move in this direction, but this is repugnant or unsafe.” œimetable: more than we had ever imagined,” Pugh In a document sent to The Vancouver — By April 1, 2003, there would be said. Sun, a group calling itself the Coalition to no park rangers in front-country areas like Liz Bicknell, director of communica- Save Forest Recreation in British Columbia campsites and picnic areas. Subsidies for tions at the Ministry of Water, Land and which was started in Cranbrook in June, recreation use would cease. Air Protection, confirmed the existence outlined its concerns over government Private businesses would be allowed of the document, but she said it is only a cuts to forest recreation services in B.C. to carry out “low-risk” commercial activi- plan and no final decisions will be made “Asking volunteers to manage the ties without a park permit. until a government-appointed recreation entire resource of Crown land used for — By April 1, 2004, government- stewardship panel reports sometime recreation is unrealistic,” it said. “Most funded facility maintenance or capital toward the end of this year. non-profit organizations in rural commu- improvements and direct “regular” super- She said, however, that the docu- nities cannot carry the burden of insur- vision would cease in front-country parks. ment reflects a government plan to make ance and management of sites and com- A second section in the planning recreation pay for itself and to come up munity groups cannot handle the enforce- document, entitled “priorities for pro- with a new way of doing things. ment issues that are already becoming a tected areas,” calls for a “new governance The past NDP administration dou- big problem.” model,” a transfer of protected areas like bled the size of the park system but did Pugh said that turning the mainte- parks to Parks and local adminis- not put the money in place to maintain nance and operation of parks and wilder- tration, increased commercial recreation it, she said. “The status quo is no longer ness areas over to community groups is opportunities and a volunteer-steward- possible.” the wrong way to go. ship strategy. But “the government recognizes we These groups, however well-inten- “This is basically a total pull-out of have a jewel here and it has no intention tioned, often don’t have the skills or eco- the government involvement in parks,” of jeopardizing that.” logical knowledge to do the job, she said. Sarah Pugh, director of the environmental The leaked document comes at a “Government parks are public property. group, said in an interview. “Wilderness time when the government is already This is a government mandate. You can’t preservation is out of the question with a besieged with complaints that it is no just cast it off like that.” model like this.” longer maintaining recreation areas on The document lists the first round of Crown forestry lands. cuts, which were to implemented by April Golden Mayor Walter (Red) Scott of this year. Most of those cuts, including said, “It is a huge concern for us. In the free firewood, school programs, govern- rural area, we have a lot of people who

The Wild Cascades • Summer/Fall 2002   British Columbia Provincial Government Trying to Privatize Parks — Wilderness Organizations Fight Back

A Declaration on the confirmed the profound determination parks, including the preservation, devel- Principles of Parks of British Columbians to hold sacred the opment, use and maintenance of parks, areas protected under thePark Act. as well as the regulation and control of Valhalla Wilderness Society Now we are told that parks are no lon- public and private individuals in the use or Parks Campaign ger a proper use of tax dollars. We are told exploitation of parks, and of human activi- that parks are a drain on the public purse ties, behaviour and conduct in or on parks and must be made to “pay for themselves” and recreation areas.” At the turn of the previous century, as by selling nature to “clients.” 4. The government has a duty to main- a result of massive environmental destruc- tain a civil service with sufficient staff and tion, there emerged a common vision And the winds of change bring ru- mours that the BC Park Act is being rewrit- funding to manage every aspect of the park that spread across . People system. This requires adequate tax dollars. envisioned areas where nature would be ten to conform to these mercenary goals. preserved intact. They recognized that Already, the ministry responsible for parks 5. The Park Act gives BC Parks a dual the future of life on the planet depended has had drastic cuts to funding and the mandate to manage for preservation and upon maintaining the healthy functioning dismissal of hundreds of experienced staff recreation. Both these mandates must be of ecosystems. representing the capability of our society maintained. The protection of ecosystems, to protect the environment. landscapes and wildlife must take prior- They also saw that parks would fill In answer to this crisis we, the ity over recreation. (A guiding principle a critical need for sanctuaries where the recommended by the Park Legacy Project.) human spirit could renew itself. There, undersigned, wish all to know that these changes would, if implemented, represent Recreation can degrade natural values. The uninjured by industrial inroads, or the dual mandates are compatible only when intrusions of entrepreneurial- or entertain- the deepest betrayal of the public trust. We insist that the BC government imme- recreation does not significantly harm ment-based uses, people could experience natural features. The recreation that is ap- the wholeness of nature. Maintaining this diately undertake to reverse these trends and commit itself to uphold the spirit and propriate in parks is low-impact activities opportunity is critical for the future sanity based upon preserving a natural environ- of our civilization. To a society increasingly intent of our park system, which is defined in the following principles. ment and a natural visitor experience for riddled with fragmenting alienation and everyone. cynical exploitation of one another, nature left undivided teaches harmony and unity 1. Parks are an inalienable public good 6. The economic values of parks are by the experience, itself. to be protected under the Park Act in per- those which flow naturally from support- petuity. ing parks with tax dollars and making the Realizing this vision required every preservation and enjoyment of nature the These areas must not be sold, com- park creation to be tediously weighed top priority. These benefits are large. against the interests of private exploitation. mercialized or privatized. (Final Report of The people of BC repeatedly chose to set the Park Legacy Project, 1999) The Park Act does not and should not give the government a mandate to manage parks aside, to be held in trust for pres- 2. The BC Park Act must remain invio- parks to benefit commercial enterprise ent and future generations. In order for late. or the economy of the province. The this to be so, it is necessary for parks to be if parks are to be preserved in per- supported by our tax dollars, since private economic return on parks should not be petuity, the protective legislation must measured by what is taken in inside the investment in our parks would necessarily remain stable as governments change. It is bring private influence and control. boundaries, but by the revenues and other clearly the strengths of the Park Act, not its benefits generated outside the boundaries. To ensure that parks could be main- weaknesses, that are targeted for change. It Campgrounds are high-impact facilities tained in perpetuity, the BC government is time for all friends of parks to stand be- and fees are necessary. But our park sys- legislated the Park Act. It was written to hind those strengths and let them protect tem must not be in the business of selling withstand the pressures of private exploita- our interest, rather than subject them to the experience of nature. Parks embody tion under whatever forms it might take. the risk of being gutted. the essential benefits of survival, health The Park Act created the parks ministry as 3. The Park Act directs the government and quality of life that flow from nature a central agency that would remain stable alone to manage and maintain parks. and should be free to all people. in spite of the whims of the ever-changing There is no excuse for private interest political administrations of government. 7. There must be no industrial use in control, long-term legal rights or self-moni- This institutional stability made BC Parks, parks. Commercial recreational develop- toring of private operations. itself, a part of our heritage as a society. ment should be located outside park The Park Act specifies that the min- boundaries. Since then, polls, planning processes ister responsible for parks shall “manage and even blockades have continuously 8. Long-term contracts for private enter- and administer all matters concerning prise, based upon park land, services, or

