Have a told you about my dear friend Laura Wild? I know I have mentioned her in general terms in posts like The Definition of Courage but I don’t think I have talked about her directly by name. I want to take this opportunity as part of the #NatureWritingChallenge to share a little of our connection and why I think tonight’s topic of “An Unsung Figure of Importance For Public Lands” is the most fitting title for her and encourage you to show her a little (or lot of) love!
Who Is Laura Wild?
Laura and I met over 10 years ago as a member of my church and she has been leading women into the wilderness on backpacking trips for much longer than that. She got me started on my very first backpacking trip by taking a group of us on a trip to Hart’s Pass and the Pacific Crest Trail. Needless to say, I was hooked.
Her and her husband, Kenny, just recently finished their journey to section hike the PCT, starting over 25 years ago before the birth of their first child and culminating with the final 400 miles in California last year. She works for Everett Community College teaching nutrition and takes her students on monthly outdoor adventures. Everywhere she goes she spreads the love of public lands and the environment.
This is her in the middle on a trip to Snowgrass Flats in the Goat Rocks Wilderness in 2014. I was actually working on section hiking the PCT in Oregon that summer but came back up to hike with the gals for a quick overnighter.
But how does all this make Laura a great advocate for public lands and the backcountry?
What Did Laura Do?
Well, Laura turned 60 just last month and for her birthday she threw a huge party to raise money for backcountry toilets along the Pacific Crest Trail in the Central and North Cascades. She set up a fundraiser with Washington Trails Association online and put the word out to family and friends to join her in this “sh*tty” campaign.
And when I say friends, I mean to include Craig Romano. The well known guidebook author came and gave a witty speech about the proliferation of “Number 2” in the wilderness and encouraged everyone to support Laura’s campaign.
He even came up with a catchy campaign slogan…”Make America Not Stink Again”.
Grady Olson from Washington Trails Association came and talked about the work of installing the toilets and how Laura’s donations would support that.
Laura’s fundraising speel:
“For every dollar donated to WTA for my 60th birthday, I will donate a similar amount, up to $1000. My personal donations will go to the US Forest Service, Darrington Ranger District, which will use these funds to purchase materials to build and install back country toilets along the Pacific Crest Trail. A typical toilet costs $150 in materials to build and lasts 8-10 years, depending on where it is located and how it is used.”
It was pretty fun tossing our dollar bills into the privy that evening. Everything was bathroom themed, from the toilet paper roll flower vases to the toilet mug Laura drank out of that night. We ended up with donations totaling $4622 from all the festivities and online giving! That is a lot of toilets for a lot of poo.
Here’s Laura’s husband (in blue) showing off one of the new toilets…doesn’t that look so much better than digging a hole?
Support Laura and Backcountry Toilets!
I know you missed out on throwing money down the toilet yourself but if you too would like to support Laura’s fundraiser, head over to her page at Washington Trails Association and share a little love for backcountry privies!
For more information on how to poo in the backcountry, check out this article. You can, also, check out this entire series on pooping in the wilderness on WTA’s Poop Week.
This post was written in one hour for the #NatureWritingChallenge. Check out Twitter to learn more or see my other posts from the challenge here.
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