"There is no shortage of water in the desert but exactly the right amount, a perfect ratio of water to rock, of water to sand, ensuring that wide, free, open, generous spacing among plants and animals, homes and towns and cities, which makes the arid west so different from any other part of the nation. There is no lack of water here, unless you try to establish a city where no city should be." — Edward Abbey Desert Solitaire: A Season in the Wilderness
"…love nature for what it is, rather than what we can take from it." — Barbara Kingsolver Small Wonder
"The freedom to do as we choose is essential to the nature and history of climbing—those who can do, do. That involves the burden of personal responsibility, and is a tremendous part of what we love about climbing. Whether or not that freedom is sustainable in this day and age is another question. … Since we are left to our own devices with the freedom of climbing, what do our actions say about us?" — Kelly Cordes The Tower: A Chronicle of Climbing and Controversy on Cerro Torre
"We are animals. We, like the otter, can digest the flesh of smelt in our gut and can roll to our backs, hands clutched over our chests. We, like the smelt, come to the edge of the sea to live and we scatter when there is fear. We lick our fingers clean, sleep when we must, and dream when we sleep, like any animal. We are also animals who are taking up an incredible amount of space for our size." — Craig Childs The Animal Dialogues: Uncommon Encounters in the Wild
"Paradise found is paradise lost." — Edward Wilson The Future of Life
"The mountains do not exist for our amusement. They owe us nothing, and they ask nothing of us." — The Freedom of the Hills
"The drive was long and pleasant. Open stretches allow the mind to wander. What happens in the high desert where no one trespasses? Are there places where the ground squirrels and rattlesnakes have never had to hide from a human? But even on the most remote stretches of the road, there were signs of the carelessness and irreverence of man. After driving without seeing another car for an eternity, we pulled over to stretch our legs. There, caught in the gnarled branches of a sage brush, was a Lays chip bag. Half buried in the sandy ground, a dark beer bottle sat forgotten. These signs of ingratitude beg some deeper questioning about selfishness. The person who tosses the bottle out of the window is acting selfishly: “I’m don’t with this and I don’t want it near me anymore.” And further: “I don’t care to consider what happens to this item after it passes from my hand.” An inability to see beyond one’s body and one’s moment is a sad and pervasive trend amongst humans." — Clea Partridge Stay Wild Magazine, Winter 2018, "Alvord Desert, Oregon"
"It’s easy for us to take [national parks] for granted because we didn’t have to fight for [them]. Our generation was born into the park system, and hopefully it will be here for the next, but not without a fight. Vested interests would love to drill, tap, frack, or graze it, and they are paying lots of lobbyists to do so. So next time you see a Sequoia, or a Redwood, or a Joshua Tree, or a Saguaro, don’t forget these things can easily be taken away if we don’t fight back. Anyone who has truly been in love knows it’s a constant battle." — Jeff Edwards Stay Wild Magazine, Summer 2016, "Perfect Excuse"
"We are shaped and fashioned by what we love." — Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
"I stand for what I stand on." — Edward Abbey
"We abuse land because we regard it as a commodity belonging to us. When we see land as a community to which we belong, we may begin to use it with love and respect." — Aldo Leopold A Sand County Almanac: And Sketches Here and There
"I’m a spokesperson not only for myself and my people but for those that aren’t able to speak for themselves. And that’s the land, the water, the air, and the animals. They’re not able to speak for themselves or advocate." — Regina Lopez-Whiteskunk
"Even when touring, there are no free tickets. We need to speak up and build a collective voice and presence through community involvement. Instead of reacting to policy, it’s time to begin shaping it." — Anthony Pavkovich Backcountry Magazine, Issue 125
"The biggest challenge we face is shifting human consciousness, not saving the planet. The planet doesn’t need saving, we do." — Xiuhtezcatl Martinez
"The living world is dying; the natural economy is crumbling beneath our busy feet. We have been too self-absorbed to foresee the long-term consequences of our actions, and we will suffer a terrible loss unless we shake off our delusions and move quickly to a solution." — Edward Wilson The Future of Life
"If people sat outside and looked at the stars each night, I bet they’d live a lot differently. When you look into infinity, you realize that there are more important things than what people do all day." — Bill Watterson Calvin and Hobbs
"I wonder how [children] will imagine the infinite when they have never seen how the stars fill a dark night sky." — Barbara Kingsolver Small Wonder
"The wilderness holds answers to questions man has not yet learned to ask." — Nancy Newhall
"We save what we love and we love what we know." — George Wendt
"Now I see that everyone’s values hold weight, and that there’s a rational argument behind every kind of use. No one is really in the wrong, there’s just not enough water for them all to be right." — Heather Hansman Downriver: Into the Future of Water in the West
