The torrent of anti-conservation measures that have been introduced during the 112th Congress this year is certainly enough to dampen the spirits of wilderness supporters far and wide. But it is for this very reason that the Oct.

It’s pretty clear that climate change will have a host of victims, from coastal communities and cities, to drought-stricken plains states.

Already it is affecting the breakfast table, harming production of maple syrup and coffee.

These days the phrase ‘energy independence’ has become code for drilling  our wild public lands. But what some may not realize is that oil and gas from our wildlands is not staying in the United States.

I am swinging a pulaski deep into the ground, hoping to chip off a nice large chunk of soil. I am on Sampson Mountain on the eve of the 25th anniversary of the Tennessee Wilderness Act of 1986, doing trail maintenance in this magnificent wilderness.