Kayaking Playground or Nature Preserve?: Whitewater Boating Conflicts in Yellowstone National Park

Yochim MJ. 2005. Kayaking Playground or Nature Preserve?: Whitewater Boating Conflicts in Yellowstone National Park. Montana; The Magazine of Western History

IN SUMMER 1990 Patagonia, Inc. featured on the cover of its catalog a painting commissioned by the Defenders of Wildlife to promote wolf restoration.1 Created by artist Monte Dolack, Restoring the Wolf to Yellowstone National Park depicts the Firehole River winding past the hot springs of the Midway Geyser Basin while a moose wades in the water and bison and elk graze on its banks. The view contains no humans, roads, or boardwalks. Inside the same catalog a picture by Markus Schmid shows a man (wearing Patagonia clothing) standing beside a campfire with a river in the background. The caption reads, "Matt Gaynes drying out during a clandestine run down the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone River, Wyoming. These different images of nature in Yellowstone -- one a contemplative view of animals and scenery and the other, at least to some, promoting the thrill of extreme sport in a park dominated by people -- are at the heart of a recent controversy over whether to allow whitewater boating on Yellowstone's rivers...

Type
Generic Document
Authors
Yochim, Michael
Date of Issue
2005
Publisher
Montana; The Magazine of Western History
Units
YELL
Keywords
conservation, human use, National Park Service, preservation, visitor use
Subjects
Ecological Framework: Human Use | Visitor and Recreation Use | Visitor Use

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