More important than ever to protect wild lands in Wyoming

By Tasha Sorensen

What do you hold sacred? Is it family, friends, storytelling, or number of ‘likes’ on your post?

Maybe it is walking your dog, a new truck, more money, a secure job, traveling, what others think about you or memories.

Maybe it is all, or none, of those things.

If remote and untouched mountain landscapes are sacred to you it is time to get involved. For many, time to get involved again to protect an important sanctuary for wildlife and wilds.

Does it bother you that the U.S. is shifting away from an agrarian society? More and more land, both private and public, is disappearing in the name of the greater common good. This loss seems like something out of a Dr. Seuss book, but it is real.  

Wild landscapes and the creatures that need them to survive are sacred, but not to everyone. A recent report documents the loss of natural resources and wild public lands in the West, and Wyoming ranks #1 in percentage of loss. 

Are you satisfied just knowing that intact, open, wild landscapes exist where the buffalo roam and the deer and antelope play? For those of you who have never experienced the appreciation, awe, curiosity and eventually the desire to explore and define your own outdoor adventure, you don’t know what you are missing.  

For those of us who have experienced being outside enjoying and knowing there is clean, cold water for native and wild fish; habitat that provides wildlife security for calving, fawning and rearing; world-class big game thriving because of ample migration routes and crucial winter range; abundant roadless and remote areas for sensitive species; and intact backcountry landscapes that support a myriad of large carnivores thank you for supporting the protection of our wild lands.

 There is something sacred just knowing these wild places exist, especially if you’ve never had that “I am so small compared to all of this awesomeness” experience, but have dreams, trips planned and ambition to discover and define those values of being outside for you and/or your family.

It is hard to place a true value on what our forests, streams, deserts, mountains, wetlands and grasslands provide for fish and wildlife, hunting and angling and recreation.   

The time to stand up for these places is now. Doing nothing is by definition, still doing something.  If you live in Wyoming, the vastness and perceived emptiness of these lands could be exactly why you and several generations of your family stayed.  It is a comfort knowing seas of sagebrush, millions of acres of grasslands, thick forests, lush wetlands and hot deserts all have an address in Wyoming. 

There is a Wyoming treasure, newly discovered by many due to the controversial nature of offering up this wild landscape for energy production. The Wyoming Range encompasses the essence of Wyoming’s family sporting heritage and is Wyoming’s story.  The diversity and abundance of Wyoming's native species depend on protecting the Wyoming Range for generations to come. Start your outdoor adventure or protect it by taking a few more minutes to join in the movement of informing decision-makers why the Wyoming Range and places like this are so special by clicking here.

Tasha Sorensen is the Sportsmens Conservation Project Field Representative in Wyoming. She is based out of Cheyenne.