We are so pleased to announce three new board members who have joined VWC: Ariel Johnson, Anders Reynolds, and Andrew Young. As you will see, these three bring a lot of the table. 
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​Ariel Johnson is a PhD student at Virginia Commonwealth University studying forest ecology, disturbance, and biogeochemistry. During her time receiving her B.S. in Environmental Science and Policy from the University of Maryland, College Park, she studied White Nose Syndrome in bats as a part of the wildlife ecology lab. Between undergrad and graduate school, Ariel worked for the National Park Service, Bureau of Land Management, Forest Service, and USGS working in partnerships, volunteer coordination and outreach, biological data collection, and wildland firefighting.

​As a Federal Legislative Director for Southern Environmental Law Center (SELC), Anders Reynolds has spent most of his career at the intersection of politics and environmental policy, additionally working with The Pew Charitable Trusts on U.S. public land protection and as a legislative director for a Member of Congress. He’s also served in the Obama administration as federal policy analyst at the Delta Regional Authority and has extensive federal and state campaign experience. As SELC’s federal legislative director, Anders builds and maintains working relationships with Members of Congress and their staffs, offering policy expertise and working with them to advance SELC’s conservation goals.

​Andrew Young is a Staff Attorney at Allegheny-Blue Ridge Alliance (ABRA), who focuses on public lands conservation, protecting endangered species, ensuring clean water, and ending Appalachia's reliance upon coal. Andrew leads ABRA’s campaign to improve public accessibility of critical environmental information and works in close collaboration with partner organizations to hold regulatory agencies accountable, using all tools from FOIA requests to litigation.

With these new additions to our already active board, we anticipate great things in the coming year. Our commitment to preserving wild landscapes in Virginia ensures that they remain places where nature thrives, providing secure homes for diverse plant and animal species. By safeguarding these areas, VWC contributes to the overall health of our environment and the well-being of both humans and wildlife.

From the Appalachian Trail Conservancy (ATC)
Current Conditions 10/3/2024, Updated at 2:42 PM. 
National Forest lands in North Carolina, Tennessee, and southwest Virginia that the A.T. passes through are closed. The states of North Carolina, Tennessee, and Virginia have declared a state of emergency. The entire Blue Ridge Parkway is closed (the parkway provides A.T. access in several places in central Virginia).

The ATC and National Park Service (NPS) recommends that hikers should postpone their trips to the southern A.T. until further notice (Georgia to Rockfish Gap, VA; NOBO miles 0.0 to 864.6). Although not all areas in this section are officially closed, there is still a risk of landslides in many areas, much of the A.T. in the south is inaccessible due to road closures, and emergency responders are at max capacity. There also may be dangers on the Trail from the storm like downed trees, severe erosion, washed out bridges, and swollen creeks and streams. Many devastated towns along the A.T. also have emergency orders in place excluding visitors so they can prioritize recovery.  

The ATC is a private nonprofit and does not have the authority to close sections of the A.T. However, for the reasons above, we are urging hikers to avoid the entire A.T. from Springer Mountain to Rockfish Gap (NOBO miles 0.0 to 864.6), regardless of formal closures.  

Please postpone your A.T. hike until the situation improves and damage can be assessed. 

Update for SOBOs, Flip Floppers, and section hikers: We have received reports that shuttles around Rockfish Gap are booked or unavailable, and that some roads nearby are closed. Hikers heading southbound (SOBO) who are planning to exit the Trail should consider leaving at Front Royal, VA instead (at the northern end of Shenandoah National Park).

Please note that the ATC has received confirmation from federal partners that areas listed as closed in the link below are officially closed. Updates to agency websites may be delayed because agency staff are either themselves in disaster zones or are focused on recovery. 

More updated information can be found at this link:
GA-VA – Hurricane Helene UPDATED 10/3/24 | Appalachian Trail Conservancy

Wednesday, October 16 
Shenandoah Mountain Nature Walk
10 a.m.  - Meet at Confederate Breastworks on Rt. 250.
We will hike along the crest of Shenandoah Mountain, in and out along the Shenandoah Mountain Trail. Easy round trip of four miles. Space limited. 
Click here to Register


Wednesday, November 20 
Shenandoah Mountain Hike
10 a.m. - Meet at Confederate Breastworks on Rt. 250
We will hike along the crest of Shenandoah Mountain, along the Shenandoah Mountain Trail, then follow Jerry's Run Trail into Ramseys Draft Wilderness, to the Sexton Shelter site, then turn around. Round trip of six miles. Space limited.
​Click here to Register

Photos by Steven David Johnson

All are welcome to the VWC Annual Meeting at Braley Pond Recreation Area on the George Washington National Forest on Saturday, August 24 at 10a. 

Attendees are asked to consider and vote on the following proposed amendments and one addition to the VWC By-Laws.  The Board of Directors recommends adoption of these changes. Click here.

