Ecotourism

The Future of Ecotourism

Dion Gamble

HTT/220

March 15, 2015

Professor Mason

The Future of Tourism

Arizona is home to some of the nations most prized landscapes and parks. Due to the massive sound of the Grand Canyon, it can be hard for some to have ever heard of similar places of amazement like Antelope Canyon and The Wave. These parks are on Indian reservations so these places do not need much attention as some of the other parks in the state. The Tonto National Forest is a park that could use a little more attention. A major problem here is fires breaking out, and if you know anything about a forest one thing we do not want to do is to start a fire.

Why Tonto

When I first arrived to Arizona I knew I wanted to stay here. I loved how different the environment was from back home on the East side. I am big with camping and visiting national forests and parks. I have visited about ten national parks across states and I camp when and where ever I can. What’s most fun is to go camping without staying at a site. All natural camping trips are a refreshment and a challenge. I first visited the Forest with a friend of mine and we got a site at a nearby campground and then hiked trails at the Tonto forest the next day and found a spot in the forest the next time. When we returned from the trip, we seen on the news that the forest had caught fire and that it was out of control. It burned for a few days and then it died down. I remember being so jaded about hearing this. I felt so connected and alive on our trip and there it was burning. What could I do?

Tonto’s Neck of Woods

Before knowing what we can do, let us first discuss why we are needing to do anything. This forest is a nearly 3 million acre (americanoutdoors.com 2015) habitat for species that are endangered like the pygmy owl, desert pupfish, and peregrine falcon. These animals know this forest as home and need the help to keep calling this home from fire and guns. The area is...