  The Wild Cascades • Summer/Fall 2002 infrastructure, must not be allowed. 9. Wilderness is an essential value of COMMERCIALIZATION OF THE parks. There should be legislated Wilder- ness Areas in all BC parks that contain wil- WILDERNESS DEEPS derness. The Panel on Ecological Integrity has recommended the same for Canada’s Harvey Manning national parks. Wilderness is rapidly dimin- ishing in BC and should be a top priority An afternoon the middle of the last Snowboarding, dogsledding, wagon of park management. century, while in the closet (the Co-op retail and sleigh riding, bicycling, snowmobiling, Wilderness combines the ecological, store in Adam Mayer’s office) picking up hunting, helicoptering. Horses, mules, recreational and spiritual values of parks. Sailor Boy and Wylers and MPF for a semi- donkeys, llamas, goats, and dogs. “Drop It epitomizes the wholeness in nature expedition, my eye was caught by a card camps,” packtrain-supplied summer-long that people are seeking. The Parks Branch tacked to the wall, offering to guide parties supermarkets that allow hikers lengthy should manage wilderness to preserve the up peaks of the Cascades and Olympics. stays on the trail carrying little more than intangible values that have great impor- Fred Beckey (that’s who it was) had been rucksack loads. tance to many people. Such values include hired by “Harvards” the previous summer Rock climbing is offered (in summer!) remoteness, absolute naturalness, natural to show them around Mt. Waddington and by so many entrepreneurs in Tumwater quiet, natural means of access, and op- evidently was thus encouraged to take a Canyon, Icicle River, and Fun Rocks that a portunities for solitude. Wilderness is not stab at being a fulltime mountain bum. It lottery is held to allocate space fairly. valued just by the millions of people who was not to be. Easterners who came West travel in it. It is also enjoyed and appreci- Volcanoes are the bread and butter. headed straight for The Mountain (as the Glacier and Baker (and with it, Shuksan) ated by people who view its scenery and English of a past era had for Blanc), and who treasure the wildlife whose homes are are on most menus. (Base Camp is the were hauled up by the likes of Jim and Lou bargain, $75 a volcano.) in the wilderness. Whittaker, larking lads who partied away For purposes of analysis I have sepa- 10. Park management must be kept the summer on glaciers by day, the Paradise rated into three categories the permits for free of conflict of interest. Guide Hut by night, and in September foot travel on and off trails. Protecting parks requires indepen- returned dutifully to school or honest toil. dent decision-makers who are not under We “Khaki Gang” locals in war-surplus par- Edge Wilderness the influence of the need or the opportu- kas and boots and goggles, feather bags and nity to exploit parks for economic return. liferaft sails, were too poor to hire peasants, A third or so of the permits are for foot Corporate sponsorship will bring just such being peasants ourselves. travel, with or without animal support in packtrains or drop camps. Most of these conflicts into our park system, and must A day nearing the three-quarter mark are for day-hiking and short backpacks near be avoided. The concept of “making parks of the last century, driving home from Lake highways. , Washington pay for themselves,” that is, using park Chelan, I stopped for a hitchhiker. To my Pass, Monte Cristo, Icicle Creek. facilities and natural assets to recover the amazement he was a summer bum, guiding costs of management, would permeate our for Outward Bound. By century’s end I This edge use gives short legs and park system with conflict of interest. Those never went on semi-expedition to (former- gimps, young and old, the well-off visitor in the position to make decisions between ly) lonesome backcountry without encoun- from afar and the poor local from the neigh- money-making and protecting ecologi- tering a lockstep line of “twelve heartbeats” borhood a wilderness opportunity, albeit cal integrity would be dependent upon in scarlet gaiters and yellow helmets, on the next to no solitude. The very young can money-making for their jobs and salaries. march through the North Cascades, “Hi ho, on these walks be green-bonded, perhaps This is totally unacceptable. hi ho, it’s Outward Bound we go.” made life-long defenders and advocates. The concentrated impact close to highways 11. Our parks fill a universal need Recently I was stimulated to a bit of spares the pristinity of the deeps. All to the for physical and spiritual health which is supplementary investigation by letter. Sev- good. shared by all cultures. We must find ways eral Forest Service offices supplied masses of working with First Nations to ensure of official papers. What lies ahead in our Not in every case. Some wilderness these needs can be met. Wilderness is clearly foreshadowed. edges and bordering lands in multiple-use have begun to stink like barns. Packtrains Commercial use-days (customer and day-riders from permanent camps- For more information contact: days) in the report area of the corrals. (For decades horses have been Sarah Pugh Okanogan office — alone — rose banned from one super-popular edge, the Valhalla Wilderness Society from 760 in 1976, the period when I Enchantments.) Parks Campaign picked up the hitchhiker, to 12,732 Box 329 in 1999. Arterial Wilderness New Denver, British Columbia Major arterials extend from edges into V0G 1S0 The Mt. Baker-Snoqualmie and Wenatchee-Okanogan National Forests cur- deeps. Examples are the Boundary Trail across the , the Summit (250) 358-2333 rently issue some 100 commercial permits for outfitters-guides in the Glacier Peak, Trail above Lake Chelan, and the Holden- (NCCC supports the Declaration.) Henry M. Jackson, Boulder River, Mt. Baker, Agnes Creek-Stehekin “loop.” It is a very Sawtooth and Pasayten Wildernesses and fine thing that people who cannot carry vicinities. Hiking, climbing, skiing, a pack for a week at a go are enabled to Continued on page 8

The Wild Cascades • Summer/Fall 2002   COMMERCIALIZATION OF THE PRINCIPAL WILDERNESS DEEPS COMMERCIALIZERS

Continued from page 7 Deep Wilderness OF WILDERNESS experience the deeps. Unfortunately, the The population of America, and thus DEEPS IN animal support is becoming so heavy that the trails, has risen beyond sanity. If there the experience for backpacker pedestrians is to be in future a true wilderness experi- NATIONAL is seriously degraded. That might be justi- ence of the olden kind, the laissez faire of fied. But not the economic restriction of the the frontier must be curtailed. Here as in FORESTS OF THE opportunity to the well-to-do. Animal-sup- the stock market, Adam Smith’s Invisible NORTH CASCADES ported arterial wilderness is not possible Hand is all thumbs. Steps must be taken for the poor. I hate that. “Money money to preserve whatever degree of pristinity money makes the world go round.” remains in the spiritual center of wilder- Mountain Madness keeps ness, the deeps. mainly to volcanoes and edges. It When the tourist industry and horse- is mentioned here because of the packing industry and chambers of com- When the phrase, “aristocracy of the Everest notoriety. In 1997 the own- merce and fanatic Forest Service multiple- physically fit” is yapped, inform the yap- er, Scott Fischer, and eight others users conned Congress (during the “guns per that our greatest wilderness-minded perished spectacularly in one of the and butter” period) into blasting (mucho, president, FDR, was his whole adult life in bestselling bloodlettings of moun- mucho dynamite, ruthless trashing of a wheelchair. Looking into wilderness from tain history. His successor was ecosystems and geography) the Pacific Crest the edge is a wilderness experience. So is preparing for K-2 in 2002 as others National Scenic Freeway through wilder- knowing it is there. in her firm guided a foursome up ness cores of the Cascade Crest, I was irate. Green-bonding on the edges serves Everest, among the 54 who “sum- But Nature squelched the engineers’ hubris as a kindergarten. The student-hiker may mited” in the largest single-day and showed up the Forest Service as nin- progress through elementary school to mob to date. nies. Snowmelt torrents that would sweep secondary, ultimately by years of apprentice- Alpine Ascents International, away horses and riders. Cliffs for them to ship to earn the “freedom of the hills.” As founded in Nevada in 1986, incor- fall off. Summer-long snowfields, steep. more and more beginners advance to the porated in Washington in 1990, The pedestrian experience from Snoqualm- deeps, restrictions there are inevitable. The also had an Everest publicity hey- ie Pass to Stevens Pass therefore can be very very first of these is the absolute exclusion day when its 2002 American South good. Because — here is the irony — the of commercial exploitation from the deeps. Col Expedition put 24 heartbeats Forest Service ran out of money. Poverty, Freedom cannot be — must not be — put on top. Its North Cascades Moun- where is thy sting? (In the 1930s the head up for sale. “If this be treason, make the taineering School is said by them to be “the most comprehensive in the of the National Park Service, accused of most of it.” industry.” (I was struck by their use abusing the natural scene, told Congress, “I See the sidebar. Steam leaks from my can do no harm. I have no money.”) of the term “industry”.) The firm ears when the jet from New Jersey lands in advertises 30 expeditions and 50 Hordes do throng from across Ameri- Seattle, juvenile delinquents march away training courses (“annually”) in 14 can to this arterial. Well, why not? It’s their on the tarmac in scarlet gaiters and yellow nations. That is industrious. Alpine Lakes Wilderness too, not ours helmets, “Hi ho, hi ho” to the Ptarmigan Most of its North Cascades alone. Few stray from the freeway. Soli- Traverse. industry is volcanoes and edges tude camps are readily found up obscure The national forests are preparing to and highway-side rock climbing. It alleys. I’m as much solitude hog as any of do an Environmental Assessment before does offer Torment, Forbidden, and my ancient generation. But the humanist granting 5-year renewals of outfitter-guide Eldorado and boasts that it features in me rejoices when a Kansan accosts me permits. “pristine, less populated environ- on the trail, burbling “I saw a marmot! It Will an EA do the job? Ought it not ments,” obliquely pointing a finger whistled at me!” A woman from my home better be an EIS? at some of those others. town (one year only) in Massachusetts virtu- Operations are continuous ally burst into song in telling that she had through the summer, a 6-day trip for the first time in her life seen John Muir’s for $970, a 13-day for $2,100. favorite bird, the dipper. Folks like this They’ll take you up Shuksan for deserve a few arterials. As for pack animals, $528. I hold my tongue. American Alpine Institute is vague about where it came from and when (the 1980s?) The bro- chure is mainly about Glacier- Baker-Shuksan and such edges as Monte Cristo, Whitehorse, Sloan, Stuart. Tenpeak and Maude are samples of their deeps. My interest

