Today we’re going walking with Tom Diegel in the Wasatch. Tom has been involved with the CWC for some time now, and has held the Stakeholders Council Co-Chair role for the last two years. He’s focused a lot of his efforts on Mill Creek Canyon, and has a special affinity for it, so that’s where we went.
Tom is heading to Europe for the winter so I wanted to give him a chance to reflect on his time with the CWC before crossing the Atlantic.
We discuss timely topics like the construction in upper Mill Creek Canyon and the Update to the shuttle feasibility study. Tom’s been working on the shuttle project in particular for many years, so he is able to provide a detailed lowdown on its history. We also discuss the possible rescission of the 2001 Roadless Rule and what that could mean for the Wasatch.
Finally, I ask him my favorite question, the question I ask all interviewees. What does the Wasatch mean to you—in unquantifiable terms? I ask this question because I have a gut feeling that there's something you can’t put your finger on that underpins all the work we do at the CWC. I have a feeling the real meaning of the mountains can’t be measured in the distance from your front door to a trailhead or in tax revenue dollars. And it’s possible that that special something will be described differently by different people. Tom, in his unique and surprising way, identifies fun, or the ability to have fun so easily as the “special something” that makes the Wasatch the place he wants to call home.
Personally, I think he’s onto something. Fun and playing are antidotes to the harder parts of life, and here, with incredible mountains in reach, we’re able to have a type of fun that rejuvenates those parts of our spirits that get beaten down by the fast pace of the world, the news cycles, the internet, and the relentless attention economy.
Tom also admits that, for the last 23 years he’s kept a spreadsheet in which he logs nearly every outdoor activity he does. The title of the spreadsheet, perfectly, amazingly, and ironically, is Fun. It made me laugh when I reflected on our conversation later and realized that his spreadsheet is an effort to quantify the unquantifiable.
In any case, I don’t think you’ll be able to listen to this episode without feeling stoked by the end. Tom’s excitement sure rubbed off on me. By the end of our walk I was like “this place is even more incredible than I thought it was” And the result of that realization, for me, is an increased drive to work for the land, to protect it, and an increased drive do everything in my power to find time in my life to get out there and have fun.
Chapters:
00:00 Intro05:54 Mill Creek Canyon: A Hidden Gem
08:57 The Mill Creek Canyon Shuttle Project
11:47 The Importance of Recreation
14:49 The Role of the Stakeholders Council
17:43 Public Engagement and Feedback
20:45 The Future of Mill Creek Canyon
23:32 Challenges in the Wasatch
26:35 The Roadless Rule and Its Implications
29:36 The Value of Fun and Recreation
32:32 The Role of Youth in Conservation
35:33 Reflections on the Central Wasatch
38:37 The Impact of Climate Change in the Wasatch
41:44 Community and Connection in the Outdoors
44:38 The Future of Outdoor Recreation in the Wasatch
47:51 Final Thoughts on the Wasatch
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