In the Schneider reading, I found that the focus on the trapper and his life in the Adirondack Park highlighted a culture that might not be taken into account when people discuss the current state and future of the Park. Perspectives on the Park always revolve around the human presence there and how it affects the Park, which is obviously important. But those conversations create this notion that in many ways, this situation is about humans vs. wilderness. There doesn't seem to be any "in-between" scenario or person.
This trapper, Toby Edwards, is the first true "in between" character I've seen. He more than just lives in the Park, like many people who have summer homes there. He works in it, and more importantly, he knows so much about his fellow beings that live beside him. I was immensely impressed with the amount of detail he could speak about the various animals he traps with. He knows what they like and what they don't like. He knows where they are going to be. Edwards knows the animals in an almost human-like way, despite the fact that he hunts them. There is also a culture that comes along with it. There are traps passed down through generations. The trapping culture is one that lives and breathes the Park along with those who inhabit it. It's sad to think that because of other people who "ruin" it for others, as McKibben claims, the Toby Edwards of the Park become obsolete. I personally do not think there is anything wrong with what Toby does, as long as it is not excessive. He isn't driving around on a lake in his motor boat. He isn't driving up mountains. He's walking around, being with the forests, and hunting beings that he has grown up with and knows so, so well.
It's somewhat uplifting to note that in that portion of the book, Schneider mentions that for any legislature to pass, it essentially required the approval of the trappers of the park, as they held a considerable amount of political power (at least at that point in history).
ReplyDeleteI do agree with your assessment of how we tend to lose focus on the "everyday" Adirondack resident such as the trapper. The focus tends to congregate on the issues threatening the park at the immediate moment, and thus we constantly hear descriptions of those threatening the park (land developers, inconsiderate vacationers, etc.) or those trying to save the park (think of most of the character McKibben meets) that narratives such as the trapper tend to be silenced and unheard, even though this is what we look at as one of the most ideal and sustainable lifestyles we've heard about thus far. This could be amplified by the somewhat secluded atmosphere that the Adirondacks already provides. It seems like it would be important to focus on this type of person when making decisions concerning the park, seeing as how they have considerable more at stake in the land than the summer vacationers.