Before Bears Ears

by Drew Hanson

For weeks conservationists have been fretting over the President’s low regard for the Antiquities Act. The concern is justified. Stripping protections from Bears Ears and Grand Staircase-Escalante national monuments is not only legally questionable, it opens these areas to irreparable damage. Sad as it is, this is not the first time a treasured place has been diminished by short-sightedness and greed. Long before President Trump’s controversial actions, a revered Wisconsin landscape also suffered a loss of protections.

1959 USGS Hartland topo map

The Southern Kettle Moraine State Forest (or “Southern Kettles”) was established in 1937 by the legislature to protect a long, narrow belt of glacial ridges in southeast Wisconsin. Its original boundary stretched between Whitewater Lake and the village of Hartland. In the decades that followed, acquisition of lands progressed too slowly for southeast Wisconsin conservationists and supporters of a long-distance hiking trail. But too quickly for others.

Completion in 1956 of the first segment of interstate highway 94 from Milwaukee to within five miles of this part of the Southern Kettles increasingly opened doors to the development of exurban residential subdivisions. The skids of Milwaukee’s white flight were greased. Rural landowners and residential subdivision developers began calling for an end to land acquisition for the Southern Kettle Moraine State Forest.

Bowing to the local pressure, in 1965 the State reduced the boundary of the Southern Kettles by 9,000 acres--a reduction of more than 25%. The reduction decapitated the State Forest, eliminating the portion between highway D near Hunters Lake and the village Hartland. Unsatisfied, the critics kept up their drumbeat of opposition.

1965 reductions to the Southern Kettles shown in red

At a 1968 public hearing in the Eagle Village Hall regarding the future of the Southern Kettle Moraine State Forest, Harlan Clinkenbeard, Assistant Director of the Southeast Wisconsin Regional Planning Commission stated, “The Kettle Moraine represents one of the most significant natural resource areas in Wisconsin.” He highlighted the many values of the area from recreation to recharge of the groundwater aquifer and concluded his remarks with, “The importance of the Kettle Moraine to the seven-county region in which 42 percent of the state’s population resides is immeasurable and the loss of this area to urban development may cause irreparable damage to both the land and water resources of the region.”

His warning went unheeded. Again succumbing to pressure, in 1970 the Wisconsin Natural Resources Board voted to remove an additional 1,970 acres from the Southern Kettle Moraine State Forest. The reduction lopped off another area from the northern tip of the Southern Kettles.

1970 reductions to the Southern Kettles shown in black

Every time I drive interstate highway 94 between Madison and Milwaukee I think about these removals from the State Forest. I see scars where a public forest was supposed to be. I feel disgust and grief.

Some will say the loss of protections for lands in Wisconsin is easier to accept than the loss of protections for lands in Utah. But that’s just Mountain Majesty Bias.

Today, most of those nearly 11,000 acres are either large lot residential subdivisions or one-story commercial developments. If the Natural Resources Board had not reduced the State Forest by almost 11,000 acres, perhaps the groundwater recharge area for Waukesha would have been safeguarded. Perhaps Waukesha would not have needed to request water from Lake Michigan. Perhaps the Ice Age Trail would have passed through a State Forest corridor for an additional 12 off-road miles. Who were the winners and who were the losers?

Perhaps Bears Ears will fare better.



Click on maps to enlarge them.

Denver Delivers

by Drew Hanson

If you are looking for a city with great walking, Denver delivers.

Multitudes of wonderful walks are easy to find in the Mile High City thanks to a well-designed multi-modal transportation system and more than 80 miles of greenway trails.

No need for a car in Denver. The city's light rail system is fantastic! It is clean and quiet and costs a fraction of a taxi ride. The A-Line connecting the downtown to the airport is one of five spurs emanating from the downtown. The trains are further integrated into the city's transportation network by allowing bicycles on-board, an Amtrak stop at Union Station and some train stations with enough parking for the park-and-ride commuter. These trains can take you to all regions of the city to begin whatever walk you create.

light rail leading west from Denver's downtown

Downtown Denver has complete sidewalks, secure pedestrian crossings of nearly every street, great restaurants and a hoppin' night life. Most notably, the downtown's 16th Street Mall is a 1.2-mile pedestrian promenade that is off-limits to automobiles except for free buses. It is a lively, bustling strip for your walking pleasure.

16th Street Mall

A main line of Denver's greenways is the South Platte River Trail, which follows the main body of water through the city. While walking this trail, it is easy to get lost in thoughts of this river flowing east, through Nebraska, to the Missouri River, then Mississippi and eventually into the Gulf of Mexico.

South Platte River

One of the most heavily used greenways in Denver is along Cherry Creek. Trails flank both sides of the creek that passes along the downtown. The trail on one side is for pedestrians. The other side for bikes and rollerblading. It connects Confluence Park, where it meets the South Platte River Trail, with Cherry Creek State Park, a distance of 12 miles.

pedestrian side of the Cherry Creek Trail

One of the more scenic greenways in Denver is coursed by both the Lakewood Gulch Trail and the W-Line rail. It offers distant views of the downtown to the east and mountains to the west.