  The Wild Cascades • Summer/Fall 2002 was piqued by noting the Ptarmi- to the United States, OB took on the The Forest Service considers gan Traverse on their list. How- role once played by military school, information on OB rates confiden- ever, a recent annual report shows the uniforms replaced by scarlet tial. Presumably they are com- just one trip, with one customer. gaiters and yellow helmets. Wealthy petitive with NOLS. These are the How many guides did he (she?) parents of rock-and-roll children, two big businesses in the North have? Porters? What fee? Was he child psychiatrists who tried to Cascades deeps. A single reporting (she?) given the whole (the Real) straighten them out, and juvenile office, in Okanogan, has OB down Traverse? More likely the usual court judges who didn’t like to send in 2000 for 3,890 client-days. What, quickie (the Fake). rich white kids to jail welcomed OB. we wonder, is the total number of National Outdoor Leader- Children felt that being a commando the whole range? That will take ship School (NOLS) was founded was a lot more cool than rubbing some detective work. We have in Lander, in 1965 by sticks together and geeking toward heard there is a whole other opera- (or at least under the name of) West Point, and much less cruel than tion in the North Cascades, based the colorful “Cowboy Climber,” a sentence to “boot camp.”* in British Columbia, “unknown” to Paul Petzoldt, who used to wear Outward Bound set up shop in the Forest Service. his cowboy boots while hauling the North Cascades by committing —— Eastern dudes up the a criminal act. In 1964 we had pub- *(In August of 2002, High and in the 1930s was hired by them lished Routes and Rocks to publicize Peaks Wilderness, based in for a fiasco on K-2. This is very big the then little-known heart of our Utah, was shut down by the business. They have avalanched proposed North Cascades National Montana Department of Public my desk with expensive maga- Park. Once the book had done its Health when 11 teens enrolled zines and catalogs and brochures job of putting boots into the back- in a “wilderness therapy” pro- describing the business done from country and we had the park, it was gram for troubled youth had operations bases in , Yukon, deemed that too many boots would to be rescued, cold and dirty Pacific Northwest, Rockies, Tetons, not be good for the pristinity we had and hungry, from a camp near Southwest, Mexico, Patagonia, set out to preserve. The book there- Butte.”) India, East Africa. fore was sentenced to death. In the North Cascades, vol- But OB wouldn’t let the book canoes of course. Rock-climbing die. It was their blueprint for com- in Tumwater Canyon and on Fun mercialization of the pristine. The Rock. Comprehensive all-every- very names given routes by Crowder where “classes” on Snowking, and Tabor were adopted by catalogs Eldorado, Buckindy, Cathedral, to distinguish their various “training Daniel, Bonanza, Devils Dome, courses.” R&R routes were so many Three Fools, Ice Lakes, Egg Lake, pin peaks, collectibles. Photocopies Napeequa, you have it, they got it. were run off by the illegal thou- Yes! The ! sands, never a by-your-leave or offer “Courses” consist of seven to pay royalties. overlapping 4-weekers from June 7 In contrast to NOLS, which has to September 1. “Tuition” for each buried me in tons of costly paper, is $3,000, not counting equipment OB plays its cards close to the vest. WE SEE BY rentals and jet fare from New Jer- Field offices of the Forest Service, sey. The North Cascades “school” otherwise very helpful, tell me I THE PAPERS prepares you for ($4,500) “Have to go to Portland.” Region Six and Waddington ($3,500). These mistrusts me. At least one OB guide prices include ski plane or helicop- has joined the Okanogan rangers in Pasayten Encounter Noted ter to the roping-up places. covering up scandalous abuse of the In “Signpost” section, Backpacker Outward Bound (OB) was Pasayten Wilderness. Come the EA Magazine, August 2002, the Pasayten founded in emulation of Lord (or the EIS?) we’re going to have to Report researcher, Martha Hall, made flush the OB facts out of the bushes Baden Powell’s Boy Scouts, whose the news: in Portland. planned fate was to serve on the “Stand by Your Land. Washing- veldt in the next Boer War. A World The firm operates non-stop ton resident Martha Hall was recently War II commando officer called through the summer. The “courses” ordered to stay away from horse- upon the ruling class of the former are 14-21 days in length, with “ex- British empire to shape up their peditions” for the backbone, “solos” packers in the Pasayten Wilderness. soft young toffs in the tradition of for the soul. Those earnest lads and Complaints were filed after the former Kipling’s Kim, that they might be lasses you see by the trail, scribbling schoolteacher was found photograph- ready to storm ashore in Nor- furiously in journals, are soloists ing and documenting destruction mandy. Hardships and dangers of filling blue books for grading by the caused by commercial horsepackers in oceans and cliffs were the ticket. Grand Inquisitor, who will judge the designated wilderness.” Stiffen spines, mold souls, “make a whether or not they’re ready for man of yez.” Translated overseas Normandy.

The Wild Cascades • Summer/Fall 2002   North Cascades Conservation Council Board Meeting, North Cascades National Park Complex, May 20, 2002 Highlights of the informational meeting with Superintendent Paleck:

— Stehekin Land Exchange censing agreement, including the licensing ent from that described in the General agreement to fund the establishment and An appraisal would be performed on Management Plan, then an Environmental operation of the Environmental Learning the possible upcoming Stehekin land ex- Assessment will be prepared. Center on the shore of Diablo reservoir. change prior to an Environmental Assess- The contract for the construction of the ment. The five-acre property in question — McGregor Meadows Learning Center has been issued. Board is straddling the Stehekin River. The Na- As there is a need to protect Mc- members indicated that they would investi- tional Park Service will require restrictions Gregor Meadows from the Stehekin River gate and hopefully secure Seattle City on property uses. threatening the road, an Environmental Lights commitment to the Learning Center. Assessment will be required. (See McCon- — Drug smuggling within park nell article, page 4, this issue.) — boundaries The Secretary of Interior has of- — Stehekin Paving Project Drug smuggling across the border ficially designated the Pacific Northwest As described in the General Manage- is a problem at Hozameen (a Ross Lake Trail. Brian Bowden, NPS Seattle office, ment Plan, a paving project to 9 Mile access), Chilliwack River and Beaver is coordinator. The superintendent stated on the Stehekin Road is in the works. Pass. A backpack of high-in-demand B.C. that NPS has no intention of building new Between Harlequin Bridge and 9 Mile, the marijuana bud can bring several thousand trails within the North Cascades Complex road would be paved and reduced to a dollars in and thus encourages for the PNT and will enforce its own stan- single lane (12-14 feet wide) with pullouts. the smuggling. Park Service rangers seized dards within the Complex and the Stephen The road between 9 Mile and High Bridge 44 pounds of cocaine and arrested four Mather Wilderness. The board raised ques- would be maintained as a single-lane individuals using the East Bank trail along tions about the route, habitat for animal gravel road. Ross Lake to the North Cascades Highway. and plant species being deleteriously af- Other arrests have been made. fected, and concern for the small number For current information contact Dam security is of concern. There of grizzly bears possibly in the region. may be restrictions preventing the crossing the National Park Service Diablo and Ross dams by car. NPS budget — Fire Management Plan in Lake website through www.nps.gov problems and reassignment of staff to Chelan National Recreation Area and choose the park you wish to Washington, D.C. contribute to the present Prescribed burns will be stepped up view. shortage of personnel. and some burns on the order of 10,000 — Skagit City Light Re-licensing acres may be undertaken. If the prescribed burning management employed is differ- Agreement Seattle City Light may not be meeting the requirements of the new FERC re-li-

WE SEE BY THE PAPERS

Go! Go! Go! course on professional Park Service deci- In the May 12 Seattle Times, Ron Before Arabia Runs Out of Oil sions. We’ve seen it in Yellowstone. The Judd, outdoor columnist, reported Commenting on the Bushy attitude snowmobile and personal-watercraft “snowmobiles roaring all the way up to toward wreckreation, Kirsten Brengel of industries have unprecedented access to St. Helens’ 8300-foot crater rim, making the Wilderness Society was quoted in the this administration, and the administra- tracks where once only hardy hikers and New York Times, April 16 tion is willing to reverse course on envi- climbers stood and stared with rever- ronmental decisions in order to benefit ence into the gaping abyss. It’s become “They’re asking for extra studies to these industries.” far from an oddity. Blasphemy? Maybe. enable the higher-ups in D.C. to reverse Felony? Not even a misdemeanor.”

