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Mount Rainier Avalanche lilies panorama. (Image
source: terragalleria.com)
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Although my latest Treks to Mount Tahoma have taken
on a significant change, nonetheless one can never truly spend enough time in
such natural splendour...
As I'd really enjoy being at Mount Rainier
right now, minus the HORRENDOUS CROWDS! Since I've been burnin' OUT my eyeballs
ever since returning - furiously poondin' out riveting BLOB' stories for
Y'all...
And while I'm happy that Indy Cars is
rightfully once again returning to The Glen, nee Watkins Glen this weekend, as
I've said before, Labour Day always makes me think of the Molson Indy Vancouver
BC race instead...
Which I had thee good fortunes of attending more than a half
dozen times, beginning with the first five years consecutively and then
returning for a further engagement during the final years running's.
Whilst I've also had the good fortune of attending
The Glen once a long time ago, where I got to have a Chinwag' with
"Wattie," aka John Watson...
And although I'm pretty sure I watched; Err
listened to the British GP, my Heart really wasn't in it, especially since my
Numero Uno Hoond Mad Molly had just finished her race...
Although it's funny now, that since it was so
Anticlimactic, I don't even remember watching I-T! Whilst it was really good
therapy to be back at the Mountain exactly one week after Molly's passing.
As ironically, Mary Ellen mentioned the proliferation
of new Clear Cuts speckling the Forest on our first trek to Paradise, at Mount
Rainier, which even on a Thursday was completely swamped by visitors!
The irony of this is that shortly afterwards,
I began listening to a new author's tome
in CD Audiobook format titled: The Big Burn:
Teddy Roosevelt and The Fire that saved America, by
Timothy Egan.
As I personally
DON'T agree with Tony Horwitz's review, having found the book a joy to listen
to and not disjointed at all. And am now listening to Egan's The Worst Hard
Time, about the Great Dustbowl catastrophe...
Although I won't try retelling the entire
book, it taught me that noted Preservationist John Muir and Conservationist Gifford Pinchot,
who became fast friends in the early 1890's and visited Mount Rainier in 1897, were instrumental in getting
Congress to finally pass legislation creating Mount Rainier National Park in
1899, only the fifth such Park at the turn of the Twentieth century.
The book's main story surrounds the nation's
largest ever Forest Fire, featuring the town of Wallace, Idaho, its inhabitants
and the effects of The Big Burn, the massive fire of August, 1910 which
ultimately swallowed over three million acres of land, which Pinchot would
later decree was enough timber to satisfy the United States insatiable lumber
appetite for 15yrs!
Now I only know the opinion put forth in
Messer Egan's book regarding Gifford Pinchot, who helped implement President
Teddy Roosevelt's Conservationist agenda, along with becoming the first Chief
of today's U.S. Forest Service which he championed, and served in this capacity
from 1905-1910, when he so agitated Roosevelt's successor William Howard Taft,
that Taft had no recourse but to fire him for his insubordination.
As both Roosevelt and Pinchot felt betrayed
by Teddy's handpicked successor Taft and his promise to continue these Conservationist
ideas. As how refreshing that a President was actually progressive, and truly believed
in working for the people of his nation and not the Robber Barron's personal
interests!
Yet Pinchot, and Roosevelt faced many
adversary's, with Pinchot locked in a personal duel with then Secretary of
Interior Richard Ballinger, a Taft appointee, who's views upon the Forest
Service differed vastly with Pinchot's, who'd eventually Resign from his cabinet
post.
.While Republican Senator Weldon B. Heyburn
from Idaho was one of their biggest thorns, taking every opportunity available
to dismantle those "Greenie's,' nee Pinchot's Forest Service. Along with
disagreeing over Roosevelt's call for an eight hour Workday, Child welfare,
etc.
Yet ironically, Heyburn, whom served from
1903 to 1912, catering towards the interests of mining - was struck down by illness whilst speaking in Congress and would die
that October at age 60.
Alas, who knows the real stature of Gifford
Pinchot, who after all was a member of Yale University's illustrious Skull
& Bones society, along with coming from family wealth, ironically gained by
desecrating the forest with outlandish timber cutting.
But Gifford was pointed towards then the
totally unknown profession of Forestry by his father, along with establishing a
core curriculum Master's program at his Alma Mater in 1900.
whilst you've simply got to enjoy the image
portrayed regarding Gifford's initial meeting with the future U.S. President
Theodore Roosevelt, then Governor of New York, who'd had a wrestling mat
installed in the Governor's mansion, and promptly challenged Pinchot to a
wrasslin' and boxing match, for which Gifford would delight recalling for life
over having knocked out Teddy!
While Egan, points out the conclusion I came
to before finishing the book. That the Forest Service was effectively co-opted
into becoming nothing more than the various Corporate entities, i.e.; Timber,
Mining, Railroads, etc glorified Firefighting organization. Which naturally was
totally devastating to Pinchot, since it went against his philosophy!
Which leaves me pondering how the explosion
of Boardtracks across America during the Roaring Twenties further led to the
unintended devastation of Pinchot and Roosevelt's perceived intentions...
"Humans should
Never take More out of the Earth than They Can Put Back in..."
Gifford Pinchot
VIDEO: This Land is Your Land
For
the conclusion of this two-part Outdoors Adventure, see; The Tomaso Files: Four Left Turns later, We finally arrive at Mount Rainier...
