To figure out solutions to protecting the High Peaks Wilderness, first we need to fully understand what is threatening it on an ecological and social basis. Those threats might include some aspects of high use, such as improper disposal of human waste and trail erosion in sensitive habitats, but if we choose to only focus on these impacts we run the risk of fixing a leak in a dam that is about to burst.
Wilderness in the Presence of History
The legal definition of wilderness in the Adirondack Park, since 1972, has in part read “an area of state land or water having a primeval character … [which] generally appears…
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Public Invited to Join AWA for High Peaks Webinar
In the inaugural Wilderness Webinar, AWA Board member and High Peaks Advisory Group (HPAG) member Pete Nelson will talk about the recently released HPAG Final Report. Nelson will give a brief overview of the most important topics both in the report and in the actions taken since its release, then save the bulk of the hour for what is likely to be a lively question and answer session.
AWA Co-organizing an Alpine Summit Adaptive Management Pilot
AWA has achieved its first success in its initiative to help the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation implement the most important recommendations from the High Peaks Strategic Planning Advisory Group (HPAG) Final Report. …
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AWA Selects New Leader
At its spring 2021 quarterly meeting, which was held (remotely) in April, the Adirondack Wilderness Advocates board of directors held its first officer elections since incorporating as a 501(c)(3) organization…
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What to Watch in the AMR’s “Permitting Pilot”
Adirondack websites and social media are abuzz with news of a new pilot permit program that the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) and Adirondack Mountain Reserve (AMR)…
Read More Expertise and Adaptive Management for the High Peaks
AWA’s first order of business in serving on the High Peaks Advisory Group (HPAG) was to ensure that protection of the Wilderness was a paramount and inviolate principle. That was…
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Leading with Principles
Friday, March 5, 2021 Dear AWA Supporter: Earlier this afternoon, the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) released the long-awaited Final Report from the High Peaks Strategic Planning…
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A Very Brief History of the High Peaks Wilderness
The human history of the Adirondack High Peaks region is such a voluminous subject matter that it could easily fill an entire book. These mountains have been so scrutinized over…
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Old Roads on Old Maps
We are on the south side of the stream, and there is no sign of the old logging road. All around us are open hardwoods: mature maples and birches arching…
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Forty-Six: On the Occasion of the 2021 Presidential Inauguration
We started Adirondack Wilderness Advocates in 2016, a year with implications in the political history of this country. We weren’t anything close to a national movement then, nor do we…
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UPDATE: Development Continues on AWA’s Visitor Use Management App
Earlier this year, I wrote about a proof of concept app we had started working on to produce better data about visitor activity in the Adirondack Park. The concept was…
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