Today, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency proposed the first-ever federal regulations to curb methane emissions from oil and gas producers. The proposed rule aims to cut methane emissions from the energy industry, the single largest emitter of methane in the United States, by 40 to 45 percent from 2012 levels within the next decade. Methane is a greenhouse gas 80 times as potent as carbon dioxide over a 20 year period, and is often leaked during oil and gas extraction, degrading air quality while driving climate change. Methane is also...
read moreAmerica’s cultural divide over guns has gone into the woods. As growing numbers of hikers and backpackers flood national forests and backcountry trails searching for solitude, they are increasingly clashing with recreational target shooters, out for the weekend to plug rounds into trees, targets and mountainsides. Hiking groups and conservationists say that policies that broadly allow shooting and a scarcity of enforcement officers have turned many national forests and millions of Western acres run by the Bureau of Land Management into...
read moreIn the United States, more than 38 million people annually go hiking and the popular recreational activity has recently seen increased interest in its more competitive and extreme forms. The American College of Foot and Ankle Surgeons (ACFAS) reminds all hikers, whether avid or recreational, injuries are common and careful planning is essential to reducing the likelihood of injury and complications when they occur. “We’ve all seen hikers accomplishing great feats such as completing the Pacific Crest or Appalachian Trails and these...
read moreThere is an effort afoot to use the US Pacific Northwest as conveyor belt for fossil fuels, carrying them from mines and wells in the interior to the coast, to be shipped overseas. Atop a region known for natural beauty, sustainability, quality of life, tourism, and advanced-technology jobs, fossil fuel industries propose to lay a skein of heavy new rail lines, pipelines, and export terminals. Millions of tons of coal and millions of gallons of tar sands oil would flow through one of America’s most beautiful places, amidst one of its...
read moreShenandoah National Park protects 79,600 acres along the crest of the Blue Ridge Mountains between the Shenandoah Valley to the west and the foothills of the Virginia Piedmont to the east. The Appalachian Trail follows in close proximity to Skyline Drive, the park’s popular tourist road. Most weary thru-hikers, on the trail since Georgia, find the week-long, 105-mile traverse of the park to be rather luxurious, with mild terrain and easy access to hiker amenities like snack bars and restaurants, grocery stores, campgrounds with hot showers...
read moreOn a scorcher of an August afternoon, a crowd gathered on a bridge over the deep-green waters of the Animas River on the north end of Durango, Colorado. A passerby might have thought they were watching a sporting event, perhaps a kayak race or a flotilla of inebriated, scantily clad inner tubers. Yet the river that afternoon was eerily empty of rowers, paddlers or floaters — unheard of on a day like this — and the mood among the onlookers was sombre. One mingling in the crowd heard certain words repeated: sad, tragic, angry, toxic. They were...
read moreIn the middle of the woods, the best moves are don’t move, but do trust the technology. Pennington County, South Dakota Search and Rescue said a young woman who was lost while hiking did the exact right thing by staying put, contacting authorities and remembering that modern electronics mean you’re never really lost. The 18-year-old woman and her friends were venturing to the popular swimming spot called Hippie Hole on Battle Creek near Keystone. The rugged trail down to the swimming hole proved too much for the woman, and she...
read moreThe National Park Service is almost a century old and that means a gift is in store for citizens. The National Park Service is celebrating its 99th birthday on August 25, 2015 with free admission, not including amenity or activity fees, to its 408 sites nationwide. In preparation for the centennial celebration next year, the National Park Service also partnered with the National Park Foundation to help citizens nationwide Find Your Park. Visitors are encouraged to share their park experiences across social media with #FindYourPark. “These...
read moreThe Fiery Gizzard is one of the most celebrated hiking trails in the country, but a land dispute could close the Grundy County, Tennessee trail by Dec. 1, 2015. A private property owner has told the state he will no longer grant access to hikers beginning Dec. 1. “What we have is as land gets sold or passed down to heirs, that handshake agreement, that verbal agreement can change overnight,” said George Shinn, park manager at South Cumberland State Park. “That’s what we have right now.” This will force a complicated reroute on the rugged,...
read moreA new research study by U.S. Forest Service scientists finds that changes in rainfall patterns in the southern Appalachians due to climate change could reduce growth in six hardwood tree species common to the region. The findings have implications for forest managers in the Southeast, where climate variability (more extreme events or changes in precipitation distribution) could cause major shifts in forest composition and structure. The study, recently published online in the journal Global Change Biology, evaluated climate-driven patterns of...
