Explore Voices for Wilderness
Peggie dePasquale | Victor, ID
“A mountain meadow filled with native wildflowers, clean air, a babbling snowmelt-fed stream, and a pika calling from the scree fields above—there is nothing more authentic than that; there is nothing more worth fighting for.”
Anonymous | Duluth, MN
“When the bottoms of my feet can feel the dirt, when my nose can smell freshly fallen pine needles, and when my ears can hear various buzzings and bird calls my whole body feels an immense peace.”
Katie | West Chester, PA
“It was a magical, fun-filled trip that is imprinted on my mind, and I will picture the sights, hear the sounds, and smell the scents of the wilderness for the rest of my days!”
Daniel | Murfreesboro, TN
“I used to take my young children on walks in wilderness areas to provide them with an understanding of the importance and joy such places can and do bring to our lives. The wonderful memories of those times shall always remain with me.”
Destiny LaBossiere | Canton, GA
“Sometimes the only thing better than wilderness is sharing it with someone you love. There is something powerful about taking a friend camping for the first time, showing someone a truly dark night sky, or watching them fall in love with a place they never knew existed.”
Patty Becnel | Ogden, UT
“Wilderness is important. It can demonstrate its beauty, inspire us with its significance, and help us have better lives, but it cannot speak for itself. It is up to us to speak for it.”
Abe Levy | Bonita Springs, FL
“Every day that I have spent walking in a forest or a meadow; climbing a hill, ridge, or mountain; or sleeping in a tent or under the stars has restored my soul and helped me to arrive at 83 years of age in good health.”
Rein van West | Ridgway, CO
“One day while backpacking through a designated wilderness area we came upon a bear that was rolling back and forth on its back. It obviously didn’t know we were there and was completely relaxed — an amazing sight and feeling!”
Maria | Bend, OR
“As a Mexican-American youth, wilderness is where my culture comes from, it's where history started and where it continues, it's where youth and community can come to together and experience nature.”
Doreen Bird | Santo Domingo Pueblo, NM
“My community loves and pays respect to everything in the wilderness. We pilgrimage, say prayers, sing to and check on our ancestral homelands just like our ancestors did and taught us to do. Being deeply connected to Nature is our way of life.”
Barbara Baird | Brookline, MA
“You see the pattern leaves make in the breeze, you hear birdsong, you notice the sky and clouds. If it's dark enough you see the forgotten night sky with millions of stars.”
Matthew M. | Nogal, NM
“Wilderness remains a sanctuary for mind, body and spirit — wholly devoid of contemporary distractions and chaos.”
George Alderson | Catonsville, MD
“Wilderness can serve as a place of respite from our life in the constructed landscapes of cities.”
Anonymous | San Pedro, CA
“It means freedom to experience the stillness and holiness of the spirit of earth.”
PJP | Sudbury, VT
“Our great American wilderness means a lot to me but also to millions of Americans, foreign visitors and the other creatures with whom we share it.”
Glenn Randall | Boulder, CO
“Wild places have been an integral part of my life for more than half a century, ever since my parents first took me and my sister to the mountains and deserts of California, and are still immensely important to me today, at age 69.”
Jeremy Lynch | Moab, UT
“But what matters most to me about the wilderness experience are the people. Humans are a social species.… Every fireside chat, dry stacked stonewall built, and the conversations and laughter that did the heavy lifting – this is the specialness of wilderness.”
Jonathan Buford | Gilbert, AZ
“We are a nation of incredible wild spaces and a bounty of public lands. We are rich in freedom in nature! If we can muster up some strength, we can be the country that preserves the most wild spaces in the world.”