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I know we said we were going to focus more on our sport with this newsletter, but there’s so much going on right now, climbing has taken a backseat at the moment. First, the elephant in the room. Things are seriously messed up. The government is backing down on supporting public lands, and we’re seeing an increase in openly racist, sexist, narrow-minded and dysfunctional discourse in the news and on social media.
I wondered how the Trump administration would affect the conservation work I’ve been involved in. A few weeks into this administration, it became clear that literally every issue I’ve worked on in recent years, from Bears Ears and the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge to Rambler Road and Oak Flat, is getting attacked.
Then, Elon Musk announced the DOGE layoffs of thousands of public lands employees across all agencies. As I heard the personal stories of the people who were laid off, I became increasingly sad and angry. I tried to figure out what it all meant. Will they close down the parks? Is the administration paving a path toward resource extraction in national parks under the caveat of an energy emergency? We are exporting more oil and gas than we ever have. The extraction companies have a record profit. Energy emergency? What bullshit. At first, I didn’t really feel like fighting. The American people had spoken, my values lost and nobody cared. For a while, I felt alone, watching as most of the country seemed to be stepping in line or staying quiet.
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One day, I saw the upside-down American flag—a symbol of distress—on El Capitan, the face that I love so much. The sight gave me goosebumps and made me feel a little less alone. I felt inspired but pondered why there wasn’t more of this. Then, protests started popping up at hundreds of locations. Thousands of people turned out—all in support of our national parks and public lands.
A few weeks later, I interviewed Nate Vince, the now-famous Yosemite locksmith who initiated the flag-hanging on El Cap, in person at Patagonia HQ. He is such a rad dude. I loved hearing about the adventure of lugging a 75-pound flag to the top of El Cap, putting it in place during the midday updrafts, and attaching haul bags to the bottom corners to fight the wind. It is an insane story in itself.
He went on the Jimmy Fallon show just before I interviewed him. When I asked him about it, he told me how crazy this all felt. “Nature Nate, going to the big city in his Toyota Sienna,” he laughed. He’s the perfect combination of a dirtbag and a humble government worker—a guy who just wanted a steady job with benefits, who loves Yosemite more than anywhere. But, he’s also got this intelligence and grit to him. That made me think he could, if he wanted to, be a leader of this moment of resistance.
When we talked, Nate gave some context to his personal experience and explained how these firings might affect things in Yosemite this summer. He agreed that this whole exercise is likely to just be a giant waste of money and time. Take the locksmith, for example. What happens now when a lock gets jammed in Yosemite? The park will have to call someone to drive hours from Fresno. They also fired the HVAC guy. Now, the park will have to hire a private company when repairs are needed on park infrastructure. Plus, we still don’t know how the timed entry will fare this summer, and the park has delayed campground reservations. Overall, signs point to the visitor experiences in our national parks being a total junk show in the coming months. That much is for sure.
So, where do we go from here? Yvon Chouinard likes to say, “The best cure for depression is action.” So, besides getting angry, maybe we’re going to have to pick up the slack. When taking on a big project in climbing, it can be easy to get overwhelmed and discouraged. But, instead of wallowing, I’ve found it’s important to celebrate the small breakthroughs in order to stay motivated. Facing the next four years of this administration will take a similar level of action and grit. If a locksmith and a handful of his climbing buddies can use their creativity and resources to start a movement, then why can’t everybody? It makes me proud that climbers are behind this flag movement, that climbers are using their skills and their platform (in this case, the famous face of El Cap) to stand up for what they believe in.
Since I started drafting this newsletter, the courts determined that the NPS firings were unlawful and Nate and thousands of other NPS employees have gotten their jobs back. We know the political landscape will continue to change quickly—certainly quicker than this newsletter goes out. But whatever happens next, it’s all hands on deck. Climbers are going to have to continue to step up. Nate’s advice is to, “Show respect. Make sure to follow the rules, treat your visit more like a backcountry experience. Don’t expect the park service to have the resources we have come to rely on.” This means we might have to rescue each other, pick up trash and clean the bathrooms. Support organizations like the
Yosemite Climbing Association, the
Access Fund, or the
American Alpine Club (every climber should be doing this anyway).
Climbing is so often a selfish and self-serving pursuit, and maybe that’s OK. It gives us a chance to be ourselves and to bond with one another. But maybe this time, we can use it for something bigger. What our public lands need right now is mass numbers of people showing their love. Talk to your neighbors, call your senators, join peaceful demonstrations. Ask yourself what you uniquely have to contribute. Get creative and speak up. It’s already started working.
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