Angel Tarragon
Dawn Dragon
In the outdoors world, I think of the national park system as the living room. It’s where we show off our best to family, friends and foreigners when they come to visit.
Our national forests, however, would be the family room. It’s where we go when we want to play, get a little rambunctious or just enjoy each other’s company.
This comes to mind as Friday marks the creation of the U.S. Forest Service 100 years ago.
Here in the South Sound, we have easy access to four national forests.
The Gifford Pinchot National Forest, named after the service’s first chief, is home to Mount St. Helens and Mount Adams as it stretches south from Mount Rainier nearly all the way to the Columbia River.
The Mount Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest stretches north from Mount Rainier all the way to the Canadian border, including its namesake mountain.
The Olympic National Forest nearly surrounds the national park of the same name.
On the east side of Mount Rainier, the Wenatchee National Forest includes much of the east side of the Cascades.
The east side of the state also is home to the Okanogan and Colville national forests, as well as portions of the Umatilla National Forest.
In all, Washington is home to more than 9.2 million acres of national forest, including almost 2.6 million acres of wilderness.
Across the nation, the service oversees national forests and grasslands that offer 192 million acres on which we can hike, fish, kayak, camp, sightsee, mountain bike, watch wildlife, hunt, ride ATVs, ski, snowboard, mountain climb, boat, etc.
But we can break that down even more. Consider that the forests and grasslands offer:
• 9,126 miles of scenic byways to drive. That’s about the same as driving from Tacoma to New York and back and back to New York again.
• 133,087 miles of trails to hike. That’s almost five and a half times around the Earth.
• 4,418 miles of wild and scenic rivers to float. That’s a few hundred miles longer than the entire length of the Amazon River.
• 4,300 campgrounds with 122,000 camp sites in which to pitch our tents or park a recreational vehicle. It would take more than 111/2 years to stay in every campground if you spent one night in each one.
While national parks such as Yellowstone, Mount Rainier and Yosemite might be higher profile destination, the national forests remain a popular option. Forest Service officials estimate that 205 million people use the nation’s 155 national forests and 22 grasslands each year.
The stress those visitors place on facilities, combined with budget cuts, has the service in a bind. It is being forced to stop maintenance on trailheads and shut down campgrounds.
A sign of the desperate financial times the service faces can be seen in the lack of local events to commemorate the 100th anniversary. Staffers at local forests have too many other issues to deal with to plan too many celebration events.
Our national forests also are the focal point for some contentious user conflicts. Hikers want to keep off-road vehicles off trails. Ecosystem supporters balk at timber sales. The objectives of wildlife watchers and hunters can be seen as polar opposites.
In developing the mission of the Forest Service, Pinchot said he wanted it “to provide the greatest amount of good for the greatest amount of people in the long run.”
Meeting that mission statement has changed as White House administrations have come and gone, as well as Forest Service chiefs.
There are tough times ahead for sure as the Forest Service enters its second century. But one thing we can be sure of is that our national forests are still a great place to get out and play. Within a matter of a couple hours’ drive from the South Sound, we have access to some of the most beautiful places and best outdoor destinations in Washington.
So as the Forest Service celebrates its centennial, let’s not forget what a wonderful resource we have so close to our doorsteps and do our part to protect those resources.
Our national forests, however, would be the family room. It’s where we go when we want to play, get a little rambunctious or just enjoy each other’s company.
This comes to mind as Friday marks the creation of the U.S. Forest Service 100 years ago.
Here in the South Sound, we have easy access to four national forests.
The Gifford Pinchot National Forest, named after the service’s first chief, is home to Mount St. Helens and Mount Adams as it stretches south from Mount Rainier nearly all the way to the Columbia River.
The Mount Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest stretches north from Mount Rainier all the way to the Canadian border, including its namesake mountain.
The Olympic National Forest nearly surrounds the national park of the same name.
On the east side of Mount Rainier, the Wenatchee National Forest includes much of the east side of the Cascades.
The east side of the state also is home to the Okanogan and Colville national forests, as well as portions of the Umatilla National Forest.
In all, Washington is home to more than 9.2 million acres of national forest, including almost 2.6 million acres of wilderness.
Across the nation, the service oversees national forests and grasslands that offer 192 million acres on which we can hike, fish, kayak, camp, sightsee, mountain bike, watch wildlife, hunt, ride ATVs, ski, snowboard, mountain climb, boat, etc.
But we can break that down even more. Consider that the forests and grasslands offer:
• 9,126 miles of scenic byways to drive. That’s about the same as driving from Tacoma to New York and back and back to New York again.
• 133,087 miles of trails to hike. That’s almost five and a half times around the Earth.
• 4,418 miles of wild and scenic rivers to float. That’s a few hundred miles longer than the entire length of the Amazon River.
• 4,300 campgrounds with 122,000 camp sites in which to pitch our tents or park a recreational vehicle. It would take more than 111/2 years to stay in every campground if you spent one night in each one.
While national parks such as Yellowstone, Mount Rainier and Yosemite might be higher profile destination, the national forests remain a popular option. Forest Service officials estimate that 205 million people use the nation’s 155 national forests and 22 grasslands each year.
The stress those visitors place on facilities, combined with budget cuts, has the service in a bind. It is being forced to stop maintenance on trailheads and shut down campgrounds.
A sign of the desperate financial times the service faces can be seen in the lack of local events to commemorate the 100th anniversary. Staffers at local forests have too many other issues to deal with to plan too many celebration events.
Our national forests also are the focal point for some contentious user conflicts. Hikers want to keep off-road vehicles off trails. Ecosystem supporters balk at timber sales. The objectives of wildlife watchers and hunters can be seen as polar opposites.
In developing the mission of the Forest Service, Pinchot said he wanted it “to provide the greatest amount of good for the greatest amount of people in the long run.”
Meeting that mission statement has changed as White House administrations have come and gone, as well as Forest Service chiefs.
There are tough times ahead for sure as the Forest Service enters its second century. But one thing we can be sure of is that our national forests are still a great place to get out and play. Within a matter of a couple hours’ drive from the South Sound, we have access to some of the most beautiful places and best outdoor destinations in Washington.
So as the Forest Service celebrates its centennial, let’s not forget what a wonderful resource we have so close to our doorsteps and do our part to protect those resources.
