Chris Clarke could see the entire northern part of the Mojave National Preserve from the summit of Kessler Peak. Light from that magical hour around sunset highlighted distant mountains and ridgelines. The view was spectacular. But as the sun dipped below the horizon he realized the path he’d taken to climb to the top was […]
Seth Shteir
Posted inRange
Climate Friendly National Parks
National parks across the country, including California’s desert national parks like the Mojave National Preserve, Joshua Tree National Park, and Death Valley National Park have begun developing action plans to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions as part of the National Park Service Climate Friendly Parks Program. The Climate Friendly Parks Program helps individual parks reduce […]
Posted inWotr
Birds can only fly so far
The sky is the color of a robin’s egg on the Barker Dam Loop Trail in Joshua Tree National Park, 215 miles southwest of Las Vegas. I’m hiking a section of trail that winds its way through an immense Joshua tree forest when an American kestrel wings over like a fighter plane, chasing a raven. […]
Posted inArticles
Don’t trash Joshua Tree National Park
Which word doesn’t belong with “national park?” Wildflowers, wildlife, hiking, night sky, garbage dump? No doubt you answered “garbage dump,” yet the biggest landfill in the United States may be developed right next to California’s Joshua Tree National Park. Fortunately, a lawsuit filed by the National Parks Conservation Association and others is trying to halt […]
Posted inWotr
An empty canyon full of everything
Lamoille Canyon doesn’t attract many tourists. It’s in Nevada’s remote northeastern corner, and that’s just fine with me. I’ve come to the Ruby Mountains for something that’s becoming rare in America: a starry sky and a generous helping of Western birds. Even the drive to Lamoille Canyon is wonderful. Telephone poles on the deserted state […]
Posted inWotr
A country cousin visits the big city
Many people dread a call from their mechanic, since it usually means spending more money — perhaps the transmission really is shot or a battery has to be replaced. But recently, after my partner picked up her car, I received a call from our mechanic about a very different subject. Our answering machine picked up […]
Posted inWotr
Don’t let stars wink out all over the West
I’m in eastern Nevada at Great Basin National Park, and it’s pitch black except for a startling sky above. Stars as bright as diamonds sparkle across the black cloth of space. The translucent band of the Milky Way arcs across the heavens, and Perseid meteors streak through the darkness, leaving fluorescent yellow tracers in their […]