Lakewood Gulch Trail

Wayfinding signage on the greenway trails includes simple icons within arrows painted on the pavement at major intersections. Click here for more information about the city's urban trails.

handy painted icons point ahead to downtown and back to mountains

On a recent trip to Denver, the pedometer app on my phone told me I walked 9.7 miles the first day and 17 miles the second. Bliss! And so much more left to explore.

35,765 steps, or about 17 miles, in Denver makes for a good day

Forest Majesty

By Drew Hanson

Have you ever tried to explain majesty? It is no easy thing to put to words. It is a subjective thing that can inspire and motivate people. You know it when you see it. One example is mountain majesty. Another is a stand of big trees.

It seems a fair assumption that most people have felt a sense of wonder or awe when standing at the base of really big trees. It does not matter that the big trees of California are bigger than big trees elsewhere. It’s all relative. I have stood among giant sequoia and redwood but still have my sense of wonder and awe piqued when I stand beside mature white pine or bur oak. No matter how you define big, big trees are majestic. This is especially true where there are many of them in an old growth or virgin forest.

Call it forest majesty. Any place where trees are allowed to reach old age can offer forest majesty. But trees do not reach old age unless they have people who care about them a whole awful lot.

Wisconsin is one place that lost nearly all its virgin forest. People tend to think our original forests were all cleared by 1900. In fact, a surprising amount of uncut forest remained in America’s Dairyland well into the 1930s, including areas along today’s Ice Age Trail in Lincoln and Langlade counties. Click on the map below to better see where virgin forest remained in 1932.

So, in the 1930s, while the states of Tennessee and North Carolina were rushing to save some of their last stands of virgin forest to create Smoky Mountains National Park, Wisconsin was cutting hers down. The stands of big trees that remain in Wisconsin today are tiny remnants at places like Cathedral of Pines in Oconto County and Gerstberger Pines in Taylor County.

Today’s Wisconsinites who desire the inspiration of an old growth forest must travel to the Smokies or to Michigan’s Porkies or even California’s sequoias.

However, this is not just a story of loss. This is also a story of action. If we manage some of our lands properly, Wisconsin can regain some of its lost forest majesty. Future generations of Wisconsinites could be able to hike through old growth forest to marvel at enormous trees. We should make it a priority to ensure this happens along portions of the Ice Age Trail.

Some areas along the Trail are going to continue to see timber harvest. In some cases, it is necessary. But in order for more segments of the Ice Age Trail to be places of inspiration, places where people return again and again, where more local economies benefit from the Trail, more areas along it must become places of forest majesty. More miles of the Trail need to provide wonder and awe.

What is needed are for middle-age native forests along the Ice Age Trail to be given permanent protection. Places like the Ringle and Chequamegon segments would make good candidates. This will ensure that future generations can experience the inspirational grandeur of forest majesty.

It’s up to us. What are you going to do to help?

Smoky Mtns Dispatch

By Drew Hanson

The stars aligned recently, giving me a rare opportunity to spend seven consecutive days hiking. Since there is a shortage of some kinds of hiking near my home, my chosen destination was Smoky Mountains National Park which boasts 800 miles of hiking trails plus three long-distance trails extending from the park.

Hike every day, I did. One was an eleven-mile trek to the top of Mt. LeConte and back. A couple days included out-and-back hikes on sections of the famed Appalachian Trail. Other days included loops or multiple shorter hikes in a single day.

It was an exhilarating trip, great for my physical and mental health. In the end, I could not help but wish I could do this more often, if even just on weekends. But life at home is too demanding for a regular 10-12-hour drive to the Smokies.

This led me to the question: Why does my home state of Wisconsin not offer this many hiking opportunities? Some will answer with something about how the Smokies have mountains and Wisconsin does not but that’s just Mountain Majesty Bias.

Yah, sure, the mountains are pretty. I visited this national park not because it has (small) mountains but because there are hundreds of miles of hiking trails within an hour's drive. One can hike the Smokies all day and then hike a different trail all the next day, and the next, and the next, literally for years and still hike different trails every weekend.

One day of my visit a trailhead parking lot was overflowing, easily 50 cars, used by people who want to hike and who, like me, were spending money in nearby towns. There are dozens of other trailhead parking lots in the park. It's a shame my home state did not make this kind of investment decades ago and that last year my governor vetoed $75k/year for the Ice Age Trail. The Smokies have so many miles of hiking trails because decades ago people made a choice and continue to make it so.

Smoky Mountains National Park was established in 1934. Most of the land to create the park was purchased by the states of Tennessee and North Carolina, then donated to the National Park Service. Today, with its mountains that are but hills by western standards, Smoky Mountains National Park is the most visited national park in the United States. In 2010, it had over 20 million visitors! It is the primary economic driver for many nearby communities. It is a success.

Where I currently live in southern Wisconsin, there are places to hike for an hour or two. What is severely lacking are places to hike most of a day for multiple days, hence the need to travel so far to have the experience I did. One reason for the shortfall is Wisconsin’s decades-long shotgun approach of creating scattered parks and wildlife areas across the state. Another reason is that hunting groups have too often treated a hiking trail as a threat. Another reason has to do with Mountain Majesty Bias.

Fortunately, time has not run out. Wisconsin can still fix this problem and have a balanced outdoor recreation portfolio. By investing in the Ice Age Trail, the way states in the east have for decades invested in their trails, the Badger State could still have many more multi-day hiking opportunities.