My North Cascades Story - At Home in the Methow

By Jay Lucas, Executive Director MVSTA

My North Cascades story begin on the dry eastern slopes of the Range, in the community of the Methow Valley.  My life is intimately tied to walking, riding and skiing and managing the trails that begin right out my back door. The popular Methow Valley Sport Trails Association valley-bottom trails that draw mountain bikers, cross-country skiers and hikers to the Methow, act as connectors to a system of Forest Service and wilderness trails that ultimately lead to some of the most remote wilderness areas in the lower 48. To be honest, I rarely make it out to those remote locations these days, but I take solace in knowing they are there - that I could literally walk there like they are an extension of my own home.  

The trails I most often wander these days are the ones that my golden canine side-kick, Ginger, can join me on.  There are endless playgrounds for dogs and the people who love to follow their pooches around in our National Forests and Wilderness Areas. While I am busy taking in the macro (big views, route finding, the weather), Ginger is focused on the micro (sticks, squirrels, stinky carcasses).  In the summertime, we end our adventures with a trip to the edge of the Methow River to cool down.  The icy, crystal clear water connects me and, all of the Methow, to the high crest of the Cascades - a daily reminder that I live a privileged life thanks to my proximity to wilderness.

The Methow Valley Sport Trails Association, the Methow Conservancy, private landowners and countless individuals, have been tag-teaming for the past 30 years, to establish trail easements, conservation easements and thoughtful planning in the Methow Valley.  The result is a landscape that honors wildlife migration, farming, recreational pursuits and a sustainable economy - all in one place.