On June 3, 1924, the Gila Wilderness became the first officially designated wilderness in the world. Including the acreage from the Aldo Leopold Wilderness and the Blue Range Wilderness, this wilderness complex encompasses 558,014 acres of purely wild and rugged landscape. This 872 square miles of breathtaking wilderness is managed by the Gila National Forest. In anticipation of its centennial birthday, a diverse array of writers contributed unique works expressing their connection to this place and the experiences that helped develop that connection. In this episode, Jesse Deubel speaks with one of those contributing authors, Dr. Karl Malcolm. Malcolm and Deubel are joined by Leia Barnett and Madeleine Carey, both of whom work tirelessly everyday to advocate for the Gila in their roles with Wild Earth Guardians. Both Barnett and Carey were instrumental in the process of producing the powerful anthology, "First and Wildest - The Gila Wilderness at 100." The conversation was recorded on May 12. The following day, a human-caused wildfire erupted amid terrible conditions. The worst drought in 1,200 years coupled with unseasonably high temperatures and unrelenting winds caused the fire to spread at record speed. This wildfire will forever change thousands of these pristine acres of wild beauty. Fortunately, the Gila is as resilient as it is beautiful. The topics discussed include everything from hunting turkeys to eating cicadas. As with any discussion about the Gila, the celebration of the area's wildlife takes center stage. Happy birthday Gila. Enjoy the listen!

About the book:
https://www.torreyhouse.org/first-and-wildest

For more info:
https://nmwildlife.org/