Earth Day 2011

Mesa Arch

Happy Earth Day 2011.  Wishing everyone a beautiful day!  My favorite Earthday was 1988.  I had taken a semester off school to hike the Appalachian Trail.  I was two weeks in and my body had adjusted to the brutal pack and pace.  It was a long hike that day but spring had finally reached the Smokey Mountains.  Walking through a long grass fields you could smell spring.  The warm sun radiating into my bones making me forget the icy grip the mountains had on them just days before.  A shadow passed  as a hawk flew overhead.   Walking that day I knew I wanted my photography to inspire people to experience the outdoors.   Get some fresh air this weekend, maybe a few blisters, and make some memories with your family and friends.

When asked earlier today on the Washington Post’s Live Earth Day Q&A 

“What’s the biggest threat that the NPS has?”

Neil Mulholland (National Parks Foundation President) replied “Today’s youth spends 7.5 hours online and indoors. If this trend continues there may not be park users or advocates 20 years from now. We need to introduce today’s youth to parks and the outdoors and help them foster a life long relationship with National Parks and the outdoors.”