10  The Wild Cascades • Summer/Fall 2002 SNOWMOBILES TRESPASS ALPINE LAKES WILDERNESS

Snowmobile Outfitter-Guide Cle Elum Ranger District Fines rifles and other equipment confiscated Special Use Permit and Snowmobilers if they’re caught. These large fines are Blackpine Basin Hut EA Three snowmobilers recently re- necessary because, like with snowmobile ceived $250.00 tickets each for unlawful trespass, the chances of getting caught Jennifer Zbyszewski use of motorized vehicles in the Alpine are very small. Severe penalties are the Methow Valley Ranger District Lake Wilderness area near Ingalls Lake, only deterrent in many cases. I think Winthrop Office according to District Ranger Catherine similar penalties are warranted for those 24 W. Chewuch Road Stephenson of the Cle Elum Ranger Dis- who willfully ride their snowmachines in Winthrop, WA 98862 trict. The Wilderness Act of 1964 prohib- Wilderness. its the use of all motorized vehicles within — The issue of wilderness trespass Dear Jennifer: the boundary of an area that has been does mirror the progression of educating These comments are submitted by designated wilderness. the judicial system that had to take place North Cascades Conservation Council “For the past several years the Cle regarding poaching. It took “direct” pres- (NCCC) in response to the Snowmobile Elum Ranger District, together with sure toward in many cases) specific dis- Outfitter-Guide Special Use Permit and responsible volunteers, have been trict attorneys from hunters and anglers Blackpine Basin Hut EA. conducting educational and enforce- to make the judicial system recognize that NCCC agrees with and joins in the ment programs to prevent unlawful use the public took wildlife offenses seriously. comments submitted by Susan Crampton of snowmobiles within the Alpine Lakes TIP (Turn in Poachers) programs and of Methow Forest Watch. NCC C is very Wilderness boundaries” said Stephenson. rewards offered by hunting groups, etc., concerned about the environmental im- She added that these efforts have in- are now widespread among states. In pacts of snowmobile use. Snowmobiles cluded signing the wilderness boundary, addition to property confiscation, loss of pollute the air and water, harass wildlife, providing information at sno-parks and hunting privileges and fines, most poach- and threaten public health and safety. trailheads, and making personal contacts ers, especially habitual offenders, face jail Monitoring and recreation planning with snowmobilers. time. needs to be completed before there are “Progress has been made, but there is any increases in snowmobile use. evidence some snowmobilers are still rid- Many of the routes are located very ing in Wilderness” said Wilderness Ranger close to Wilderness boundaries, as is the John Morrow. The Cle Elum Ranger Blackpine Hut. There have been increas- District continues to enforce a zero toler- ing violations of Wilderness boundaries ance policy for motorized wilderness by snowmobiles, such as in the Alpine incursions, according to Morrow. Riders Lakes Wilderness in the Cle Elum District. in wilderness risk fines and snowmobile Any permit should be subject to area impoundment for all in the snowmobile WE SEE BY closures outside Wilderness to reduce party, Morrow concluded. problems of Wilderness violations, and/or THE PAPERS to reduce any other types of resource damage and/or user conflicts that may From the E-mail Chatroom: exist. Snowmobile Trespass That Noise You Hear Is the Any permit should also be subject to News Item: Three snowmobilers “Locals” in D.C. area closures in the event that the area is recently received $250 tickets each for designated Wilderness by Congress. The unlawful use of motorized vehicles in the Reacting to the Bushyism that existence of the permit should not be Alpine Lakes Wilderness near Ingalls Lake. the locals in Montana want to run the an impediment (financially, politically or national forests and parks, so they can E-mail Chat: otherwise) to Wilderness designation. snowmobile in Yellowstone and mudrun — This is a “slap on the wrist” and The EA uses an inaccurate, narrow in the wilderness, the president of the not likely to deter future snowmobile view of what area is “affected” by snow- Montana Wilderness Association, Ross trespass. In similar cases in Montana and mobiles. The “affected” area is not just Rodgers, made no bones about it in the Wyoming the fines have been more in the the snow underneath the machines, but April 11 New York Times: “Every public $1,000 to $2,500 range. Given the small rather the much larger area over which survey done here has shown that a strong chance of getting caught, the “thrill” of the noise is heard and over which the pol- majority of ‘the locals’ prefer quiet trails riding in wilderness and the amount of lution is dispersed. and natural landscape protected from disposable income most of the snowmo- motorized off-road vehicles. The adminis- Sincerely, bile crowd seems to have, $250 doesn’t tration claims to have a penchant for local Karl Forsgaard, Board member, seem to cut it. control but really gives the motor vehicle NCCC — In many states, wildlife poach- industry the final say.” ers run the risk of having their vehicles,

The Wild Cascades • Summer/Fall 2002  11 Wild Sky Wilderness: Bill S.2565

SKYKOMISH WILDERNESS UPDATE Rick McGuire

After much work, identical bills have been introduced in the House and Senate by Con- gressman and Senator to designate 106,000 acres in the Skykomish Ranger District of the Mt. Baker-Snoqualmie Na- tional Forest as the “Wild Sky Wilderness.” Con- gresswoman Jennifer Dunn has co-sponsored the legislation. A Senate hearing was held at the end of July, where even Senator Larry Craig of Idaho, not normally a Wilderness fan, expressed guarded support for the bill. As finally introduced, the bill represents a number of compromises made by Murray and Larsen to address the concerns of various user groups and to broaden support for the bill. Conservationists initially proposed about 121,000 acres for protection. Lost in the 15,000 acres whittled away were Windy Ridge, near Ste- vens Pass, due to objections from snowmobil- ers, as well as some areas in the western John- son Ridge area. A large acreage in the lower Salmon Creek area north of Index was excluded to accommodate the destructive “Sky Forks” timber sale. Another disappointment was the failure of the legislation to end float plane usage at Lake Isabel. Continued on page 16

12  The Wild Cascades • Summer/Fall 2002 The Wild Cascades • Summer/Fall 2002  13 14  The Wild Cascades • Summer/Fall 2002 The Wild Cascades • Summer/Fall 2002  15 SKYKOMISH WILDERNESS UPDATE Continued from page 12

Nevertheless, despite these losses, the Wild Sky bill represents a major departure from almost all previous Wilderness bills in that it would protect a large percentage of low -elevation forest, and areas critical to sustaining salmon runs. Particularly in the North Fork Skykomish Valley above Index, the bill would protect extensive areas of low-elevation forests, some of it old growth and some of it mature, naturally regenerated second growth in areas railroad logged in the 1920’s. These low elevation forests grow on some of the most productive sites in the entire National Forest system. Although time is running short, support- ers are hoping the bill might still pass this Congress. Action in the House is hoped for soon. If passage isn’t possible this year, sup- porters are prepared to try again next year.

Proposed Wild Sky Wilderness — Map by Patrick D. Goldsworthy

16  The Wild Cascades • Summer/Fall 2002 PRESERVING OUR WALKING TRAILS Harvey Manning

Then 1968, the North Cascades Na- The Foe, Too, Is Mustering August 23, 2002 tional Park and Pasayten Wilderness. The revival of the preservation move- This piece was written early in Then 1976, the Alpine Lakes Wilder- ment after World War II was energized by 2002 to serve as frontmatter in ness. the hubris of the U.S. Forest Service, striv- a revised edition of a 100 Hikes Then 1984, the Washington Wilder- ing to chisel in granite the airy mantras of volume. As of this date I do not ness Act, Boulder River and Henry M. Gifford Pinchot. An attempt was made to know if it will be published or not Jackson Wildernesses and additions to the glorify “multiple use” as the quintessence because Mountaineers Books has . of the American Way; in 1964 and 1968 the taken to suppressing those of my Then — what happened? The metro- American people didn’t buy it. “Sustained writings that they and my co- nomic eight-year gestation of new births yield” was touted as self-evidently wise, author dislike, and not informing stopped dead. Had the spiritual womb and it was, and it is; under a program of me when this is done. Check your gone barren? sustained over-cutting, however, the Forest local bookseller — you will find Service began running out of trees. out the same time I do. H.M. If so, it was not in one fell swoop. In chilling contrast to the grand operas And thus, out of money. Preservation- staged in the Oval Office by Presidents ists joined the endangered rangers in de- Johnson and Ford for their bill-signings in manding that Congress make up the differ- Were “civilization” to be subjected 1968 and 1976, President Reagan signed in ence required to fund its entire spectrum to a cost-benefit analysis, it could claim in- 1984 only under the pressure of bipartisan of management responsibilities — wildlife numerable goods, such as Mozart and ice unanimity in our state’s Congressional habitat, species diversity, recreation. Con- cream. Some goods, though, would have delegation. No convocation of smiling gress wouldn’t do it. Tank-thinkers who to be listed as endangered. For example, faces. No Marines in dress uniforms. No were swarming in Washington City like an early triumph, not of civilization itself resounding proclamation. It is said that he mosquitoes in a hot swamp had a better but of an essential preliminary, was walk- retreated to a private room, sat himself on idea. The Plan. ing on our hind legs, an option that now a convenience, affixed his signature, and The heart of it is: “Anything govern- is at risk. Wheels. Another would be the slid the paper under the door while finish- ment can do, free enterprise can do bet- recent recognition of the need for legal ing other business. ter.” The necessity of earning a profit, the protection of the church where John the The 1984 Act omitted twice as much “thrive or die” learned in the jungle, gives Baptist went to be with God. Wilderness. requested wilderness as it included. An the businessman his hard head, his “know When we began publishing guide- Act II was confidently expected. But 1992 how.” The “Invisible Hand” identified by books in the 1960s it was not from any passed, and 2000. Nothing. Reagan had Adam Smith as the superego for the mar- delusion that penetrations by civilization set Washington City on a course of con- ketplace wisely steers his course. These — trails, that is — enhance wilderness. tumely. But he was not a captain without are what have made America great. The good thing they do is teach us the a crew. Go door to door in the nation’s Revitalization, there’s the key. Politi- importance. Our books are driven by the capital. Round up the usual suspects. cians live for votes, bureaucrats for pen- iron law, “use it or lose it.” Frustrated preservationists, their sions. Together they have brought our Books aim the feet. Feet are the artil- numbers and fervor ever mounting, pur- social infrastructure to wrack and ruin. lery. Feet have fired off the broadsides that sued administrative recourses, went to the The public schools are a disgrace. The have got the attention of land managers courts, undertook guerrilla actions. socialization of medicine a failure. An ex- haustive study by civil engineers has found and elected officials. Yet in 2000 a president elected by a that most of the nation’s bridges are in The turning point in the state of minority vote behaved as if he had won danger of collapsing — or, in the state of Washington was 1960, when we crammed by a landslide, hunkered down in the Washington, of sinking or blowing down. down the throat of the U.S. Forest Service White House with his Praetorian Guard of a Glacier Peak Wilderness that was much Reagan retreads and “think tank” brains As for the public lands, we waste smaller than we sought, but far larger than and declared war on the American earth. precious tax money in tending them the “wilderness on the rocks” that the In 2002, therefore, our main forces are while MBA entrepreneurs stand ready to timber industry tried to cram down our mustering to renew the offensive on the do the job at no cost to us. The national throat. Wilderness Act front. parks, getting the message in the era of the stagecoach, are in the jet age clon- The year 1964 brought a triumph on Boundaries are being studied and ing Disneyland and Six Flags Over Texas. the national scene when Congress passed debated, bills drafted. Limber up your let- Taking pages from Yosemite and Grand the Wilderness Act. ter-writing arms. Listen to your feet. Continued on page 18

