{"id":10592,"date":"2019-07-11T14:31:44","date_gmt":"2019-07-11T19:31:44","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/pnts.org\/new\/?p=10592"},"modified":"2019-07-23T08:03:22","modified_gmt":"2019-07-23T13:03:22","slug":"experience-the-heart-of-history-on-americas-national-trails","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/pnts.org\/new\/experience-the-heart-of-history-on-americas-national-trails\/","title":{"rendered":"Experience the heart of history on America’s national trails"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"\"<\/p>\n

Lewis and Clark National Historic Trail. Photo Credit: Margaret Gorski<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

I am Margaret Gorski, a volunteer leader with the Lewis and Clark\u00a0Trail<\/span>\u00a0Heritage Foundation.<\/p>\n

In 1991, I was a U.S. Forest Service employee sitting in a circle of Nez Perce elders high in the Bitterroot Mountains of Idaho. I looked across a vast jumble of tree covered mountains. I saw trees, rocks and ice, flower-covered meadows, and birds soaring overhead. I imagined what it must have been like for Lewis and Clark as they struggled through these \u201cterrible mountains\u201d to the Pacific.<\/p>\n

From another perspective, however, the Nez Perce elders told spirit stories of how this land gave life to their great grandparents who had thrived here for centuries. While I looked over the mountains, I used my mind and thought about land management; they used their hearts and thought about the souls of their ancestors.<\/p>\n

That was my \u201cah-ha\u201d moment of why the\u00a0national<\/span>\u00a0historic\u00a0trails<\/span>\u00a0are important. To see the land through the eyes and hearts of others can be enlightening. To retrace the life-threatening journey of pioneers searching for a better life can be inspiring. To know what this land was like before it was changed forever gives us a yardstick to measure land management \u201csuccess.\u201d A\u00a0national<\/span>\u00a0historic\u00a0trail<\/span>\u00a0is a window into the past, preserving places where we can learn from those who came before us.<\/p>\n

There are 19\u00a0national<\/span>\u00a0historic\u00a0trails<\/span>\u00a0and 11\u00a0national<\/span>\u00a0scenic\u00a0trails<\/span>\u00a0that collectively tell our American story.\u00a0Please help us preserve them. All it takes is to become a supporter of the\u00a0Partnership<\/span>\u00a0for the\u00a0National<\/span>\u00a0Trails<\/span>\u00a0System<\/span>\u00a0with a simple donation of $50 \u2013 or more!<\/strong><\/u><\/a><\/p>\n

Gratefully,<\/p>\n

Margaret Gorski<\/p>\n

BECOME A SUPPORTER TODAY<\/a><\/div>\n
<\/div>\n

The\u00a0National<\/span>\u00a0Trails<\/span>\u00a0System<\/span>\u00a0includes 30\u00a0national<\/span>\u00a0scenic and historic\u00a0trails<\/span>\u00a0and over 3,000\u00a0national<\/span>\u00a0recreation and rail\u00a0trails<\/span>.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

I am Margaret Gorski, a volunteer leader with the Lewis and Clark\u00a0Trail\u00a0Heritage Foundation. In 1991, I was a U.S. Forest Service employee sitting in a circle of Nez Perce elders high in the Bitterroot Mountains of Idaho. I looked across a vast jumble of tree… <\/p>\n

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