August 5, 2025

Really enjoying the “temporary” (disappearing?) newsletter Natural Conversations. Today’s topic of access to nature especially has me torn between easier access to these special places, and making people work to get there. Having just visited Yellowstone National Park this summer, what a difficult trip it would have been for our family, had there not been the infrastructure - roads, hotel, food - within the park itself.

This passage especially had me thinking:

There are multiple issues with the current way of accessibility within national parks. Most lie in the realm of environmental devastation: most everything disrupts the natural ecosystem, whether it be paved roads and parking lots or cabins and information buildings. Even the trail markers and signage. Alas, some of these conveniences are necessary. Roads in and out of places will always be needed — though they need not be paved, nine out of ten times — and an information building should be present, if only to educate visitors on the park’s history and temptations. The rest? Damn it all. A single parking lot shall reside, taking up space for no more than one thousand vehicles of standard size — no oversized trucks taller than man. A single dirt road shall lead to this parking lot; when it inevitably floods out, no admittance or exit is permitted. What a shame to be stuck in nature.

From this visitor’s center shall branch multiple trails, three of which leading to campgrounds to accommodate the visitors. The campgrounds will be simple, with no running water or flush toilets. You either shit in the woods, or you hold it until you are home. There will be no electrical hookups, no space for RVs or camper vans. A tent will suffice you fine — you shouldn’t be in it for much else past sleep and the occasional fuck, anyway. Also there will be provided a picnic table and a campfire ring, for we all deserve a luxury or two.