The Wild Cascades • Summer/Fall 2002  17 Preserving our walking trails

Continued from page 17 to use trails that had been freely walked The ones who walk on their hind legs and ever since the pioneers crossed the land whine, they’re the scofflaws.” Canyon, Mount Rainier is considering ways bridge from Asia. The Fee Demonstration and means to compete with resorts on its The Militia Comes Marching In Program. border, to “enlarge its service area”; one For 10,000 years or so the only trails suggestion is to build a paved skateboard Bad idea. Yet with Congress so nig- in the North Cascades were those beaten trail from Tacoma to Paradise. Real estate gardly, rangers in such danger, preserva- out by the feet of deer, elk, bear, coyotes, in the Stehekin Valley of the North Cas- tionists could not but yield to the plea, marmots, and the folks who had trekked cades National Park Complex, dirt cheap an echo of the 1933 song, “Brother, can on over from Asia. For some half a century in 1968, has become so pricey that luxury you spare a dime?” They went along with the “dirty miners in search of shining gold” condos are being schemed — and what is the temporary Plan, unaware that it was a built and maintained hundreds of miles that looming on the horizon — a casino? plan, and that the refusal of funds by Con- of trails, often wide and solid enough for gress was fundamental to the Plan. Stupid Then, the national forests. . . Cheek packtrains. During the same period many birdwatchers? No, merely trusting. They by jowl with loot of the Northern Pacific a valley had a trapline and trapper’s trail read only the first page in the white paper, Land Grab where stumps of trees gone to and many a ridge had a sheepherders’ the one with the violins. market are being replaced by golf course- driveway. For 30-odd years, roughly from swimming pool-cocktail lounge Gomor- In 2002 they read the second page, World War I to World War II, Forest Service rahs, the future hangs heavy heavy over where “temporary” is scratched out, re- rangers built trails to fire lookouts atop their head. Scenic climaxes cry out to be placed by “permanent”. Eyes were dried, peaks and to give fire crews quick walking freed up so the Invisible Hand can build heads scratched. Some of the rangers be- to blazes. vacation cities. Areas lacking geographi- gan to look suspiciously like cops. Hikers The rangers then began taking to cal pzzaz could be converted from tax who refused to buy the required North- airplanes and parachutes and the wannabe sinkholes to cash cows, “charter forests” west Forest Pass were threatened with miners to helicopters and the trails dete- could be managed by businessmen for fines and/or imprisonment. What to do? riorated. However, as recreation enlarged maximum sustained yield of revenues by Stand up for principle and at the least lose from a subsidiary to a central use, the man- the industry that lies crouched and panting a pleasant day in the woods? Or grumble agement concept embraced walking — “wreckreation.” and pay? Maybe accept the rangers’ offers Walking, plus whatever. . . . In the of free passes for serving as volunteer The Plan had its inception in the think nigh-onto-half-a-century that preservation- members of the posse? tanks about the same time that President ists have been saving Washington trails by Reagan appointed James Watt Secretary of The wilderness rangers on the trails creating a national park and a bouquet of the Interior, a position that is held in 2002 were and are the best and the brightest, wildernesses, the Forest Service has been by his star pupil. A flurry of white papers our very good friends. Many were obvi- converting true trails (paths for speeds up from the tanks candidly detailed the exact ously unhappy and told us why. They had to 5 miles or so an hour) to motorcycle route toward final privatization of public read Chapter Two of the Plan, and Chapter roads (trails rebuilt for machine travel) lands. Watt was so enthusiastic that preser- Three, and this wasn’t their Forest Service. that let the off-road vehicle, the “ORV,” do vationist Republicans apologized to Demo- Between the wilderness trails and Wash- 10-30 miles per hour. cratic friends, assured them that Ronnie ington City the quality of spirit, of soul, Walking is the overwhelmingly domi- had been misled, soon would come to diminished geometrically. In the vicinity nant travel mode in wildlands, by orders of his senses. He never did, not even when of the Oval Office, the top guns of the magnitude. Yet a handful of ORVers, very the largest mass rally of preservationists Forest Service held secret meetings with loud, highly visible, reeking of hydrocar- in Northwest history gathered at Seattle’s the tank-thinkers and the wreckreationist bons, heavily financed by industry and Gasworks Park to protest the Watt inten- industry. The folks in the field were being assiduously fronted by lobbyists adroit in tion to issue leases for geothermal power sold down the river by their bosses in the cloakrooms and bars, have converted more in the Glacier Peak Wilderness. When Watt offices. miles to motorcycle roads than walkers was (belatedly) fired, it was not over policy And how about this? The Northwest have saved for trails. On federal lands but for publicly laughing at disadvantaged Forest Pass was gleefully endorsed by of Washington state, only 45 percent of citizens. In 2002, Wattism waxes in the the snowmobilers who compel rang- trails are machine-free by virtue of being White House. ers to wear gas masks, by the four-wheel in national parks and wildernesses; of the The initial step in the Plan was slyly mudrunners of marshes and meadows and other 55 percent, half are wide open to taken by a rider to a completely irrelevant steppe, by the “vroom vroom” of motor- motorcycles. bill; few members of Congress so much cycles, by the log-hopping bombers of the The dirt bike, the ”revenge for Hiro- as noticed. On the surface it seemed in- “single-track.” Paying a fee would give shima,” was welcomed on trails as a right- nocent, a temporary experiment to test them a contractual guarantee, legitimize ful and respectable multiple-abuse. Then the willingness of Americans to pay fees their illegitimate abuse. “We pay to play. came the “mountain” bike, exploiting the

