470 A NATIONAL PLAN FOR AMERICAN FORESTRY 



such vicarious forms as the lurid movie, the cheap novel, or the 

 travelogue. A depressingly large number of the more energetic of 

 these malcontents try to appease their unfulfilled yearning in the 

 pursuit of crime and racketeering. Others long for a declaration of 

 war in the hope that in battle they may capture some of the rightful 

 thrills of life. This same psychological urge lures some people to the 

 forest, where in less antisocial ways than crime and fighting they add 

 genuine dash of adventure to their lives. 



Finally, there are those whose chief purpose in visiting the forests 

 is simply an escape from civilization. These people want to rest from 

 the endless chain of mechanization and artificiality which bounds their 

 lives. In the forest they temporarily abandon 'a life to which they 

 cannot become wholly reconciled and return to that nature in which 

 hundreds of generations of their ancestors were reared. 



It is patent that people who go to the forest with such different 

 purposes will find their recreation in many different forms. Some 

 of them will tour the forest, or temporarily reside in it, without haying 

 recourse to any means of transportation other than the mechanical. 

 Others will resort principally to natural means of transportation in 

 the course of hiking, riding, canoeing, hunting, fishing, or traveling 

 the wilderness. Of course many of these must use mechanical modes 

 of transportation to reach localities where they can make use of the 

 natural modes. 



The differentiation between forms of recreation employing mechan- 

 ical transportation and those employing natural transportation is of 

 fundamental significance. In the former case the recreationist 

 considers nature a mere background to his enjoyment; in the latter 

 he becomes for a while a part of nature. When a man travels in the 

 forest by natural means all his capability and all his understanding 

 are called into use, and an infinite number of subtleties which cannot 

 possibly be discovered from the highway, the camp ground, or the 

 house are clearly appreciated and become vitally significant to him. 

 On the other hand millions of people who enjoy the forest in the 

 luxury of mechanical transportation would not dream of undergoing 

 for pleasure the hard work which delights the hiker or canoeist. The 

 mechanical modes of transportation appeal to those who desire espe- 

 cially comfort, speed, and a superficial acquaintance with many areas. 

 The natural modes are chosen by those who want adventure, freedom 

 from the rush of life, and an intensive knowledge of small areas. 



There is no object in trying to compare the different forms of forest 

 recreation as to importance or value. Each form has at least tens 

 of thousands of devotees who prefer it to any of the other forms. We 

 cannot say that if fish and game resources become exhausted fishermen 

 and hunters will be satisfied with hiking, or that if we cut up all our 

 large wilderness areas those who in the past enjoyed wilderness travel 

 will enjoy automobiling just as well. For large numbers of people 

 such losses would represent an irreparable destruction of the richest 

 aspects of life. A rational program for forest recreation in America 

 must assure to the adherents of each of the different types of enjoy- 

 ment an ample opportunity to indulge their desires. 