read moreHigh-altitude training is important for proper fitness and to avoid health risks like high-altitude pulmonary edema. You’ve signed the dotted line and in a few short months you’re strapping on your boots and heading “into thin air.” Whether it is climbing Mt. Everest or Mt. Evans, you’re going to need to improve your high-altitude fitness, the question is, how? Let’s start by clearing up one of the more common misunderstandings when it comes to high-altitude training. There is no process by which one can...
read moreAny parent who hikes with young kids is bound to hear a fair share of whining. “Why do we have to hike?” or “This is hard!” And the most common, “How much faaaaarther?” But worry not, dear parents. Paragon Guides near Vail, Colo., offers a fun remedy to prevent such protests: Take a llama to lunch. This half-day, family-friendly, guided tour not only serves as a way to get your kids up the trail with fewer complaints, but also acts as an introduction to these animals, which serve as ideal companions for mountainous journeys because of their...
read moreThe most sensible approach to the Alpine geological wonderland known as the Dolomites is also the most evocative one. Here’s how it’s done: After the three-hour drive from Venice Marco Polo Airport toward Austria, pull off the autostrada into the inviting city of Bolzano. In the pedestrian zone on Piazza della Mostra you will encounter the town’s best restaurant, Zur Kaiserkron. The lunchtime flavors — smoke-cured ham known as speck, orange-infused ravioli, honey-glazed duck with beet sauce, an array of local mountain cheeses — inform you...
read moreAlthough out-of-staters don’t particularly know New Jersey for its hiking prowess, the state offers a diverse range of hiking trails and parks that are fitting for those looking for a rocky mountain hike, a beachy shore run or a stroll through flat meadows, which Dawn L. McClennen, co-founder of njHiking.com, is well aware of. “We don’t have the elevation of something out West but it’s actually quite diverse,” said McClennen, who is from Middlesex County and has been hiking the state for about 20 years. “North Jersey is rugged and then...
read moreBOISE, Idaho, Aug. 10, 2015–After the successful funding of their first sleeping bag hammock, the couple behind the Bison Bag G1 are back with the next version of their sleeping bag hammock: the Bison Bag G2. The new polyester design features triple layer insulation ensuring that minimal body heat escapes during overnight adventures. The sleeping bag hammock is rated to 55 degrees Fahrenheit; however, it can be used in lower temperatures, if a sleeping bag pad is used. To keep it simple, the sleeping bag, hammock, carabiners and rope...
read moreInspired by a love of the outdoors and memories of a 2010 tornado, Girl Scout Alison Campbell organized a team that worked 30 hours this summer clearing 4,250 feet of trail at Old World Wisconsin that had been untouched for five years. The project, which makes the Old Railroad Forest Trail safe to hike once again, was the culmination of Campbell’s Girl Scout Gold Award efforts. In a brochure created for visitors to Old World Wisconsin, aerial images show the devastation of the EF2 tornado that leveled the wooded parking lot at Old World...
read moreKivalina is a tiny, remote Alaskan village that sits on a barrier island some 83 miles above the Arctic circle, and the most recent estimates show the village—home to 400 people—will be entirely underwater by 2025. This is far from news for the island’s Iñupiat inhabitants; the village voted in favor of relocating way back in 1992. But as climate change thins the ice surrounding the island and causes erosion of Kivalina’s shores, questions remain as to where the village will relocate to, and how that move will be paid for. Climate change is...
read moreOne hundred years ago, only about a dozen national parks existed, all of them in the Far West. The departments of Agriculture, Interior and War each claimed some responsibility over them, but in truth, no one was in charge, and the parks suffered as a result. Stephen Mather set out to change all that. An energetic businessman with what reporters called “an incandescent enthusiasm” and a special genius for promotion, Mather had already made a small fortune by portraying California’s Death Valley as an exotic location in...
read moreTwo weeks after passing a law that completely re-envisions the country’s energy system, France is already making moves to bolster its wind potential by inviting companies to submit proposals for floating wind farms off both its northern and southern coasts. France’s environmental agency ADEME posted a tender document calling for proposals for wind farms comprised of between three to six turbines, with the capacity for at least five megawatts per turbine, at three sites in the Mediterranean and one site in the Bay of Biscay, off the southern...
read moreSean Longstreet witnessed four days of startled reactions when he backpacked over Piute Pass above Bishop, CA this summer in the Eastern High Sierra. The popular Beaumont school district music instructor was not behaving oddly. He didn’t pick his guitar strings or blow his trumpet as he walked the steep trails. Instead, his companion attracted stares of surprise and reactions of laughter. Longstreet backpacked with his standard poodle, Hendrix, a calm, friendly dog named after the legendary late rock guitarist. Labs, golden retrievers and...
