Colorado’s Browns Canyon National Monument provides outstanding opportunities for fishing, whitewater boating, hiking and many other outdoor activities. It is one of the most popular whitewater destinations in the country; attracting roughly 150,000 visitors annually who contribute $60 million to the local economy. It also provides critical habitat for bighorn sheep, elk, mule deer and…
The Access Fund helped Friends of Muir Valley secure funding for stewardship of Muir Valley. Once this funding was secured, the landowners gifted this climbing area to Friends of Muir Valley to ensure long-term stewardship of this popular crag. Muir Valley is a world-class climbing destination in the Red River Gorge of Kentucky. 40,000 people visit this…
Trust for Public Land used Conservation Alliance funding to support its White Mountains to Moosehead Lake Initiative to permanently protect 67,900 acres of woods, waters, and mountains in Maine and New Hampshire’s “Great White Moose”, one of the Northeast’s largest natural landscapes. TPL reports they have secured a conservation easement for Orbeton Stream, a 5,774-acre…
In December 2014, Congress designated 14.3 miles of Illabot Creek as a national Wild and Scenic River. American Rivers helped secure the highest protection possible for Illabot Creek, nearly 25 years after the Forest Service recommended protections for this tributary of the Skagit River in the North Cascades. Due to the strong salmon presence, Illabot…
Montana Wilderness Association played a key role in securing permanent protection for one of Montana’s most iconic landscapes. In December, Congress passed the Rocky Mountain Front Heritage Act, adding 50,500 acres to the Bob Marshall Wilderness Complex and 16,700 acres to the Scapegoat Wilderness. In addition, the bill designates a new 208,000-acre Conservation Management Area…
American Rivers and Washington Wild worked with a coalition of organizations in Washington to secure permanent protection for one of the most treasured outdoor recreation destinations near Seattle. Congress passed a bill in December that adds 22,100 acres to the Alpine Lakes Wilderness, and protects 30 miles of the Middle Fork Snoqualmie River and 10…
The Wilderness Support Center worked with the community-based Hermosa Creek Workgroup to protect 107,886 acres of land in southwestern Colorado. In December, Congress passed the Hermosa Creek Watershed Protection Act (HCWPA), designating the 37,236-acre Hermosa Creek Wilderness Area and a 70,650 acre Special Management Area in Southwest Colorado. The bill permanently preserves multiple uses of…
Greater Yellowstone Coalition used our funding for its Absaroka-Beartooth Front Protection Campaign to seek permanent protection for 1.8 million acres of the Absaroka-Beartooth Front, including prohibitions on energy development in critical wildlife habitat and migration corridors. By engaging in the planning process for the Shoshone National Forest, GYC won protections for 916,441 acres, putting these…
American Whitewater used our funding to support its Colorado River Campaign to secure permanent protection of critical river flows in 80 miles of the Upper Colorado River for world-class recreation and river-related habitat. AW reports that they have secured a Recreational In-Channel Diversion water right from the State of Colorado that reserves 2,500 CFS of…
We funded Smith River Alliance’s Hurdy Gurdy Creek Property Acquisition Campaign to permanently protect the 2,000-acre Hurdygurdy Creek watershed, a key tributary of California’s Smith River, one of the crown jewels of the Wild and Scenic River System and a nationally recognized “Salmon Stronghold”. SRA reports that they have successfully transferred 320 acres of land…
