John Muir Day Day 112 of 2008 254 days left in this year

PIDGIN WORD OF THE DAY—  Gutpela: Good
HAWAIIAN PROVERB OF THE DAY

WEB SURF SPOT OF THE WEEK — “The Green Issue” - NYT Magazine
WEB VIDEO OF THE WEEK — National Geographic
PODCAST OF THE WEEK — Earth News
BLOG OF THE WEEK — The Environmental Blog

At the age of 29, Muir suffered a blinding eye injury and when he regained his sight a month later, he  began his years of wanderlust. He walked a thousand miles from Indianapolis to the Gulf of Mexico. He sailed to Cuba , and later to Panama, where he crossed the Isthmus and sailed up the West Coast, landing in San Francisco in March, 1868.

He explored the high country of the Sierra Nevada, making California his life-long home. He also traveled widely in Alaska and throughout the American West, writing numerous books and articles describing natural wonders and arguing for the need to preserve wilderness.

In 1892, Muir and a number of his supporters founded the Sierra Club to “do something for wildness and make the mountains glad.” He served as the Club’s president until his death.

In 1901, Muir published Our National Parks, which brought him to the attention of President Theodore Roosevelt. In 1903, Roosevelt visited Muir in Yosemite.where  together, they laid the foundation of Roosevelt’s conservation programs, responsble for the creation of many national parks and monuments.

John Muir’s home in Martinez, California, where he lived from 1890 until his death in 1914, is  today John Muir National Historic Site.