18  The Wild Cascades • Summer/Fall 2002 WE SEE BY THE PAPERS meretricious appellation to cash in on the State’s Gravel Miners that he personally has used that trail for TV fad for the “extreme” and employing In the February 25, 2002, Seattle more than 20 consecutive years has filed Orwellian “newspeak” to transform trails Post-Intelligencer, Gordy Holt wrote a an adverse possession claim, clouding the to “single-track.” comprehensive piece under the subhead, property title. His logical next step could The walker, though, if quieter and “Residents are digging in, resisting at- be to attempt to use the trail. Were the landowner to force him to leave, a civil slower, is smarter. The volunteer trail tempts by state’s gravel miners to increase action based on adverse possession could crews that in the past decade have become output as population rises.” be filed. as busy as deer flies on an August after- The Wild Cascades has reported NCCC efforts, led by our director, Bruce Other long-established access points noon do noble work, keeping the slide Barnbaum, in the Granite Falls affair, to public lands in Kittitas County might alder from whipping our cheeks and the where Rinker Materials of Florida “sur- be blocked due to the sale of 10,000 acres devils club from slashing our throats. They vived an 8-year permit battle to open a of Plum Creek land (from that Northern are also ingeniously political. A picture is 400-acre site.” The city council of Granite Pacific Land Grab, of course) to Sapphire worth a thousand words. Photos in the Falls (in company of Sultan and Index Skies for carving into private homesites. papers and on television of tiny children councils) has publicly raised the question Has such an action ever been filed and gimpy elders whacking the weeds whether any towns stay alive with gravel hereabouts? Not to our knowledge. reach out to the hearts of the public and trucks rumbling through the business However, the Northern Pacific Land Grant the campaigns of elected officials. districts, by the schools, the homes. The and other “privatized” theft booty has Snohomish County Council seems to be A person able to walk the wildlands had hundreds (or thousands?) of miles of more responsive to Rinker of Florida and trails blocked off — trails that date from more than a little bit ought to do some the Japanese mining companies than to prospector or other public use in the 19th of that walking with lopper or shovel or county residents. century and continuously used to the pulaski in hand. Virtually all preserva- Holt tells how the town of Sultan present — or until they were clearcut. tion groups sponsor volunteer trail crews. faces the prospect of 800 trucks a day go- This case will be watched. Another good The nagging of Congress is and must be ing through town on Highway 2, already day for the lawyers. continued; the equipment and skills of the bumper-to-bumper with traffic to and rangers are indispensable for heavy work from Stevens Pass. The state Department Fascists in Montana at a distance from trailheads. The militias, of Natural Resources didn’t have the Montana, the home of the Unabomb- though, can serve excellently well in the courtesy of informing the town about the er and the Freemen and Project 7 (the lat- several miles from the road. This “edge” mine proposed just north of town; only est militia group to have an armed stand- wilderness is precisely the best for “green- an email from the Tulalip Tribes brought off with the police) has “declared war on attention to the planned leasing of the bonding” the newcomers we must recruit ‘green fascists!’” A radio talker in Kalispell property. named John Stokes goes on about it for 3 as wilderness defenders. Glacier Northwest (Japanese) plans hours each morning — the most popular A caveat. We revere the trail for what to increase its Maury Island output radio program in the county. He wants it does, not for what it is. We honor the from 10,000 tons a year to more than environmentalists to be “rounded up and volunteer weed-whackers, but not to the 7,500,000. put in an internment camp.” One of his point of wishing to “promote” them to The image of the Mountains-to- avid listeners was arrested in April with professionals; trail work can be a form Sound Greenway Foundation was two trailers packed with guns, 30,000 of privatization, as it most surely is when tarnished when Weyerhaeuser leased the rounds of ammunition, and a target list of undertaken by those who do it to facilitate terminal moraine on the eastern outskirts public officials who have spoken in sup- their wreckreation. of North Bend to Cadman (German), port of environmentalist causes. involving 900 trucks a day, and the only No new trail should be built, for any comment by the Foundation was, “Well, purpose, anywhere, or any deteriorat- it’s private property.” “Say it Ain’t So, Joe!” ing trail be rehabilitated, without a prior On the Olympic Peninsula, at Mats On May 13 a member of Recreational assessment of the impact on life systems. Mats Bay, Glacier Northwest is seeking to Equipment Inc. wrote the firm expressing Elements of the pedestrian militia now are deepen its quarry to a point 60 feet below amazement and disgust that his beloved deconstructing, “putting to bed,” trails that sealevel and to work around the clock. ol’ co-op was running radio ads about are judged to do more ecological harm “flying down a hill” on mountain bikes. than re-creational good. Adverse Possession? Mike Vandeman, a leader in the Califor- The wild things need their space. So A property owner in Kittitas Country nia opposition to heels on wheels, sent does John the Baptist when he says hang has blocked off public access to the Big out an email on “REI Enriching Itself at the slide alder and devils club and strides Creek Trail, on the Top Ten Threatened the Expense of Wildlife — the Mountain into the brush to be alone with God. Trails List of the Washington Trails Asso- Bike.” Member No. 1102 wrote the boss ciation. A Cle Elum hiker who has proof to say, “I am shocked. Simply shocked.”

The Wild Cascades • Summer/Fall 2002  19 WEST SIDE FIRE Rick McGuire

Every year brings more atten- With the exception of the coastal regime to which it has adapted over the tion to fire in the forests of the western Northwest, this fuel buildup affects just millennia. Some forests, notably those United States. As everyone now knows, about every forest of the western United of ponderosa pine, are designed to burn many decades of fire suppression have led States. About the only place one can now frequently, and some forests, like ours on to unnaturally heavy fuel loads, since the see natural looking pine forests is the San the west side, burn infrequently. In the low intensity fires which once cleaned up Pedro Martir mountains of northern Baja very wettest areas such as coastal Alaska, the brush no longer burn. When fires do California, Mexico. There, ground fires forests virtually never burn. Most of our start, they tend to be much more destruc- have been allowed to burn and the open, “west side” Cascade forests saw fire only tive than was the case before the fuel parklike forests stand in sharp contrast to every few hundred years — infrequent, but buildup. It’s a big problem, about which those in the western United States. Here often very large fires. very little is likely to be done. Logging in the coastal Northwest, fires have also Americans of European descent have the smaller “problem trees” which have been extinguished with the same diligence long romanticized about the “virgin” state grown up thickly will never pay, and most which has led to this tinderbox situation of nature which supposedly characterized Forest Service timber sales, even ones in most other areas. Have we escaped the North America when white people first which purport to reduce fire danger, end unnaturally flammable state which imperils arrived. The reality was often far different. up taking out the big, merchantable trees most of the West? Indians used fire extensively, and a good and leaving the smaller ones, worsening Probably yes, at least for the time be- argument can be made that the North the problem. ing. Every kind of forest has its own fire America which whites first found was in fact, east and west, the result of their burn- ing practices over many centuries. The Willamette Valley was largely grassland and reverted to forest only after the Indians stopped burning. Many areas in the Puget Sound lowlands were likely kept open by natives, such as the Tacoma prairies and various other places which had few trees until the whites put an end to the Indians’ fires. There is little evidence, though, that Indians set many fires in the wetter forests which characterize the west side of the central and northern Washington Cas- cades. Annual rainfall amounts ranging from 50 to over 150 inches per year make these west-side forests fairly fireproof. Even during dry summers, the rising of warm air frequently draws in “marine layer” clouds from the ocean during peri- ods of high-pressure weather. Although seldom producing much rainfall, this cools and humidifies. These “good weather” clouds sometimes reach inland only as far as the Cascade foothills, but often go as far east as the Cascade crest or beyond. Generally, anywhere mountain or west- ern hemlock grows is an area which sees marine cloudiness. The fog drip resulting Evergreen Mountain fire, caused by logging,1967, Skykomish from these clouds encountering billions of tree needles contributes significant Ranger District — Photo by Harry Romberg

