3 min read

Anneka Williams is a writer and climate scientist who is originally from Vermont’s Mad River Valley. She currently serves as the policy director for Winter Wildlands Alliance.

Growing up in New England instilled in me a deep appreciation for trees. In the summers my family would hike sections of trail all over the state, relishing the shade provided by a dense, leafy canopy of sugar maple, beech and birch trees. In the winter, the trees would shed their leaves and my friends and I would go find hidden powder stashes, carving quick turns between tight glades.

While trees feel like an abundant resource in Vermont today, forests haven’t always been
plentiful in this part of the country. In the 17th century, early European settlers established the foundation for a booming logging industry across the Northeast.

As the number of settlers grew through the 18th and 19th centuries, forests were cleared and converted to agricultural land and much of the region lost its major old growth forests, shifting lumber operations west because there simply weren’t enough trees left. Over the last century, New England forests have recovered through practices aimed at balancing timber harvesting with conservation and other uses, but much of New England is a patchwork of roads and very few large roadless areas are left.

The roadless areas that remain are vital resources for outdoor recreation and watershed
protection. But they are currently under threat. Last June, the Trump administration’s U.S. Department of Agriculture moved to rescind the Roadless Rule under the guise of more local forest control and wildfire management.

The Roadless Rule is a piece of federal policy enacted in 2001. It protects more than 58 million acres of “inventoried roadless areas” — pieces of undeveloped land within the national forest system that remain in their natural, undeveloped state. These places offer abundant opportunities for outdoor recreation in all seasons, including undeveloped terrain that makes human-powered winter recreation some of the best in the country, while also protecting clean watersheds and natural ecosystem qualities.

While the rescission of the Roadless Rule doesn’t automatically greenlight logging and road development, it does remove an important layer of protection that has implications for the character of New England’s wild, unroaded lands and for backcountry winter recreationists.

New England is home to two national forests: the Green Mountain National Forest (GMNF) in Vermont and the White Mountain National Forest (WMNF) in New Hampshire and western Maine. GMNF, which is approximately 400,000 acres total, holds approximately 80,000 acres of inventoried roadless areas. WMNF is approximately 800,000 acres and encompasses an estimated 368,000 acres of inventoried roadless areas.

Collectively that’s roughly 448,000 acres of roadless areas across New England. These areas encompass lots of terrain for winter recreation, including world-class backcountry skiing in Jefferson Ravine, the Wildcat Valley Trail, maintained backcountry glades around Baldface Knob and sections of snowmobile trails.

When I think about roadless areas in New England, I picture quiet glades nestled in heavily forested areas, lovingly maintained and enjoyed by local communities. I picture second-growth forests that have worked hard to reach their current density. I picture the places I visit on my skis or snowshoes in search of untracked powder, wild experiences and the stillness of a forest stand in the middle of winter.

These are the places that create a community of people around shared outdoor experiences and that provide the backdrop for photographs that define entire regions. They are the places I think about when I think of home.

At a moment filled with attempts to sell off our public lands and dramatic cuts in funding and staff to the agency we rely on to manage our national forests, having a policy like the Roadless Rule to protect these places is more important than ever.

Intact forests are on the chopping block and it’s up to all of us to use our voices to speak for these places during the Roadless Rule Draft Environmental Impact Statement comment period. I hope that if you’re reading this you will reflect on what untrammeled forests mean for you, how outdoor recreation has played a role in your life and join me in standing up for those places and experiences now and for future generations.

The Forest Service is holding a public comment period on the Roadless Rule right now. Submit your comment before Oct. 6.