Launching Saturday, June 1!
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Calling all amateur shutterbugs! Are you a casual camera person, part-time paparazzi, self-taught snapper? Have an awe-inspiring photo taken in Virginia Wilderness? The Virginia Wilderness Committee wants your submissions of Virginia Wilderness for the 2025 VWC Calendar Contest.

The VWC Calendar Contest launches June 1 and photograph submissions will be accepted through July 15. Contest entries will be judged by experts in the visual arts, who will select at least 15 photographs to feature in the inaugural 2025 VWC Calendar.

Winners of this contest will be notified by August 1, 2024. They will be featured in the 2025 VWC Calendar and will receive a free copy of the calendar. Our calendar will be sent in gratitude to all Sustaining Members (and above) of VWC. They can be purchased individually for $35.
           
Enter your photos today!
 
Contest Rules
No Purchase, Payment, or Entry Fee Necessary to Enter or to Win. Follow the Steps below for entry.
 
Step 1: Make sure your photos qualify
- Photo must be taken in or related in some way to a designated VA Wilderness
- Photos must be in digital JPEG or TIFF format
- Photo must be at least 13 inches on the shorter dimension
- Resolution of no less than 300dpi, low-resolution JPEGs will not be considered.
            - To find out an image’s DPI in Windows, right-click on the file name and select Properties > Details.
You’ll see the DPI in the Image section, labeled Horizontal Resolution and Vertical Resolution. On a
Mac, you need to open the image in Preview and select Tools > Adjust Size. It’s labeled Resolution.
- If people are pictured in the photos, they must be candid (posed shots will not be considered).
 
Step 2: Submit your photo (one entry per form)
- Fill out this Google form.
- Submit your photo by July 15.
***If submitting multiple photos, submit the form for each entry separately.
 
Note: By entering the contest, you are giving VWC permission to use the photos for publicity and promotion of Virginia Wilderness.

PRESS RELEASE | MAY 1, 2024
WASHINGTON D.C. — On Wednesday, leadership in the U.S. Senate released a framework for the 2024 Farm Bill. The bill’s Forestry Title includes measures that increase forest resilience in the face of climate change and would permanently protect more than 100,000 acres of public lands by creating new National Scenic Areas, National Recreation Areas, and Wilderness Areas.

“From a historic investment in the South’s public lands to climate smart forest policy, this framework has something for everyone to applaud, no matter how they enjoy our National Forests,” Anders Reynolds, Federal Legislative Director for the Southern Environmental Law Center, said. “Senator Stabenow and her staff have drafted a bipartisan bill that all our elected officials can get behind.”

Included in the draft are additions to Virginia’s Rough Mountain and Rich Hole Wilderness Areas and the creation of the Shenandoah Mountain National Scenic Area, which would protect more than 92,000 acres of the George Washington National Forest in Virginia. National Scenic Areas strike a balance between preservation and recreation, ensuring that hikers, cyclists, anglers, hunters, and other visitors can continue to enjoy this exceptional area while prohibiting logging and industrial development.

“The Shenandoah Mountain National Scenic Area proposal is the product of more than two decades of work and has broad public support from hundreds of local businesses, community organizations, and faith groups,” Southern Environmental Law Center Senior Attorney Kristin Davis said. “This designation would permanently protect one of the largest stretches of undeveloped land east of the Mississippi River and preserve the majestic forests, spectacular vistas, and rugged trails on the edge of the Shenandoah Valley.”

​Forests provide a key climate solution by capturing and storing billions of tons of carbon. Protecting carbon-rich forests on public lands from logging, mining, and other destructive practices is a straightforward and cost-effective way to fight climate change. Other climate-smart provisions in the Senate’s Farm Bill framework include enhancing reforestation efforts and improving forest carbon data monitoring. 

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The Southern Environmental Law Center is one of the nation’s most powerful defenders of the environment, rooted in the South. With a long track record, SELC takes on the toughest environmental challenges in court, in government, and in our communities to protect our region’s air, water, climate, wildlife, lands, and people.

Nonprofit and nonpartisan, the organization has a staff of 200, including more than 120 legal and policy experts, and is headquartered in Charlottesville, Va., with offices in Asheville, Atlanta, Birmingham, Chapel Hill, Charleston, Nashville, Richmond, and Washington, D.C. 
southernenvironment.org ​

The Senate Democrats have released a draft of the Farm Bill and the Shenandoah Mountain Act and the Virginia Wilderness Additions Act are both in the base text, as well as several other land preservation bills across the country. This is great news! It is what we expected but reassuring to see in print.

Thank you, Senator Kaine and Senator Warner, for continually championing land preservation in Virginia! 
To thank Senator Kaine, contact him here.
To thank Senator Warner, contact him here