20  The Wild Cascades • Summer/Fall 2002 moisture, and greatly lessens the chances Henderson’s research has document- of fire. ed three great fire episodes which burned WE SEE BY In addition, thunderstorms are infre- extensively across much of the Mt. Baker quent west of the Cascade crest. Those Snoqualmie. These have been dated to THE PAPERS which do occur are usually accompanied 1308, 1508 and 1701. Each of these fires burned large acreages; however, many by copious rainfall. Dry lightning is almost ALICE’S RESTAURANT unknown here. Although it is possible areas within the limits of these fires, such as rocky slopes, stream bottoms and wet A popular ballad of a recent decade for a forest fire to start from the lensing of had the refrain, “You can get anything you sunlight through a dewdrop, such events north slopes, did not burn. Only a few, want at Alice’s restaurant.” Mountaineers are extremely rare. Without lightning, limited areas appear to have escaped all of Books is enlarging its menu in emula- there isn’t much way (other than humans,) these conflagrations. Often it’s possible to tion. A new offering is 50 TRAIL RUNS IN WASHINGTON, by Cheri Pompeo Gillis. for fires to start on the west side. surmise which of these burns gave rise to a particular forest. For instance, the Boulder Of the “runs,” 7 are in the Issaquah Alps. Nevertheless, the forests of the west Examples are No. 44, “Cougar Mountain River Valley forest is almost exclusively Cascades aren’t as wet as those in south- — 14 miles (3.75 hours), and No. 46, hemlock, cedar and silver fir — it hasn’t east Alaska, and the presence of Douglas “Tradition Lake Plateau — 6 miles,” and seen a fire since the 1308 burn. Much of No. 47, “Twelve Summits (Tiger Mountain) fir says that fires do burn here, though the Skykomish Ranger District burned in — 34 miles, 10,000 feet gain, 11 hours.” some areas may go many centuries without 1701, and Douglas fir is much more preva- When the fate of Tiger Mountain State it. When fires do come, though, they can lent there. Forest was being planned by the state De- burn very large areas. Jan Henderson, partment of Natural Resources, a presen- ecologist with the Mt. Baker-Snoqualmie There have been no great fires on the tation was made by Harvey Manning on National Forest, has done pioneering work Mt. Baker-Snoqualmie since 1701. Most of behalf of the Pacific Northwest Elephant Stampeders Association. A manuscript in researching the fire history of the west- the fires which have happened since then surely should now be considered by have been relatively small, and human- side forests. Since trees can live many Mountaineers Books, extolling Bush-style centuries here, it is possible to partially caused. So, are we likely to ever again family togetherness in the howdahs. reconstruct fire history going very far back, see the kind of large, stand replacing fires Other suggested books are “Favorite and to also look at the role of natural cli- which burned in centuries past? No one Mud Runs,” featuring such classics as the mate change in shaping these forests. can know, but it’s certainly still possible. ridge route from Wilkeson past Fairfax Although generally not long lasting, hot, up Gleason Ridge, Reiter Razzerland on Only 10,000 or so years have elapsed dry east winds can send humidity and Highway 2. As “extreme” sports prolifer- since the ice left the Puget Sound region, ate, the market will grow for the off-trail moisture levels plummeting. These occur but that’s been long enough for numerous skateboard, the jet-powered pogo stick, when high pressure east of the Cascades climate fluctuations and long enough for and “Good Places to Jump Off From with causes “outflow” or “squamish” winds, Wings Attached.” the Cascade forests to have changed their which blow on the west side of mountain appearance many times. It’s believed that passes in places such as Enumclaw, North Give America Back to: during a warm period called the “hypsith- Bend and Gold Bar. It is thought that the (1) The Indians, (2) The Pilgrims, ermal” about 5000 years ago there were 1701 burning episode was driven largely (3) Texas — (Choose one) few or no glaciers in the Cascades, and by these dry east winds. If a sustained Among the implements for proposed the Puget Sound lowlands were a savan- period of east winds followed an extended privatizing of government functions is the nah-like mix of grassland and Douglas fir, “charter forest.” The free-market com- period of unusually low rainfall, we could perhaps like that found in the drier parts munity is drawing up the legislation for see again the same kind of conditions of the San Juan Islands today. Hender- President Bush. which led to the 1701 fires. What the west son’s studies have looked back as far as the A notion of the direction this idea side does not have, though, is an unnatu- “medieval optimum,” the period before could take is the Valles Caldera (Baca ral fuel buildup like the east side. Down Ranch) in New Mexico, acquired from about 1300 a.d. when the climate was wood rots quickly on the west side, and private owners in order to test new ideas warmer and drier than today. He believes for public lands management. A number there has never been the cycle of (now- that fires were then more frequent on the of environmental organizations embraced absent) frequent ground fires of the east westside than today. There is evidence the idea. side, where down wood rots slowly. So for this in the existence of some very old In April the executive director of the the likelihood of extreme fires has not Douglas fir trees growing at high eleva- preserve, Gary Ziehe, announced plans to increased on the west side as it has on the begin public hiking tours on the preserve, tions where they cannot now reproduce. east side. But anything’s possible, and we led by private operators (for a fee). He This period was followed by the “little ice now have the new wild card of human- added that the preserve intends to solicit age” until about 1700 a.d. which saw much business proposals from tour companies. caused climate change in the equation. It cooler conditions. Since then the climate In our Cascades, the portion of the could be decades or centuries away, but has been gradually warming again, now Northern Pacific Land Grant that was someday the conditions which led to the hastened by human-produced greenhouse bought back from Weyerhaeuser (at a bit 1701 fires will occur again. more than the $6 an acre paid by Weyco in gases. 1900) and christened the Evergreen For- est, is a new idea worth watching.

The Wild Cascades • Summer/Fall 2002  21 MODERN TIMES (Apologies to Charlie Chaplin and his movie of that title) H.M.

My typewriter of course cannot foreigner a manageable agenda. National Park Service Editorial address the matter of guidebooks with- The North Cascades National Park has Comments and “No Trace” out, first off, a mea culpa. — Or better, a marvelous thing going on the Internet. Information Tom Miller’s culpa. He was the one who For a sample covering the “2000 Season” So what makes a “classic” or “select” imported from Germany, via England, check out “Climbing Notes,” http:///www. climb, anyway? Elements such as techni- the concept of 100 Hikes, subsequently nps.gov/noca/climbing-2000.htm (Then go cal enjoyment, scenery, exposure, rock enlarged to gigantic dimensions by the in- to all the other years, starting in 1995). dustrious Ira Spring. I have served in that quality, geographical significance, and level “There were 22 incidents that gener- enterprise as a very junior partner. Tom of commitment all contribute to a climb’s ated response from search and rescue also is responsible for the series that has overall aesthetic feeling — regardless of teams in 1999.” Five of the incidents are actual difficulty or grade. been judged by an international panel of summarized. . . . Following are thumb- experts to be the most magnificent climb- Guidebooks and magazines usually nails of the NPS summaries: ing guide in the history of the world, Fred provide excellent route descriptions and overviews. Novice climbers and those new Beckey’s Cascade Alpine Guide. When June 19, Sahale. A climber pulled off to the area are especially covetous of this Tom and I and our Literary Fund Commit- a loose rock that hit him in the head. information. It is unfortunately inevitable, tee were, as founding unpaid amateurs, He fell 25 feet, dislocated a shoulder, however, that these “classic” climbs are running Mountaineers Books, he was the fractured an orbit, knocked out some usually the mot popular routes in the Park. one who instigated and designed Fred’s teeth, and contused his body. Bivouac. Backcountry camping permits are in high masterwork. Not that Fred took a lot of Signal flares. Another party reported demand for these areas, and the routes instigating. In 1949 the American Alpine to rangers by cell phone. Helicopter and bivy sites are often heavily impacted Club (not ) published evacuation. by years of high use that notoriety brings. the first edition (“the little green book”) July 19, Shuksan, Shannon Ridge. Two Some climbers complain that when a route of “Beckey’s Bible,” as we soon were climbers descending from Sulphide attains “classic” status, its wilderness qual- calling his guide to the Cascades and Glacier got lost. Exhausted. Built a ity is inevitably compromised. Olympics. To ambitious, ignorant nov- The North Cascades are home to a ices the book was a comet flashing across signal fire. Searchers led them out, uninjured. seemingly endless number of spectacu- the sky, illuminating a world of wonders lar climbs and high alpine traverses. As unknown to the likes of us. The next year July 29, Blum. Two climbers on a more people visit this area in search of a I was assigned by the Climbing Committee 4-day trip reported overdue by family. classic climbing experience, it is critical to draft a schedule of Experience Climbs Search began on Day 6, aerial and that climbers exemplify and practice Leave for the Climbing Course. Among them ground. Found in a gully at 2300 No Trace backcountry ethics in order to was what proved to be the third ascent of feet, disoriented, dehydrated, unable preserve a classic wilderness experience Snowfield (the first two had been in the to travel. Fluids and food lowered. for all. early 1930s). We also doubled the number Ground crew guided/carried them out of climbers ever to set boot in Luna Cirque on Day 7. Blue Bag Info (our party numbered nine members; all In addition to an increasing number August 3, Nooksack Tower. Climber our predecessors were either Ptarmigans of backcountry composting toilets, the twisted knee at base of tower in rough or Beckey Brothers). That’s the sort of blue bag program is expanding. Blue bags but non-technical terrain (brush). thing that guidebooks do in the hands of for packing out waste are available where Cell phone. Helicopter. the ignorant. permits are obtained. Beginning in 2000, The problem with Fred’s three-vol- September 19, Shuksan. Climber slid deposit barrels will be available for collect- ume work of 1963-1981 is, simply, it is too down Winnie’s Slide and broke ankle. ing the used bags, with the waste trans- much. He offers more riches than any but Helicopter. (When Winnie slid she ported for incineration in Oregon. Check a Beckey-scale peakbagger can manage in a had to walk out; “The past is a foreign for deposit barrel locations upon obtaining number of lifetimes. Inevitably, therefore, country. They do things differently a camping permit. came the cream-skimmers, the Readers- there.”) Sulphide Glacier Camps Digest-like excerpters. Teck/Roper ran the Johannesburg. “The summer of 1999 entirety of North America through their saw an unusually high number of There is increasing concern about sifter for their book about North America climbs and searches on J-burg. Of pollution from human waste at climbing “classics” and came up with two in the those who signed the trailhead register camps that are primarily snow camping North Cascades. These and the rest of the before starting out, indicating an the entire season. In response to this, a fifty they chose became an international expected return time, a full 50% were second composting toilet was added at the honeypot drawing the bees and flies as overdue by a day or more, triggering a common area for camping on the lower the Mountaineers Six Peaks Pin long has search. In each case, climbing parties Sulphide Glacier. It is recommended that done locally. Nelson/Potterfield then did were neither lost nor injured — they climbers ask the location of one of the a single-volume abridgement of Beckey, a were just late”. toilets upon obtaining a camping permit, “selection” that provides the novice and/or and make an effort to camp nearby.

