i am guessing that most of the folks who enjoy this great site love mountains and the beauty and “benefits” of mountain ecosystems that go way beyond the consumable resources they may seem to provide…
i was out last week for a short 50 miles in upper northeast tennessee (the roan mountain area) and was once again reminded what a treasure the appalachian mtns are!..
while crossing from carver’s gap over round bald, taking in the spectacular views of mountains as far as i could see (as well as the close-up viewing of the rare and very beautiful gray’s lily), i came across a “goatherd” (not a “shepherd”, as he informed me) who is also a botanist (baa-tanist) working on an environmental project with angor goats up there to help restore the delicate and slowly deteriorating balds…this made me soooo HAPPY!..
it’s exciting to meet folks like this (not to mention the MANY of the hiking community and it’s various organizations) who volunteer their time, efforts and money to protect, rather than destroy, our mountains!
if you have never heard about or viewed the devastating effects of mountaintop removal (for coal/electricity), i think as a mountain-lover you might be interested to learn more about this sad and dangerous practice…
soooo…i’m encouraging folks to take a look at “www.ilovemountains.org”…you’ll be saddened, amazed and perhaps inspired to take part in an effort to STOP MTR!
…and, oh yes…mr.“goatherd” gave me a pamphlet with info about his “save-the-balds” project (which the ATC supports, by the way)…to find out more about this VERY COOL “adopt-a-goat” plan you can visit www.appalachiantrail.org or contact jjudkins@appalachiantrail.org…
thanks to all my hiking friends/mountain lovers for hearing me out on this important subject…
maw-ee