Second Cup 4

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ecame known by the cattle brand, an eight-pointed Maltese Cross. For a while, he split his time between his home in New York and the Dakotas. On Valentine’s Day 1884, Roosevelt tragically lost both his young wife, Alice, and his mother. Heartbroken, he sought solace in the Dakota wilderness. He even considered making ranching his sole career. Roosevelt bought a second, larger ranch, which he named Elkhorn, and added a thousand head of cattle. Eventually, politics beckoned. He sold the ranch in 1890 to his managers and returned to New York and public life. While in the Dakotas, Roosevelt wrote three books about his adventures in the West. They became his treatise on conservation. Though an avid hunter, Roosevelt bemoaned the loss of habitat and wildlife he witnessed. He predicted a collapse of the cattle industry because of ranchers’ unsustainable practices, particularly overgrazing. In the Dakotas, he helped form the Boone and Crockett Club, one of the first fair-hunting organizations, and established a stockmen's association to help preserve the region’s natural resources. As Governor of New York and President of the United States, Roosevelt made conservation a key policy. During his presidency, he protected nearly 230 million acres of land as national forests, parks, monuments, and reserves. Small wonder this national park bears his name. A 36-mile loop drive through the park, with plenty of pull-offs for wildlife and scenery photo-ops, brought me closer to nature. The bison traffic jam occurred about two-thirds of the way through my journey. Along most of the drive, I passed small bands of bison grazing safely in the distance. At one dramatic junction, a large herd grazed high on a mountain ridge with a magnificent overlord bull standing on the peak. I foolishly thought this glorious moment would be my bison highlight! Small wildlife colonies abounded as well. Rabbits hid in shadows and hopped across the plains as my car approached. I
encountered several elaborate prairie dog towns, whose residents posed for photos far more happily than the bison — at least as long as I remained in my car. When I got out of the car trying for close-ups, they quickly scooted into the nearest burrow. Hiking trails twined through the park. I chose one that traveled along the Little Missouri River. From atop a bluff, I looked out at the river winding its way through the painted desert. The river had carved a deep valley in the candy-colored mountains. The sand along its banks glittered in pinks and greens. As I contemplated the beauty, a scene right out of the Old West materialized. Across the river, a herd of wild horses rose majestically over the crest of a bluff. Their dark outlines contrasted sharply with the pale blue sky. Here at this moment, I felt Roosevelt’s presence far more strongly than in his hunting lodge. Gratitude flooded me. His foresight preserved this land and the stunning wildlife it supports for me and for all the generations of Americans to come.
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Page 8 and 9: “Ever since boarding this cruise,
Page 10 and 11: “Don’t let go. Your touch makes
Page 12 and 13: There were years I thought our stor
Page 14 and 15: stuck in a bison traffic jam. No on
Page 19 and 20: For 25+ years Clay Gish worked as a
Page 21 and 22: Albert by Millard Johnson Albert…
Page 23 and 24: She’s forever talking about Herbe
Page 26: Credits Larry Martin — consultati

Second Cup 4

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