RENEGADE RAMBLE. Day 18: Family and The Preserve
Total Distance Thus Far: 118.2 Miles
I am seeking $20 donations for each mile but will accept any amount: ProtectOurPreserve.org/donate. We only need another $900 to meet our goal of $25,000 by the end of July!
Logan Conway and Lily Conway had an early swim meet this morning, so no hiking for me today. I consider the McDowell Sonoran Preserve to be their inheritance; this is a primary motivation for me in donating my time and energy toward Protect Our Preserve.
We are an outdoor family, and we have raised our children in the McDowell Mountains. The family photograph (attached) was taken on Logan’s sixth birthday. His only wish was to hike Sunrise Peak with his family. Lily, then four and a half, was game.
My husband, Court, grew up mountain biking in the McDowells with his father and his brothers. As soon as he could, Court bought the whole family Mountain bikes; we’ve spent countless weekends riding as a family.
Back in the early 2000s, Court and I met in Durango, Colorado while bouldering (rock climbing with no ropes close to the ground). While in Durango, I was blessed to count Leisa Hust, Jeffrey Berman, and John Whitney as friends. As young activists, they helped to spearhead an ongoing campaign to Save the HD Mountains near Durango from mining. They ran the campaign on a shoestring budget with a ton of heart and generosity with their time. I still admire their consciousness at such a young age.
http://www.sanjuancitizens.org/protect-hd-mountains
Unfortunately, while they were fighting, I was clueless to their efforts. Years later, they generously invited me to their annual campout and celebration of another year without mining. I still wish I could have been part of the fight. Please don’t allow yourself to be left out of all the fun we’re having now. Get involved!
More hiking tomorrow!
If you’d like to hike a leg with me, or if you have ideas of how ProtectOurPreserve.org might raise additional money or awareness, message me today.