Ptarmigan Tracks

Park managers here in Denali are currently working on a Trails Plan, soliciting input on how best to manage formal and informal trails. Overdue for attention is the murky issue of “social” trails, paths that often began as wildlife trails now frequented by hikers. Traditionally managed as a trail-less wilderness, Denali’s managers must adjust to a new reality. Stay tuned to this and other planning efforts in Denali: http://www.nps.gov/dena/getinvolved/planning.htm.

Denali Citizen’s Council has had fingers to keyboard commenting on the Trails Plan and helping to craft land management policies for Borough-owned land surrounding the Park. The possibility of a natural gas pipeline necessitates foresight and careful planning for Denali’s gateway communities. DCC also continues to advocate for Denali’s wildlife, notably for the protection of the Park’s declining wolf population. Wolves are vulnerable to liberal hunting and trapping policies effective on state land. When wolves cross out of the Park onto state land to follow their caribou prey, they are no longer protected. Watch for this fall’s update on Denali’s wolf population: http://nps.gov/dena/learn/nature/wolves.htm.

National Parks Conservation Association recently saw success with their #UnBearable campaign, which highlights fundamental differences between state and federal wildlife management in Alaska. This fall the National Park Service published regulations for sport hunting in national preserves overruling Alaska’s endorsement of baiting and other intensive predator control practices.

Together with Subaru and the National Park Service, NPCA is embarking on a zero-landfill initiative in three parks: Grand Teton, Yosemite and Denali. We hosted the partners this summer and anticipate that the initiative will extend to concessioners like ourselves, providing expanded opportunities to reduce and recycle our waste.

Audubon Alaska celebrated a win for Wilderness and wildlife protection at Izembek National Wildlife Refuge in September when a US District Court upheld a federal decision to reject the long-fought-for road project through Izembek Wilderness. Situated in Southwestern Alaska, Izembek NWR is critically important for numerous migratory bird species during their global transits. From the Tongass to the Arctic, Audubon Alaska is a leader among state conservation groups for their forward-thinking use of mapping technology to guide conservation decisions.

photo © Patti Neer