Since 1965, the Land and Water Conservation Fund has been the principal source of funds for acquiring land for public outdoor recreation in the United States. It is funded primarily by royalties paid by offshore oil and gas drilling companies.

90%

The funding reduction for the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF) since 2001.

$0

The amount designated to LWCF’s State Conservation Grants in Bush’s latest budget. The grants are used to create playgrounds, parks, and recreational trails on the state and local level.

$600 MILLION

The amount designated for the LWCF in the last year of the Clinton Administration.

$59M

The amount designated for the LWCF in Bush’s latest budget.

58 Million Reasons to Cheer

Last September, a U.S. federal district judge reinstated the “roadless rule,” a ban on road construction, logging, mining, and other development on 58.5 million acres of wild national forestland.

Because Americans Aren't Fat Enough

When Segway released its all-terrain personal transporter designed to tackle trails (the X2 Adventure), we thought it was doomed to fail. Who wants to ride a people mover through the woods when you could be hiking, running, or biking? Apparently, a lot of people. Tour companies latched onto America’s inherent laziness and now offer off road “nature” tours on the X2 Adventure in hundreds of rugged locals across the country. You can glide through Red Rock Canyon outside Vegas without taking a single step, cruise through the Gettysburg Battlefield, explore Death Valley, or see Central Park, all without breaking a sweat. In our region, you can take a ride through Paris Mountain State Park in South Carolina, explore Bent Creek outside Asheville, and now, tackle the trails on the Biltmore Estate. If you listen closely, you can actually hear Americans getting fatter.

Blue Ridge Bookshelf

Hot off the presses, Hiking the Carolinas is a new guidebook that captures some of the best hiking in North and South Carolina, hitting some of the region’s hallmark trails (M.S.T. and A.T. section hikes) while paying special attention to the area’s lesser known trail systems in recreation pockets like the Green River Gamelands and Ellicott Wilderness. Our favorite hike in the book? The Panthertown Loop, 11.2 miles of waterfalls, swimming holes, and quiet backcountry vistas. www.milestonepress.com.

The Bungee Backpack

A professor at the University of Pennsylvania has developed a backpack that uses bungee cords to suspend the load inside the pack, taking the strain off the shoulders and joints, and allowing the user to carry an extra 12 pounds for free. With the ergo-pack, carrying 60 pounds feels like carrying 48 pounds. The packs were originally designed for the military, but researchers have formed a company in order to bring their revolutionary design to hikers everywhere. www.lightningpacks.com.