On Monday, The Nature Conservancy announced that Carlos Fernandez, Colorado state director for The Nature Conservancy has been selected to join the state of Colorado’s Outdoor Recreation Advisory Group.
Developed by Colorado’s Office of Outdoor Recreation, the purpose of the advisory group is to focus on the various outdoor recreation stakeholders and constituencies throughout the state. The council will address a way to form a collective, consensus building coalition for the oversight of the outdoor recreation industry at the state level.
“The Nature Conservancy has a natural alliance with outdoor recreation interests,” said Fernandez. “Our mission to conserve the lands and waters on which all life depends goes hand in hand with an industry that depends on conservation and amazing outdoor experiences.”
Fernandez joins representatives from outdoor recreation companies, other non-profits, consultants and others who all have an interest in ensuring that the outdoor recreation industry has a voice on issues affecting them throughout Colorado.
“Carlos is a perfect partner for this group to represent both The Nature Conservancy, and the conservation community at large,” said Luis Benitez, director of Colorado’s Outdoor Recreation Industry office. “His passion for wild places and striving towards an inclusive dialogue will prove critical to the Councils forward momentum.”
Every day Google.com has a different graphic they call a ‘doodle.’ This year’s doodle for July 4 is shown here:
This doodle is inspired by Stephen Mather (also born July 4), a noted conservationist and the first director of the National Parks Service. Often hailed as “America’s Best Idea,” the NPS was created by President Woodrow Wilson in 1916. Over a century old, America’s national parks span 84 million acres and host more than 275 million visitors every year.
The Moriah, New York, Chamber of Commerce has announced a new hiking “Moriah Challenge!”
To complete the “Moriah Challenge,” hikers must complete all four local Champlain Area Trails hikes, which include Belfry Mountain, Big Hollow/Coot Hill, Cheney Mountain, and Crowfoot Pond Trails.
Until August 1, 2017, anyone who successfully completes the challenge and submits their information will receive a commemorative embroidered patch to celebrate their accomplishment. To claim a patch, hikers should provide the Moriah Chamber of Commerce with the dates the trails were hiked. Successful challenge participants should bring hike information to the Moriah Chamber of Commerce office at 4317 Main Street in Port Henry to claim their patch. Alternatively, information and address can be emailed to moriahchamber@gmail.com and a confirmation letter and patch will be mailed.
The Moriah Challenge is a family-friendly event designed for adults and children with limited hiking experience, and can be completed in a short amount of time.
Following are brief descriptions of the hikes that comprise the challenge:
Belfry Mountain Trail
The trail is an easy, quick hike that rewards hikers with views of the high peaks of the Adirondacks, the Green Mountains of Vermont, plus the Champlain Valley, then Belfry Mountain. The trail also features a fire tower. Belfry Mountain Trail is a short 0.35 mile hike along a gravel road with spectacular views.
Hikers can walk along an un-maintained portion of Lang Road or drive the rough road to an old cemetery. From the cemetery, the hike is about a quarter mile to an amazing overlook. This 0.5 mile round trip will rewards hikers with stunning views of Big Hollow and a panoramic vista of the Champlain Valley.
Cheney Mountain Trail
The trail is located on property owned by the Town of Moriah. Views from lookouts along side trails near the 1347 foot summit include the Green Mountains of Vermont to the east and some of the Adirondack High Peaks to the west. The total round trip of this hike is two miles.
The 6 mile trail is relatively flat with only a slight gain in elevation. This old forest road turned foot trail starts to climb through an evergreen forest as it passes over the low shoulder of Stiles Hill on the left. The trail reaches the pond and passes beyond it. The trail eventually ends at private property on the north Shore of Crowfoot Pond, marking the point for the return hike.
Learn all about it in our blog post at explore.globalcreations.com/theblog.
Last Friday, Apple introduced new ways its customers can enjoy and support America’s National Parks. From July 1 through 15, Apple is donating $1 to the National Park Foundation for every purchase made with Apple Pay at any Apple Store, on apple.com or through the Apple Store app in the U.S. Apple Pay is accepted at select locations in some of the most popular national parks, from Yellowstone and Yosemite to the Grand Canyon and Muir Woods National Monument.
Apple Watch users can earn a special badge on July 15 for completing one 3.5 mile workout on that day.
