Happy Birthday, Grand Canyon National Park!

Grand Canyon National Park visitors watch a winter sunrise.

On February 26, 1919—94 years ago today—President Woodrow Wilson signed the proclamation that created Grand Canyon National Park. Of course, the canyon itself is a bit older than that, and the park has expanded its boundaries to encompass 1,218,375 acres.

The Grand Canyon region first gained protection as a forest reserve in 1893. President Theodore Roosevelt, who made many visits to the canyon and described it as the one sight that every American should see, granted it national monument status in 1908.

Protecting this awe-inspiring landscape containing forest, desert, and riparian ecosystems seems like an obvious move today, but the senate bill that set aside Grand Canyon National Park in 1919 was hard-fought, and its signing didn’t assure the canyon’s future. Many battles were yet to come over proposed dams, uranium mining, air quality, airplane noise, etc. Even today, nearly a century later, the possibility of renewed mining activities threatens the quality of experiences for future visitors.

As GCNP celebrates its 94th birthday, let’s take a moment to appreciate the canyon as a national treasure, something rare and special that will be there to inspire generations after ours. In the words of Alan Gussow (1931-1997), artist and conservationist:

“There is a great deal of talk these days about saving the environment. We must, for the environment sustains our bodies. But as humans we also require support for our spirits, and this is what certain kinds of places provide.”

Mapping Sedona

A map can be a key to adventure.

I'm delighted! A couple days ago, I learned that Rio Nuevo Publishers released the Sedona Map and Guide, a project that I worked on throughout 2012. This feels a little like sending a child off to college, then realizing when they come home for a visit that they've grown into someone remarkable. In a sense, I’ve worked on this project the entire 25 years I’ve lived in Arizona, collecting experiences and memories, seasons and stories. 

I realize that a number of people today think that maps will go the way of dinosaurs, thanks to GPS technology. But I love maps the same way I love books, as ink-on-paper talismans that hold potential riches of story and adventure. Of course, no piece of paper can truly represent the fullness of being in the landscape, but I think we came close with this project.

The main talent behind this map is Bronze Black, a Flagstaff designer/illustrator and river guide who produced a similar project, his Grand Canyon Superguide. In addition to trail information, Bronze incorporated my text and dazzling photography from Larry Lindahl, George H. H. Huey, and others, photographers whose work has been featured on the pages of Arizona Highways magazine. Dave Jenney, Caroline Cook, and the supremely talented folks at Rio Nuevo Publishers shepherded the map through the final stages, making sure it was not only accurate and useful but also an object of beauty.

I’d like to think that our enthusiasm for getting to know Sedona via mountain biking (in Bronze’s case) and hiking (my case) shines through. We wanted to convey Red Rock Country as an experience—not merely a beautiful landscape to admire from afar, but as a place of hidden canyons, fascinating history, wildflowers and wildlife, and awe-inspiring geology—all accessible and waiting to be explored.

Even if a two-dimensional rectangle of paper can’t hold the entire spectrum of Sedona, I hope this map will become a key for people to unlock their own experiences.

One thing leads to another...

Sedona's winter sunsets are glorious.

As autumn blew into winter, and winter is now shifting—ever so skittishly—toward spring, I’ve been thinking a lot about transitions. Something about a season’s changing always leaves me feeling a bit unsatisfied, usually because I haven’t traveled, hiked, written, or lived as much as I’d hoped to during that particular time period. It feels like loose ends or unfinished business.

Similarly, transitions are important in writing, getting smoothly from one sentence or paragraph or chapter to the next. When I don’t take the time to add missing transitions as I’m polishing a piece, it feels unfinished and choppy. Transitioning from one idea to the next may be as simple as adding a single word to show relationship: “Now.” “Next.” “Then.” A complex idea might require a phrase or sentence to summarize before the writing continues.

But sometimes that transition or lead-in may be as subtle as echoing structure, sound, or rhythm. Techniques like alliteration (repeating a sound) are usually associated with children’s stories, poetry, and songwriting, but they can be effective in prose if they aren’t overdone. And deliberately amusing when they are: One of my favorite books, Nancy E. Shaw’s delightful Sheep Take a Hike, makes me smile every time I think about it. The language of the story pulls the reader along as much as the tale itself does. 

Language is a rich medium that offers endless possibilities beyond mere communication. Adding transitions, especially in casual writing like an email message or a blog post, may seem like a detail that’s unnecessarily time-consuming. Or maybe even a little condescending, like scattering breadcrumbs along a trail where the destination is clearly in sight. But transitions make the journey easier and sometimes even fun.

Now, if only winter would take the hint….