Wilderness News

DENVER (AP) - U.S. Rep. Jared Polis has released a draft proposal that would designate nearly 90,000 acres in western Colorado as new federal wilderness areas and another 80,000 acres as special management areas or additions.

The Colorado Democrat says he hopes to introduce a bill in the fall to preserve the areas in Eagle and Summit counties that people agree should be wilderness. Polis says he will keep trying to build consensus on other proposed wilderness areas supported by groups behind the Hidden Gems Wilderness plan.

TWIN FALLS, Idaho (AP) -- U.S. Rep. Mike Simpson says he hasn't given up hope on his plan to create a new central Idaho wilderness.

The six-term Republican told the Twin Falls Times-News this week that despite opposition, "strange things happen in legislative sessions."

Last month, his bill to create the 330,000-acre wilderness in the Boulder Mountains and White Clouds Peaks got a congressional hearing.

New Mexico has joined a dozen other states in promoting roadless areas in national forests that are protected by a controversial national 2001 Roadless Area Conservation Rule.

The rule, which protects 58 million acres around the country, was overturned by former President George Bush in 2005. Legislation has been proposed in Congress to make the rule law.

DENVER, CO (KUNC) - Conservationists are praising Colorado Congressman Jared Polis's decision to move ahead with plans to introduce a wilderness bill as soon as this fall.

HELENA, Mont. - A new push for protection on the Rocky Mountain Front comes in the form of a letter to the state's congressional delegation. It is signed by 15 retired wildlife experts and land managers in Montana, including three former directors of Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks (FWP).

Retired FWP Front area supervisor Mike Aderhold added his name to the letter. The Rocky Mountain Front Heritage Act was unveiled last fall, and Aderhold says he and his co-signers are hoping a member of the Montana delegation will step up and sponsor it.

Colorado wilderness advocates achieved a critical milestone this week as Rep. Jared Polis (D-Colo.) agreed to introduce a wilderness bill that would protect nearly 170,000 acres of Rocky Mountain forest in Eagle and Summit counties, a core area of the state's "Hidden Gems" wilderness proposal.

Ask many Central Coast residents about Pinnacles and they would probably answer, "Is that a new restaurant?"

That's because the unique sights, sounds and geologic formations at Pinnacles are not as easily accessible, or as readily recognized, as, say, Yosemite's.

Which might explain why Pinnacles National Monument isn't a huge draw for visitors, who might not realize it's home to the endangered California condor, the largest soaring bird in North America.

To the Editor:

I have been interested in reading your articles and letters regarding the possibility of the Gold Butte area becoming an NCA.

It seems the bone of contention between the side favoring this action and the side disputing it is access. And not just access but motorized access.

During a recent six-hour run traversing the Gallatin Crest, I reflected on the resurgent debate about how this pristine high-alpine environment should be managed. The Hyalite-Porcupine-Buffalo Horn Wilderness Study Area (WSA), commonly referred to as the Gallatin Crest, is a unique wilderness corridor extending north of Yellowstone Park. Bordered to the east and west by Paradise Valley and Gallatin Canyon, the Crest provides vital habitat and passage to grizzly and black bears, wolves, lynx, elk, deer and moose.

Dear Editor:

Avid hikers are invited to test their mettle by joining the Hidden Gems Wilderness Campaign on Sunday, Aug. 15, as they ascend the 13,500-foot Treasure Mountain above Marble.

The Treasure Mountain massif, near the headwaters of the Crystal River, is one of the lushest areas in the state. The rock spires of The Chimneys hide basins containing head-high fields of flowers and numerous waterfalls and waterslides.