"There's a great need for recreationists to educate themselves about the politics surrounding their forests. We shouldn't just be concerned with our rights, but with our responsibilities."

-Wayne Jenkins,

President of Georgia Forest Watch

Guerrilla Blogging

Want to share your latest outdoor adventure in real time? Many outdoor enthusiasts are sending blog entries from random, remote, and often woodsy locations. Many state parks and national parks have begun offering wireless internet at their campsites, allowing you to blog about hiking while actually hiking.

Bush Forest Planning Rules Struck Down

Last month, federal courts overturned the Bush administration’s rules for management of the country’s 155 national forests, saying that the rules lacked adequate environmental safeguards. The Bush Administration rules cut back on protection for endangered wildlife and limited public participation in the development of forest management plans. Instead, they broadened the power of forest managers to decide whether mines, logging operations, cell phone towers, or other development would be appropriate uses of forest land.

The court issued an injunction forbidding the service from using the rules to make decisions about the national forests, and it sent the rules back to be re-written, this time in consultation with the public and with the federal agencies that protect wildlife.

OUTDOOR DICTIONARY

HOLE-BAIT: Boats (and paddlers) that have a bad tendency to get caught in a river’s recirculating waves.

TWEETERED: To get worked in a rapid.

MANKY: Describing a shallow rapid filled with sharp, chunky rocks. In other words, a lot of nasty stuff to get tweetered on.