Wilderness--it has always been at the core of the Sierra Club mission. Wilderness has just received a boost with adoption of as a Sierra Club national priority campaign. Our outings program, started in 1901 to educate and inspire people to fight for wilderness. The newest Sierra Club outings--National Activist outings--carry this outreach step further: they not only show off wild areas that need help; they train participants to become strong advocates for preservation on their return home!

Vicky Hoover, chair National Activist Outings

This summer's activist outings are directly tied to our national Wildlands Protection campaign. Become a leader in this vital effort by taking one of these three routes to wildland protection: in Maine, Nevada, Florida. Wildlands are everywhere, east and west! At the end, a 4th trip deserves honorable mention: celebrating the 75th anniversary of America's first wilderness area!

In the Heart of Wild Nevada

A monumental wilderness campaign is unfolding in this unknown state. Nevada has a greater proportion of its land publically owned than any other state. But it also has the smallest amount of designated wilderness of any western state. You can help change that! Join us to learn first hand about wild Nevada's diverse, mountainous terrain. This 8 day car camping venture, with an optional overnight backpack, explores unprotected Forest Service and Bureau of Land Management areas in central Nevada. Longtime wilderness activists Vicky Hoover and Marge Sill will share with you the hidden, real Nevada and the need to keep Nevada forever wild.

Experience the variety! We'll travel at the edge of Nevada's vast roadless areas, from the marshes of the Stillwater Wildlife Refuge to the majestic snow covered Toiyabe range, from the broad expanses of the Antelope and Park Ranges, to the stark volcanic buttresses of Morey Peak and the Hot Creek range. Bristlecone pines and aspen thickets will mingle with lush wildflowers. Trip #99101A, June 26 - July 3, 1999: Cost $390.

Vision for the Maine Woods

A bold new initiative is gaining momentum in the once-vast, unbroken forests of Maine--to restore these to magnificence in a great new national park. Never has a national park vision been so focused on restoration of former wilderness. Our Maine Woods activist outing offers a unique canoe trip through the heart of the proposed national park. Activist leaders Joan Saxe and Ken Cline will put you in the forefront of leadership in this flagship campaign.

You will canoe down the West Branch of the Penobscot River, following the path traced by Henry Thoreau through this "immeasurable forest with ...countless lakes...." Your itinerary includes both pris tine and dammed areas. A car camping and hiking finale will permit a climb of Big Spencer Mountain for a view of millions of acres of the spectacular North Woods. Trip #99102A, July 25-31, 1999. Cost $550.

Florida Keys Marine Ecosystem Workshop

A much different campaign is underway in southern Florida, where the extraordinary ecosystems of the Everglades and Florida Keys are threatened as never before. Based in Key Largo, the Everglades to the Coral Reefs activist outing is under the guidance of experienced activists Vivian and Otto Spielbichler. The week-long Marine Lab program features classroom training and first hand sea encounters with snorkel, mask, and microscope.

Visited by thousands of tourists, the complex and interrelated wetland and coral reef ecology is understood by few. But this marine wildland deserves protection no less than a purely terrestrial one. Understanding is essential to protection, so treat yourself to our intensive course with "classrooms" in the coral reefs, mangrove estuaries, sea grass beds, and the "back country" of Everglades National Park. (This trip is part of our water issues campaign as well as the wildlands protection campaign.) Trip #99103A, Aug. 22-28, 1999. Cost $580.

For more details, call activist outing subcommittee chair Vicky Hoover at
(415) 977-5527 or e-mail her at <vicky.hoover@sierraclub.org>. Ask Vicky how to become a Chapter coordinator for the issue on the trip you choose, and how to work with your Chapter for potential partial funding support for your trip expenses.

Gila Wilderness Outing

Here's an extra special wilderness outing that deserves your attention. Celebrate the 75th Anniversary of the first wilderness area in the U.S. by backpacking in the Gila Wilderness with veteran leader Bob Madsen. Inspired by Aldo Leopold, the Forest Service set aside this preeminent Arizona area in 1924, and now a Forest Service Ranger will accompany this spring trip. Evening "camp fires" will discuss current wilderness topics and wilderness philosophy, in the spirit of Aldo Leopold. The grand finale is a ceremony on 3 June at Gila Cliff Dwelling, followed by an appropriate service project the following day. Trip #99115, Gila Wilderness 75th Anniversary Backpack. May 29-June 5. Cost $615.

For a trip brochure and application form, call the Sierra Club Outing Department's 24-hour voice mail at
(415) 977-5522 or check the Sierra Club website at <www.sierraclub.org/outings>. To apply, send completed form with $100 deposit ($50 for Nevada trip) to Sierra Club Outings, Dept. #05618, San Francisco, CA 94139. Or, call (415) 977-5588 (8:30 to 5 pm PST) to place a credit card deposit. You may FAX a credit card deposit to (415) 977-0636.

Adventure and advocacy go hand-in-hand! Join the Wildlands Protection conservation campaign while you enjoy breathtaking wilderness. As John Muir said, "The best way to convince people to defend wild areas is to take them out and let them see wild splendor for themselves." Sign up today!