arachadillo
arachadillo's JournalCoronavirus and Outdoor Recreation
Going for a walk in the great outdoors is a great way to manage stress while social distancing.
Results are mixed over "safe" outdoor places. For example, WHYY in Philadelphia reports,
"Nature is a great place for social distancing. It’s easy in a big park, like FDR or Fairmount Park, to keep six feet apart from other people, as the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention suggest. And there’s not a lot of surfaces touched by a lot of people in a forest."
https://whyy.org/articles/public-health-experts-parks-are-a-safer-bet-in-the-age-of-coronavirus/
OTOH, beware of local park closures. For example, on the West Coast, Los Angeles is closing all recreation centers. However, "Outdoor park space, amenities, golf courses and restrooms accessible to the outdoors will remain open during regular operating hours, according to a statement."
https://losangeles.cbslocal.com/2020/03/14/recreation-centers-closed-coronavirus/
personally would not want to use common rest rooms cuz the virus is kind of sticky in those environments.
Looks as if the point is that outdoor recreation, away from most people, is a good way to break the monotony of social distancing. Check before you go cuz local areas might be closed.
HALF OF THE US POPULATION DOES NOT PARTICIPATE IN OUTDOOR RECREATION AT ALL
Outdoor Foundation, the philanthropic arm of Outdoor Industry Association (OIA), released the latest Outdoor Participation Report, showing about half the U.S. population participated in outdoor recreation at least once in 2018, including hunting, hiking, camping, fishing, canoeing among many more outdoor activities. Unfortunately, the report highlights an alarming trend that just under half the U.S. population does not participate in outdoor recreation at all.
Here are some highlights:
Less than 20 percent of Americans recreated outside at least once a week.
Americans went on one billion fewer outdoor outings in 2018 than they did in 2008.
Of the people who report they go outside, 63 percent report they go outside within 10 miles of their home.
Kids went on 15 percent fewer annual outings in 2018 than they did in 2012.
https://outdoorindustry.org/resource/2019-outdoor-participation-report/
Dissing on the Outdoors
Outdoor Foundation, the philanthropic arm of Outdoor Industry Association (OIA), released the latest Outdoor Participation Report, showing about half the U.S. population participated in outdoor recreation at least once in 2018, including hunting, hiking, camping, fishing, canoeing among many more outdoor activities. Unfortunately, the report highlights an alarming trend that just under half the U.S. population does not participate in outdoor recreation at all.
Here are some highlights:
Less than 20 percent of Americans recreated outside at least once a week.
Americans went on one billion fewer outdoor outings in 2018 than they did in 2008.
Of the people who report they go outside, 63 percent report they go outside within 10 miles of their home.
Kids went on 15 percent fewer annual outings in 2018 than they did in 2012.
https://outdoorindustry.org/resource/2019-outdoor-participation-report/
Free Admission to State Parks: Washington
Remember back when it didn’t cost anything to visit a state park for the day? A senior Republican in the Washington Legislature says the state’s budget surplus should make it possible for park access to be free again.
Eastern Washington Sen. Mark Schoesler has drafted a bill to eliminate state park access and parking fees, effective this summer. The Senate minority leader said now is a good time to go back to free day use because the state can afford it.
“Every taxpayer from my little grandchildren to my 84-year-old father in a walker can and do use our state parks,” Schoesler said in an interview Friday. “So it gives back something to every taxpayer that they can enjoy.”
Schoesler needs support from the Democratic majority in the Washington Legislature to advance his idea. It’s uncertain if he will get it.
“That would be nice,” said House Appropriations Committee Chair Timm Ormsby, a Spokane Democrat, when asked about eliminating day-use fees. “State parks are wildly popular.”
https://www.opb.org/news/article/washington-state-park-entry-parking-fees-free-summer/
Big Year on a Unicycle
A birding enthusiast is traveling across the country on a quest to see at least 500 species in 2020.
On a unicycle.
John Patten Moss of Augusta, Georgia, “wanted to have an adventure,” and he’s got a very big year mapped out.
To plan his route, he conducted research through online birding groups to figure out the most productive places to be at different points during the year. Based on that information, he decided to start his year in Washington and head down the coast from here before turning eastward.
On Jan. 1, Moss officially got rolling at the Billy Frank Jr. Nisqually National Wildlife Refuge, northeast of Olympia. By the time he arrived in Aberdeen on Thursday afternoon, he had already recorded 79 bird species.
He’s spending nights at hostels or with members of the Warm Showers Community — a worldwide network of of private homeowners who are willing to host long-haul cyclists passing through. He spent Thursday night at a Warm Showers home in Cosmopolis.
Moss is looking forward to spending some time on the Long Beach Peninsula before he leaves Washington behind. He hopes to make it home by Christmas — with a lengthy bird list and plenty of stories to tell.