“America’s National Parks are an inspiration to us at Apple, and we know they are as important to many of our customers as they are to us,” said Apple’s CEO Tim Cook. “Our goal is to leave the world better than we found it, so this July we’re making it easier for anyone to help preserve the beauty of our natural, cultural and historical treasures.”
Proceeds will support the National Park Foundation’s mission to help protect and preserve national parks through conservation projects and other initiatives, as well as inspire the next generation of park enthusiasts with enriching youth programming.
On July 15, Apple Watch users around the world can complete a walk, run or wheelchair workout of 3.5 miles (5.6 km) to earn an award and stickers for Messages inspired by National Parks. The distance matches the length of a hike from Old Faithful to Mallard Lake in Yellowstone National Park.
The App Store will also highlight a collection of some of the best apps to help users easily navigate and explore the country’s most beautiful national parks. For more information on the National Park Foundation, visit nationalparks.org.
On Wednesday, the U.S. Forest Service explained how outdoor recreation contributes to the nation’s economy. Here’s the story:
When a family packs up their car for a trip out to their national forests and grasslands, they create more than just memories. They create jobs.
Nearly three-quarters of Americans live within 100 miles of a national forest or grassland. Every year national forests and grasslands receive nearly 150 million visits, most of which, about 85 percent, are for recreational purposes.
So how does this translate to jobs?
The simple answer is that the recreation economy is an enormous economic driver. In fact, Outdoor Industry Association found that in 2012 recreation contributes $1.6 trillion to the U.S. Gross Domestic Product. And, last year, consumers spent $887 billion on recreation, supporting 7.6 million American jobs.
“When someone heads out to recreate, they need supplies. They need guidance. They need accommodations,” says U.S. Forest Service Director of Recreation, Heritage and Volunteer Resources, Joe Meade. “These needs open the door for sports equipment retailers, hotels, outfitters, guides, even restaurants, gas stations, and even souvenir shops.”
In 2014, recreation on Forest Service lands contributed more than $10 billion to the U.S. economy. The Forest Service is able to do this not just because of the sheer number of recreation sites, but because of the diversity of landscapes and locales offered.
“The recreation capacity of the Forest Service is huge,” says Toby Bloom, National Program Manager for Travel, Tourism, and Interpretation at the Forest Service. “175 forests and grasslands across the country mean that there’s something for everyone from hiking among the redwoods of California, to skiing in the mountains of Colorado, even walking the rainforest of Puerto Rico.”
The U.S. Forest Service footprint is large and the agency’s managed lands are home to the largest managed trail system in the country—nearly 160,000 miles of them. There are also thousands of campgrounds, tens of thousands of recreation areas, millions of acres of lakes and wilderness, hundreds of thousands of miles of fishable streams, and more. The Forest Service happens to also host 60 percent of the downhill skiing capacity in the U.S. a substantial seasonal economic force in many places in the country.
Because not every aspiring recreationist is an outdoors expert, the national forests and grasslands support over 7,000 outfitters and guides. Most of these are small businesses that provide jobs and revenue to small towns in rural America. Many of them are family owned, with generations of the same family supporting themselves and their community through a deep cultural and economic connection to the land. Entire communities prosper across the country because of the steady, reliable, and enthusiastic influx of tourists and recreationists seeking out the thrill of white water rapids, or the reflective solitude of wilderness.
In fact, rural areas with a land base including public lands like national forests and grasslands benefit the most. Areas where that land base of public lands was 30 percent or more experienced 345 percent job growth over the last 40 years. Similar areas with no public lands had less than a quarter of that growth over the same period.
“This goes to show how valuable our national forests and grasslands are for the American people,” Meade says. “It’s not just timber, it’s not just environment, it’s not just recreation—it’s the whole package, and it’s an excellent investment for the American people.”
This week’s video offers a glimpse of Ivvavik National Park in Canada’s Yukon. Getting there is an adventure in itself. Parks Canada offers guided trips to and around the Imniarvik base camp. Five-day trips are $3,375 Canadian and include round trip airfare from Inuvik to the park, use of the basecamp (running water, showers, mattress etc), a tent to sleep in, food, an Inuvialuit host and more. Unfortunately all tours for this year are full, you’ll need to plan your trip for 2018 – there are still a few places available. Enjoy the video!
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