read moreThe sign at the trailhead stated: “Beware of mountain lions.” Next to it another sign was posted that warned about the dangers of and correct behavior in a bear encounter. You are entering the Continental Divide Trail, one of America’s longest and most challenging trails.Here on the Continental Divide Trail, mountain lions, bears, wolves-and even the occasional wolverine-are as welcome along the trail as hikers. Maintaining a healthy environment for hikers to pass through requires supporting diverse wildlife populations. It...
read moreUnbearably hot. Dry. Lifeless. Those are a few terms that the word “desert” all too often conjures up. While deserts are loved by many wilderness enthusiasts, it’s far too easy for the general public to overlook these areas when thinking about wilderness. No doubt, deserts can be hot and dry, but look a little closer and the life within them is amazingly diverse. Deserts are defined not by temperature, but by their precipitation-less than ten inches precipitation per year. American deserts range from the Sonoran Desert, the...
read moreIn 1899, the Appalachian National Park Association began discussing the concept for a 12,000-square-mile park in parts of North and South Carolina, Georgia, Virginia and Tennessee. During the next century, many individuals, organizations, politicians and nature advocates worked to establish what is now the country’s most visited national park – the Great Smoky Mountains. National Park Service Director Stephen Mather first voiced support for establishing a national park in the East. In 1927, John D. Rockefeller Jr. designated $5 million as a...
read moreHistorians may look to 2015 as the year when it really started hitting the fan. Some snapshots: In just the past few months, record-setting heat waves in Pakistan and India each killed more than 1,000 people. In Washington state’s Olympic National Park, the rainforest caught fire for the first time in living memory. London reached 98 degrees Fahrenheit during the hottest July day ever recorded in the U.K.; The Guardian briefly had to pause its live blog of the heat wave because its computer servers overheated. In California, suffering...
read moreGinseng, the popular health supplement, grows naturally in Great Smoky Mountains National Park. There’s only one problem- poachers. Poaching has become a major problem for the park. Savvy thieves are uprooting the valuable plant and selling the ginseng roots for a profit. “They know what they’re looking for. They’re experienced in this type of thing,” said Brent Everitt, the Great Smoky Mountains Public Affairs Officer. “They go look for these plants, they dig it up, then they will hike out with sometimes a...
read moreFor the first time in its 110-year history, the Forest Service, part of the U.S. Department of Agriculture, is spending more than 50 percent of its budget to suppress the nation’s wildfires. A new report released today by the Forest Service estimates that within a decade, the agency will spend more than two-thirds of its budget to battle ever-increasing fires, while mission-critical programs that can help prevent fires in the first place such as forest restoration and watershed and landscape management will continue to suffer....
read moreIn fall of 2015, the Prairie State – Illinois – will get a new herd of bison. Part of a broader restoration effort at Midewin National Tallgrass Prairie that aims to return this special place to its original tallgrass prairie ecosystem, the bison reintroduction opens an exciting new chapter for Midewin and the country. The webcam will feature the new bison herd as they roam near the corral and watering hole. A Crowdrise campaign will provide funding for the camera, installation and continued maintenance of the system. The camera will be...
read moreBy John D. Sutter, CNN I was wandering around the rolling plains of northwest Oklahoma looking for one person – one person – who believes in climate change science when I met the woman dressed all in yellow. A wide-brimmed, lemon-colored hat orbited her head. Her loafers were the color of butter. Everything in between was a jubilee of sunshine. Could she be the one? Please, Lord, let her be the one. I ask. She laughs. It’s a sweet laugh. A knowing laugh. A...
read moreEvery summer, they trek through New York on their way from Georgia to Maine — a scruffy bunch whose determination to hike the entire Appalachian Trail finds them pushing through the Hudson Valley in July and August. For many, the roughly 2,189-mile trip is the culmination of a dream. Others aren’t sure why they’re doing it. But most know they couldn’t manage the hike without the support of people they encounter along the way. Some local families who live near the trail fill coolers with refreshments and leave them out for hikers. “We call...
read moreGet ready to discover the beautiful trails of Fairfield Glade and Cumberland County, Tennessee. The Cumberland Plateau has some wonderful scenery and now everyone will have the opportunity to get to know it up close and personal. Registration for the Cumberland Plateau Hiking Trail Marathon kicked off Aug. 1, 2015. Just like a marathon race, this hiking marathon includes 26.2 miles of hiking trails in Fairfield Glade and throughout Cumberland County. Unlike a marathon race, this is not at all competitive. Participants can take their time as...
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I am Jeff Clark, founder of Internet Brothers, producer of this blog, and passionate about hiking. I live in Western NC near the Blue Ridge and Great Smoky Mountains. Pisgah and Nantahala National Forests are just out my door, so the content will focus on these areas, but let me know what you would like to see on the site. 
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