22  The Wild Cascades • Summer/Fall 2002 DESPATCHES FROM THE PRIVATIZING FRONT . . .

 We cannot forget that the national Parks Campaign, British Columbia: and Wildlife Service struck a deal with a parks, forests, grasslands, seashores are “Our new provincial government is private contractor. But the company and not “federal land.” They are our land, moving full-steam ahead to allow priva- the agency found themselves in a pitched your and mine. If we lose them, we tization and commercialism in our park battle. The Service found itself unable will never get them back. We must also system, which we re fighting tooth and to have both a resort and a refuge. The remember that government is not bureau- nail. Unfortunately, this government has contractor, who had sunk $1,000,000 in a crats. Government is us, and that simple something like 97 percent of the seats in French restaurant overlooking the beaches, notion is the foundation of democracy. our legislature!” wanted to reopen beaches that had been Let’s refuse to base our policy decisions (A “Declaration on the Principles of closed to protect seal-pupping, to allow on economics alone. Fifty years ago, Aldo Parks” has been signed by half a hundred activities that ranged from kayaking to Leopold gave us a better standard: “Quit organizations in British Columbia and shark-feeding, and to cut down trees that thinking about decent land use as solely an supporters in the United States, including blocked views from the restaurant.” economic problem. A thing is right when the North Cascades Conservation Council.  The Department of the Interior, whose it tends to preserve the integrity, stability, See page 6 for the full text of the Declara- Bush-appointed head is a spiritual clone of and beauty of the biotic community. It is tion. James Watt, has commenced a “Recreation wrong when it tends to do otherwise.”  From the Christian Science Monitor, Onestop” program to facilitate “creative — Carol Estes, freelance writer in June 26, 2002: partnerships.” A law passed by Congress Minnesota and signed by the President, titled “Take PUBLIC-PRIVATE TOURISM Pride in America,” would be a means to  The Political Economy Research FAILS commodify, commercialize, and privatize Center (PERC), a conservative think tank “On Midway Atoll a public-private devoted to property rights, has held more public lands, just as has been aggressively co-tourism venture failed due to a clash proposed since the Dawn of Wattism than 100 conferences in the past 5 years. of values. Strapped for cash, the US Fish Airfare, food, and lodging have been paid under President Reagan. for journalists, academics, and congres- sional staffers. Membership Application Carol Estes attended one in 1996 and Be part of the North Cascades Conservation Council’s Advocacy of the North Cascades. Join the reported: “It is an October morning at the NCCC. Support the North Cascades Foundation. Help us help protect North Cascades wilder- Mountain Sky Guest Ranch near Boze- ness from overuse and development. NCCC membership dues (one year): $10 low income/student; $20 regular; $25 family; $50 Con- man, Montana. The cold air smells of tributing; $100 patron; $1,000 sustaining. A one-time life membership dues payment is $500. The pine, and steam rises from a hot tub with Wild Cascades, published three times a year, is included with NCCC membership. a view of snow-covered peaks across the Please check the appropriate box(es): valley. This is an exclusive place, $2,000 i wish membership in NCCC a week per person, where I cannot afford The North Cascades Conservation Council (NCCC), formed in 1957, works through legislative, legal and public channels to protect the lands, waters, plants and wildlife of the to vacation. I am not paying for this trip. North Cascades ecosystem. Non-tax-deductible, it is supported by dues and donations. A This one is on PERC.“ 501(c)4 organization.  From Alaska Department of Natural i wish to support NCF Resources: The North Cascades Foundation (NCF) supports the NCCC’s non-political legal and educational efforts. Donations are tax-deductible as a 501(c)3 organization. “Chena Recreation Site, of all the This is a NCCC Membership NCCC Renewal Membership Gift NCCC $______parks were forced to close, is the one This is a Donation to NCF NCF $______that best lends itself to private operation because it generates enough user fees to Total $ Please cut, enclose Name______make it a profitable business.” (If there is check and mail form and check to: money to be made from a park in Alaska, Address______North management is being transferred to the Cascades City______State______Zip______private sector. Parks considered “margin- Conservation Council al” are currently maintained by volunteers Membership Chair Phone ______— a twilight zone from which they may L. Zalesky 2433 Del Campo ultimately be rescued by entrepreneurs.) Dr.  From Valhalla Wilderness Society Everett, WA 98208

The Wild Cascades • Summer/Fall 2002  23 DESPATCHES FROM THE FEE-DEMO FRONT

 Rep. Jim Hansen, architect of the mixers and construction workers.” Balzar, camel’s nose under the tent, full privatiza- nation’s 5-year experiment with the “pay-to- unlike the trusting dupes among our sheep tion to follow.) Among the 28 funders of play” idea, has backed off on plans to make friends, plainly sees the camel’s nose. He the lunch, we note Gates Foundation and the program permanent, and to expand it foretells “ . . . . Mercury vapor lights leading the Invisible Hand Foundation. Hmmm- to all public lands before he leaves office at to a hot-water shower and a laundromat mmm. . . Recreation user fees are opposed the end of the year. and strip-mall. Sign in and deposit money by 240 organizations, none of which were here.” invited. This is wonderful news. Clearly, the growing opposition to fee-demo has  From the Missoula Independent, July  On June 27, the USFS announced it pushed permanent fee-demo authorization 12, 2002 (summarized): Fee-Demo has was dipping into the Fee-Demo money pot off its fast track. This news means that the become a tax. Even the USFS is calling it a to fight fires; last year the “borrow” was fee-demo is hurting and that ARC is losing tax . . . When the public rejected the user- $12,000,000. Borrow? The USFS does not its sway over Congress. It means that ARC fee concept, it quietly mutated into a tax always repay. The accounting firm it em- and the other proponents of recreation — a tax levied by a federal agency without ploys is PriceWaterhouseCooper, which just user fees have been forced back to the the legal authority to do so. Fee-Demo has happens to be a member of the American drawing board where they are no doubt, become a political issue that may determine Recreation Coalition. developing new strategies for advancing who is elected and who is defeated in 2002.  Note that smack in the middle of the their agenda. We must expect many more  Senator Larry Craig (Republican, Idaho) American Recreation Coalition’s “Great battles to be fought before this program is has been a staunch supporter of Fee-Demo. Outdoors Week,” President Bush an- permanently put to bed! In a July 12 op-ed piece in the Twin Falls nounced his “Healthier US Initiative” and  On June 2, 2002 The Oregonian, the Time-News he wrote, “The grades are in, declared June 22-23 a “free weekend” to giant-type headline atop page 1 of the and the recreation fee demonstration proj- enter national parks. Whoopee! (By the “commentary” section is “PAYING TO ect has flunked in Idaho. . .” way, “healthier” has been adopted by the PLAY”. A “YES” says $30 is a small price to ARC as its new theme. Coincidence? A lot  Terry L. Anderson, Executive Director pay. A “NO NO NO” cries out “The woods of coincidences happen around the White of The Center for Free Market Environmen- and mountains are a public heritage, not to House these days.) talism has been flying around since the buy and sell.” Reagan crowd began buzzing out of the  As in Alaska and British Columbia, state John Balzar, in a column reprinted dung heap and now sits at the right hand parks in Washington are moving away from from the Los Angeles Times, says: “Fee (far right) of Bush II. On July 8 Anderson “welfare” recreation. The weekend after boxes are going in. Rangers and their side- hosted a luncheon briefing “Fee Recreation day-use fees went into effect ($5 for park- kicks, those once-kindly volunteer campsite v. Welfare Recreation.” (“Welfare” is what ing), attendance at Washington state parks hosts, have been given a new missions. we get, or used to, when we went hiking in in the Columbia Gorge dropped 30-40 per Make way for the bulldozers and cement a national forest. As for “Fee,” that is the cent.

The Wild Cascades U.S. POSTAGE Journal of the North Cascades Conservation Council PAID Post Office Box 95980 SEATTLE, WA University Station Non-Profit Organization Seattle, Washington 98145-2980 PERMIT No. 8602

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24  The Wild Cascades • Summer/Fall 2002