Originally from India, I am a graduate student at University of Rochester for the last three years. The three years in which, the Adirondacks has opened a new world for me by allowing me to experience Nature intimately, finding joy in muddy trails, hopping over rocks and bushes than guided tours, trade the comforts of a hotel for a tent in the open. And I feel that each and every part of this wonderful place needs to be protected to the best of our abilities.
My knowledge about Boreas
Ponds is only theoretical and yet, I strongly believe that it should be
classified as a complete wilderness zone. Much of the world is already tamed by
humans or tailored to our needs or at the very least affected, adversely in
most instances, by our actions. Let there be one more place, a tiny addition to
an already shrinking list, which we can call as truly wild. The rewards, that
come from a journey into the wild, to witness Nature in its prime, will far
outweigh the benefits of a motorized access. I am sure Boreas Ponds will still
be beautiful with roads, dams, motorboats and the ensuing crowd- but is that
enough? It might come at a cost to the land, the wildlife, the flora and it
will be too late before we can evaluate the damages.
One of the reasons
frequently put forward for making Boreas Ponds accessible is that there has
been continuous human activity for long periods in the past and hence it is not
deemed fit to be a wilderness area. Apart from the fact that this wetland tract
is contiguous to other protected wilderness areas, we should not underestimate
the healing power of Nature, even without human assistance. Let us think of Chernobyl
that witnessed the catastrophic nuclear accident, one of humanity’s worst
blunders. Now that the place is deserted and left on its own, Nature has been
reclaiming it over time. Human footprints at one point of time don’t
necessitate the need to prolong it forever, especially if we can avoid it, if
our senses and understanding mature over time and make us see everything in a
different light.
The other reason put forth
is that the wilderness supporters are elitists that do not take into
considerations the constraints faced by elderly and/or disabled people. I would
beg to differ as I feel that handicap is not only a physical aspect, it has a
psychological and social element too, among others. For example, I would like
to stand atop Mt. Everest one day but I know that I don’t have the mental
courage (or the physical stamina) to undertake such a venture, and this is
leaving aside the concerns of my family if I were to ever take such a step. But
I would never want a highway that will take me to the highest point on the
Earth as that will negate all that the Everest stands for. If Boreas is
classified as wilderness, probably I will never carry a canoe all the way to
the ponds even though I would love to paddle the waters with the beautiful
reflections of the high peaks. But the complete protection of these wetlands
will enable such pristine beauty to be preserved which in turn will let others
take in the joy that I would want to experience. We all have our limitations
and we cannot hold on to everything and it is not elitist to have an understanding
of our time and place. It is said that ‘A
thing of beauty is joy forever’. Let us give our best to preserve the wild
beauty and it will reward us with happiness in the generations to come.
To quote the ancient Indian
proverb- ‘We do not inherit the Earth
from our Ancestors, we borrow it from our children.’- do we want to be
defaulters? Do we pay back partially? Or we return in full to the best of our
capacity? Let us not test Nature’s resilience but help protect it. Let us
choose perseverance over convenience, wisdom over technicality and above all,
wilderness over familiarity and domestication.
P.S. Some useful links for
further reading-
News about APA’s various
proposals- http://www.adirondackalmanack.com/2016/10/apa-sets-forth-three-options-boreas-ponds.html
The group that made
us aware of many things - http://adirondackwilderness.org/
An excellent article
by Bill Ingersoll of Adirondacks Wilderness Advocates- http://adirondackwilderness.org/case-wild-boreas/
Brendan Wiltse, spreading
consciousness through photography among other ways https://www.facebook.com/brendan.wiltse.photography/?hc_ref=SEARCH&fref=nf
What we can do, sign the
petition at- http://adirondackwilderness.org/take-action/?nocache=1