Sixty years ago, President Lyndon Johnson signed legislation establishing Canyonlands National Park as a new national park after years of activism by people like Bates Wilson, the first superintendent of Arches.
To mark the anniversary, the nonprofit Friends of Arches and Canyonlands, in collaboration with the Moab Museum and the Canyonlands Natural History Association, is holding a week-long series of events beginning on Thursday, September 12.
Throughout the week, a scavenger hunt in Canyonlands will challenge people to connect and explore the park — the first 200 participants to complete the hunt will win a special souvenir.
On Friday, the celebrations will include a fascinating ranger talk by Jessie Carver, focusing on the first non-indigenous women to navigate the full length of the Colorado River. Carver’s presentation will tell the story of their epic journey from Greener Canyon through Canyonlands to Lake Powell.
“This is one of my favorite talks,” said Friends of Arches and Canyonlands Outreach Organizer Alexandra Gabrielle. “I’m excited to share it with more people since the story is really fascinating.”
Though America’s national park system is well-loved, the system only receives less than one-sixteenth of one percent of the Federal budget. Park partner organizations like the Friends of Arches and Canyonlands, formerly called the Bates Wilson Legacy Foundation, fill the funding gaps by raising money through grants and donations from park supporters.
“Park partners help on projects where the budget doesn’t allow or where the budget might take a long time to get something approved,” Gabrielle said. “Sometimes, there’s an urgent need for something and that’s when we can step in.”
Recent projects for Canyonlands included a new search-and-rescue vehicle for the park. The Friends was able to raise over $60,000 for the Rescue One vehicle, which will be at an ice cream social celebration on September 13. A brief Q&A session with the search and rescue team will follow a screening of a short film about the truck.
“We want to connect to more and more people in the Moab area and let them know about the work we do and how they can help out the parks we all love,” said Gabrielle. “These places are amazing and deserve our care.”
For more information, follow Friends of Arches and Canyonlands on social media.
