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Alone in wilderness quiet, we broke camp and started a few miles cross-country—over a hill, into a wash, and over another ridge into upper Red Raven Wash while skirting overhanging mesquite trees. A hawk dived down—maybe hunting a jackrabbit, the … Read More

Steward Quit Job to Save Trails in Nation’s Oldest Wilderness Six weeks backpacking in the Gila Wilderness in 2000 sealed a long-term commitment. Melissa Green found a life purpose in the Gila, an extensive area of mountains, canyons, rolling ponderosa … Read More

It started in Virginia. And it led to revisiting favorite places across the country and rediscovering our own need for wilderness. A plan to visit all the wilderness in Virginia—and write a book about our adventures—was born in summer 2012. … Read More

I recently made my 10th visit to the Gila Wilderness in southwestern New Mexico—the nation’s oldest wilderness lying along a vast ridge and valley landscape with forests of ponderosa pine and oak-pinyon-juniper on ridges above Middle and West forks of … Read More

My WildernessNeed blog has been selected by Feedspot, an international marketing/promotion company, as one of Top 30 Wilderness Blogs in the world on the Internet. This Top 30 is an eclectic collection of adventure travel, advocacy, therapy and personal views … Read More

During college days in the late 1970s, I backpacked 11 days in the Gila Wilderness in southwest New Mexico in early May: strolling mellow trails through big ponderosa pine stands, glimpsing elk on the edges of verdant parks, crossing the … Read More

As an avid hiker I’m saddened by loss of legacy trails, especially on National Forests. The U.S. is blessed with a vast trails system on public lands. Some were early Indian and trapper routes; others built for mining, grazing and … Read More

The first surprise came after we crawled over a precarious pass above Bighorn Basin: down at Walker Lake, midweek campers occupied every lake site. Entering the weekend we met dozens of backpackers in or en route to lake basins in … Read More

Thru-hiking seems on the rise. Some even do a “triple crown”—Appalachian (AT), Continental Divide and Pacific Crest (PCT) Trails for a total 7,750-miles. I love trails. The idea of the 2000-mile trail AT intrigues me. I longed to do it … Read More

Blogger’s note: since I have other interests besides hiking wilderness (including reading, writing, music, physical fitness, triathlons, spirituality), I will sometimes weigh in on these topics when we’re taking a break from our explorations. An earworm, also known as a … Read More

We hiked the eastside of Shenandoah National Park for 14 years before we realized much of it is wilderness—the 2nd largest in the East. Forty percent of this popular park astride the Blue Ridge Mountains was designated wilderness in the … Read More

I’ve posted an article on our recent revisit to Grand Gulch—a long canyon in southern Utah winding down from high mesas to the San Juan River and chock full of cliff dwellings, granaries, kivas and petroglyphs from a group of … Read More

In April 1981 we hiked Grand Gulch—a long canyon in southern Utah known for cliff dwellings and artifacts—from Kane Gulch to the San Juan River. Photos and memories conjure up a hot hike slogging sand, minimal vegetation cutting across meanders; … Read More

The green grass and wet winter tricked me. On two January 2019 visits to the Mazatzal Wilderness, I was delighted by carpets of green on the mesas, pools and streams, and early spring flowers—results of a rainy late fall and … Read More

Wildlife are up close and personal in northern Phoenix. A patchwork of desert preserves, parks and arroyos along with an artificial river/ lake environment offer habitat for the original residents of this desert valley. My youngest sister’s house backs right … Read More

Okay, I admit. I’m a bit jealous. David and I met at the UA Ramblers hiking club in 1975. We soon were known as the “hard core” hikers. My minimum backpack day was 15 miles and 20 was about right. … Read More

The earth is the Lord’s and everything in it. (Psalm 24) A brief talk and book signing officially launched my new youth novel Return to the Wilds Saturday, April 20, at Changing Hands Bookstore in Tempe, Arizona. Almost all of … Read More

As posted before, I have been pleased to learn that 6th graders like reading and writers! Last week I expanded my student sample to 70 4th to 7th graders at Syringa Mountain School, a private school just down the road … Read More

Campus Hiking Club Follows Footsteps of 1940s Pioneers… New Jersey native Bill Price came to Tucson in 1943 to study geology at the University of Arizona (UA) and immediately fell in love. “He took one look and fell in love … Read More

Bio: Cindy C. (Chojnacky) Fiction author, explorer, freelance writer, wilderness ambassador Cindy’s background includes forestry reporting, university relations and public affairs and management work for the USDA Forest Service throughout the U.S. and in Washington DC. Jobs included issues management, … Read More

I was terrified. I was the featured Author at the “Inspired Writers” project in Lincoln County Oregon. Over the next four days, I would talk about “The Writer’s Life” and offer writing tips and exercises to 6th grade students: 490 … Read More

Mapping & Clearing Trails: a labor of love… Spend much time in the Chiricahua Wilderness and you may run into Jonathan Patt or John Sumner. Patt, who lives in nearby Portal, hikes the area at least weekly. He plans to … Read More

Volunteer Does Wilderness Ranger Work Across the Country… Jim Beck took “early retirement” in his late 50s but started a new career—hiking, climbing, clearing trails and doing stewardship work across the country. He’s a volunteer. In 2016 Beck, a former … Read More

About a decade ago, I managed a Forest Service program, “Urban Connections,” aimed to connect urban dwellers in Eastern and Midwestern cities with their national forests. We sponsored dialogues with urban conservation and youth groups that led to collaborative projects … Read More

I’m Cindy C and I will be your guide for your next wilderness adventure. David and I have been exploring wild places since our early hikes with the University of Arizona Ramblers in Tucson decades ago. Wilderness Need is based … Read More

Quick access download of GPS route tracks (by state) from our wilderness visits. These tracks were recorded with Garmin GPS device. Tracks for some wilderness visits were either lost for not recorded; nothing is listed here for these cases even … Read More

Quick access to many of our wilderness visits by state; a KMZ file of backpack route can be downloaded for display (and limited but easy GIS manipuation) in 3-dimensional Google Earth software (free). Arizona California Georgia Idaho Maryland Nevada New … Read More

Cindy Chojnacky Manager Wilderness Need Association

Wilderness Need Association  FOUNDED:  May 25, 2018A non-profit organization registered with the State of Idaho BACKSTORY: After uncommon career journey encompassing journalism, science, Forest Service management, international and local forestry consulting, and a few vain attempts to ally with non-government … Read More