Essays
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The good and bad of peak-bagging
Steven Albert – like John Muir before him – loves the thrill of climbing fourteeners, even if it’s sometimes a guilty pleasure.
by Steven Albert, Sep 03, 2007 -
The brief but wonderful return of Cathedral in the Desert
Utah’s drought gives proof that Glen Canyon’s Cathedral in the Desert is still in liquid storage underneath Lake Powell
by Jim Stiles, Jun 13, 2005 -
I say: Good riddance to bad billboards
Wyoming’s billboards are ugly, and probably outdated, too
by Bill Croke, Jun 13, 2005 -
“W” in 2004: Taking stock of wilderness at 40
As we celebrate the 40th anniversary of the Wilderness Act, it’s time we got back to a realistic attitude about proposed wilderness, saving actual places, no matter how small they are, instead of holding out for mega-proposals
by Matt Jenkins, Aug 30, 2004 -
The Land of the Dry
A Westerner makes the disconcerting discovery that as we age, the high, dry West we love isn't so good for our moisture-loving bodies, and the only cure is a trip to the beach.
by Ted Kerasote, Feb 19, 2007 -
Winter Prayer
Snowshoeing alone at night in the forest, a woman thinks – and prays – about the friends she loves, and the families they worry about.
by Kathleen Dean Moore, Feb 05, 2007 -
The great wilderness compromise
Both sides of the contentious debate over a proposed Idaho wilderness bill invoke Howard Zahniser, father of the Wilderness Act -- and both sides have a point.
by Jon Christensen, Jan 22, 2007 -
I fell into a burning ring of fire
There’s nothing like a campfire to soothe and lift the soul
by Laura Paskus, Dec 25, 2006 -
Shear Pleasure
A photo essay follows Matt Smith and the other New Zealanders who make up the company Shear Pleasure as they travel Montana, visiting sheep ranches, shearing sheep, and drinking hard at the end of the day
by Jeremy Lurgio, Dec 25, 2006 -
Dina's Place
An 8-year-old named Dina leads the author down to her own "special place" by the Big Sioux River on the Indian reservation that is home to the troubled child
by Madeline Ostrander, Dec 11, 2006 -
Farewell, whoopers, Western skies aren't big enough for you
The last whooping crane west of the Mississippi is dead, and the skies of the West are poorer for the loss
by Janis Marston, Nov 25, 2002 -
From the backcountry to the building zoo
Robin Pam and Erin Beller remember an adventurous summer spent documenting the historic structures of Yosemite National Park.
by Robin Pam and Erin Beller, Mar 17, 2008
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