Tech is facilitating land access in new, and sometimes fraught, ways.
Recreation
Posted inArticles
The Trump administration’s repeal of the roadless rule could threaten wildlife
A 2001 policy restricts road construction on Forest Service land. What happens to at-risk species if it’s removed?
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Inside Colorado’s famous resort for Black Americans
Colorado was once a beacon for members of the Harlem Renaissance and Black families from all over the country.
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The national parks are not OK
A former national park supervisor explains how toilets may be clean this summer, but the parks themselves are actually ‘hollowed out.’
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Trump administration budget cuts wreak havoc on trail maintenance
As tourism season begins, trail crews are facing disruptions in key trail maintenance projects.
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Trump asks Congress to cut at the heart of the West
The White House wants to alter life for U.S. hunters, anglers, RVers, off-road-vehicle drivers, backpackers, birdwatchers and hikers.
Posted inMay 2025: The Art of the Cruise
Is sustainable tourism possible?
As Western mountain towns struggle with overtourism, Jackson Hole tries out a new plan to mitigate visitors’ impacts.
Posted inMay 2025: The Art of the Cruise
I wish I was ice fishing
On city life and a longing for the richness of the sun and the seasons.
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Hunting for dark nights and wishing on stars
A bike ride into the desert and an author in search of darkness.
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The horses and mules that moved mountains and hearts
Forest Service stock animals are indispensable to trail work on public lands in the West. Trump’s radical upheaval is accelerating the death of a dying art.
Posted inMay 2025: The Art of the Cruise
Losing more than a Forest Service job
Trail work, though underappreciated, made for a life well-lived in the woods.
Posted inMarch 2025: The Berry Pickers
The rise of the recreation economy
Public-lands tourism outpaces mining and drilling in much of the West.
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How DOGE threatens the Forest Service and public lands
Workers describe projects on wildfire prevention, environmental restoration and trail repair halted by Trump administration terminations.
Posted inMarch 2025: The Berry Pickers
The true cost of the huckleberry industry
The Ḱamíłpa Band of the Yakama Nation has wanted an end to commercial picking of a critical cultural resource for years. Finally, the Forest Service is expected to make a decision.
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Poll finds majority of Westerners support climate action and conservation
Colorado College’s annual survey included residents of 8 Western states, the majority of whom identified as politically conservative or moderate.
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The EXPLORE Act is a blueprint for bipartisan conservation legislation
Bipartisan support for the act highlights the outdoor industry’s growing political clout, but questions remain about its cultural and environmental impact.
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How the Park City ski patrol won concessions from Vail
As patrollers and management reach an agreement, other ski patrols are learning from Park City’s example.
Posted inJanuary 2025: The West's Most Wanted
Felonious furries, bunches of bats, a coyote commune and pumpkin paddlers
Mishaps and mayhem from around the region.
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How a dwindling helium supply is impacting public land management
A new BLM plan for western Colorado makes a priority of helium production, worrying environmentalists.
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The Forest Service is cutting its seasonal workforce and public lands will suffer
Temporary employees warn that important work will go undone all over the country.