Virginia joins national outdoor recreation network
Virginia — along with Maine, Michigan, Nevada, and New Mexico — recently joined a network of states that have signed the Outdoor Recreation Industry Confluence Accords. The move is recognition of the importance of outdoor recreation to the Commonwealth and local economies, as well as its positive impact on our quality of life.
The Confluence Accords stress the importance of conservation and stewardship, economic development, public health and wellness, and education. Thirteen states have now signed the accords, including North Carolina.
“From the Appalachian Mountains to the Atlantic Ocean, every region of Virginia is home to unique outdoor assets and recreation opportunities which are sought out by millions of travelers each year,” said Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam. “We’re pleased to join the community of states that have recognized the importance of this industry as a driver of economic development and quality of life.”
Part of the accords require participating states to appoint directors of outdoor recreation and fund their operations.
Outdoor recreation is an increasingly important part of economic development efforts across Virginia, especially near Virginia’s national forests and parks. The state’s outdoor recreation industry employs almost 200,000 people across the state and contributes $21.9 billion dollars in consumer spending annually to the state’s economy. These tallies include activities ranging from picnicking and day hiking to fly-fishing, mountain biking, and backcountry camping.
Green Nature
No child Left Inside: Brrrrrrr in Minnesota
In this recent series following the news on outdoor recreation around the United States, Minnesota is following a well worn path.
The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources put out a call for its first round of No Child Left Inside grants in October.
The requests were modest — schools, nonprofits and community organizations could ask for up to $5,000 to support programs that get kids outdoors — but the response was overwhelming.
"Within six minutes,” the DNR’s Jeff Ledermann said, “we had 200 applications."
Ledermann oversees the new program as a supervisor in the DNR’s fish and wildlife outreach office. He said the agency received a flood of applications in just a few days, leaving his team with the unenviable task of deciding which 60 of the 450 pitches for everything from showshoes to an orienteering course would get funding.
Many of the grant requests were for purchasing equipment, like cross-country skis.
"But the majority of the projects were really just trying to do classes outside, right at their school, right on their campus,” Ledermann said, “which was really encouraging."
Lawmakers allocated $1.2 million to the program last year, for outdoor recreation and education projects, and to fund school-based outdoor sports like trapshooting and fishing teams.
The effort garnered bipartisan support because it has broad appeal: Research shows that spending time outdoors improves kids’ physical and mental health; helps foster a sense of environmental stewardship; and it’s good for the state’s bottom line, at a time when Minnesota has seen a decline in hunting and fishing license sales.
https://www.mprnews.org/story/2020/01/09/no-child-left-inside-small-grants-for-getting-kids-outdoors-in-high-demand
Outdoor Recreation: Show Me the Money
Note: The map for this report is a great place to begin comparing states
New prototype outdoor recreation statistics show state value added, compensation, and employment for all 50 states and the District of Columbia. These statistics show that the relative size of the outdoor recreation economy ranged from 5.4 percent of GDP for Hawaii to 1.2 percent for the District of Columbia in 2017.
Hawaii, Montana top the list. Florida not far behind on the East Coast. Maine and New England also economically dependent on outdoor recreation opportunities.
Arts, entertainment, recreation, accommodation, and food services was the largest contributor to outdoor recreation for 26 states and the District of Columbia.
Retail trade was the largest contributor to outdoor recreation value added in 17 states, including Texas, Washington, and Ohio.
Manufacturing was the largest sector for outdoor recreation value added in Indiana, Wisconsin, Louisiana, and Kansas
Green Nature
Outdoor Recreation in California
Always a creative way to reinvent a town
Colfax has more to offer than a cup of coffee on the way up to the mountains. That’s part of the message behind a new branding campaign designed to bring visitors to the historic city.
Colfax is going through rapid development, according to City Manager Wes Heathcock. It currently has a 69-room Best Western hotel under construction, and a new 8.4-acre commercial center with another hotel in the planning stages. Two new residential developments are also in the planning stages, which will add 74 new single-family homes. A 100-site RV park is in the works, too.
“This is growth and development this community hasn’t seen in 30 years,” Heathcock said.
He said now is the time to try to capture more tourists and tourism dollars for the city, which is home to about 2,000 residents.
Green Nature
Black and Yellow Garden Spider
The black and yellow garden spider ranks as one of the most common garden spiders across the country.
Quite the coincidence. I also got a picture of one spitting silk out of the spineretts onto a bee. it was when I first started out in photography and was very excited to get an action pick.
If you get a more advanced camera, the best advise is to learn about shutter speed. Being able to set the shutter speed will enable you to capture an image in the blink of an eye. So, for example, set to 1600, the eye would blink in 1/1600 of a second.
Green Nature
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Hometown: Oregon
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Member since: Thu Dec 17, 2009, 03:03 AM
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