Since wilderness areas as they are now constituted by law, are national resources, their true value can only be assessed on the basis of the contribution they make to the "ultimate public welfare."

It is true the San Gorgonio Mountain slopes have tremendous commercial value as winter sports developments. Thousands of dollars could be realized each season by the group fortunate enough to gain the contract for the development and operation of the "necessary facilities." But is how much the public will pay to engage in certain activities the criteria of determining the "ultimate public welfare"? I wish to submit testimony of possible public welfare value of these areas that cannot be measured in dollars and cents.

I wish to list six points of fact that will be supported by testimony before this committee and make a reasoned judgment based upon them and submit an alternate land-use proposal for a section of San Gorgonio.

1. The heart of the San Gorgonio Wilderness Area is a valuable asset to the programs of the various nonprofit organizational camps located in the adjacent Barton Flats Recreational Area.

2. The large majority of the camp organizations in the Barton Flats Recreational Area are in contract with the U.S. Forest Service for special-use permits of approximately 5 acres each on which thousands of dollars have been invested with the understanding that the surrounding Government land, including the wilderness area, is available for hiking, camping, horseback riding, and nature education. 3. Recent highway construction and increased general public use of the Barton Flats Recreational Area in the past few years has made the use of the wilderness area much more necessary to gain the seclusion so vital to a significant outdoor, next-to-nature experience. 4. The rapid population growth of the areas (Greater Los Angeles area) served by the various nonprofit youth organizations represented in Barton Flats indicate an overwhelming demand for the expansion of their facilities and services. The demand for increased usage of the San Gorgonio Wilderness Area is a natural result.

5. Any changes in the boundaries of the area now classified as "wilderness" that will permit access roads or any form of commercial development within a proximity of 1 to 111⁄2 miles of the trails and the campsites presently used by the majority of the camping youth is of vital concern to the administrators of these nonprofit programs and the public which they serve.

6. How important is it that the areas used in the camping programs of these organizations should be kept isolated from any commercial development or access roads?

It is of major importance to the very preservation of our society. Documented evidence is not needed to substantiate the fact that the phenomenal growth of disregard for law and order and the swing away from the conventions on which our society is stabilized is a result of a breakdown of moral and spiritual values in our society.

Such youth agencies as the Sunday school, religious youth programs, YMCA, YWCA, Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts, Camp Fire Girls, Woodcraft Rangers, boys and girls clubs and various other nonprofit youth organizations are our first line of defense against the rising tide of juvenile and youth delinquency. They are deserving of the very best tools and facilities available.

The public's greatest opportunity in meeting this threat is in the revitalization by support-of these programs that teach and demonstrate spiritual, moral, and social principles which are the "social bonds" of our national way of life.

Youth agencies have long ago recognized the prime importance of taking boys and girls out of their "asphalt jungle" environments into an environment of outdoor seclusion for the teaching and demonstration of these moral and spiritual verities.

The section of the San Gorgonio area presently used by the youth agencies is a tool or facility of increasing major importance to those dedicated organizations and administrators in their programs of moral and social welfare in the southern California area.

My reasoned judgment is this: The San Gorgonio Wilderness Area as a natural resource has great value to the general public welfare— not measured in dollars and cents-as a tool or a facility in our country's first line of defense against the rising tide of juvenile and youth delinquency and general disregard for law and order.

The criteria for judgment by the Congress of the United States is whether these values will be increased or decreased by proposed changes in the land use of sections of the San Gorgonio Wilderness Area.

My specific proposal to the Congress in regards to H.R. 6891, H.R. 7490, H.R. 7654, H.R. 8033, H.R. 8176, and H.R. 8859 is as follows: In recognition of the factors that make a section of the San Gorgonio wilderness of prime value to the ultimate public welfare as a facility of environment for the purpose of teaching and demonstrating moral and social principles; and whereas this prime value is predicated upon a virtual wilderness classification, I propose that the Congress set aside that portion of the San Gorgonio Wilderness Area most used by youth organizations as a national wilderness sanctuary for boys and girls. I propose that this area with a reasonable buffer zone against commercial development or access roads be dedicated for the use of boys and girls, their families, and counselors and that it be excluded from the considerations for other purposes under these bills except present wilderness usages.

This area is defined and designated within a perimeter bounded on the west by a line drawn 1 mile west of U.S. Forest Service trail Nos. 1E05 and 1E04; and on the west and south by a line 1 mile west and south of trail 1W07 from its junction with 1E04 to the peak of San Gorgonio; on the south by a line 1 mile south of a connecting trail from the peak to trail 1E05; and on the east by a line 1 mile east of trail 1E05 and/or the South Fork of the Santa Ana River. See the map accompanying this proposal.

I would request this attached map be made a part of the file. Mr. BARING. Without objection, the map will be made a part of the file, not the record, but the file.

Reverend BIRCH. Thank you very much, sir.

Mr. BARING. Thank you, sir.

Now, I just called Mrs. John Gerhart.

Is Mrs. John Gerhart here?

Mrs. GERHART. Yes, sir.

Mr. BARING. I called on you with the last panel and perhaps you could make your statement for the record now.

We will now hear from Mrs. John Gerhart.

STATEMENT OF MRS. JOHN W. GERHART, PRESIDENT, LONG BEACH COUNCIL OF CAMP FIRE GIRLS, INC.

Mrs. GERHART. I am Mrs. John W. Gerhart. I am speaking for the Long Beach Council of Camp Fire Girls, which serves over 6,700 girls, men, and women in Long Beach, Lakewood, Dominguez, Signal Hill, Hawaiian Gardens, Dairy Valley, and Artesia. During each of the past 4 years, the adults in our council have voted to inform our Congressman, the Honorable Craig Hosmer, that we are opposed to the development of roads and structures in the San Gorgonio Wilderness Area. I can also speak as one who is very familiar with the area, because during the past 7 years my husband and I have hiked on every trail within its boundaries plus most of those on the fringe. We have also explored the desert lands in the vicinity of Mission Creek and the North Fork of the Whitewater as well as the wooded areas at the base of the Big Draw on the north slope of Gorgonio. Our Camp Fire council owns a resident camp near Green Valley Lake. But inasmuch as the San Bernardino Mountains are crowded with camps and cabins from Arrowhead to Big Bear, we transport our teenage campers to the San Gorgonio Wilderness Area in order to give them the experience of hiking away from civilization for periods of 2 to 4 days.

Why do we feel that this activity is a very valuable one?

First, the wilderness is an integral part of our American heritage. Only by living in the wilds-even for a few days-can today's city. bred students really come to appreciate the tremendous accomplishments of our ancestors who trekked across this continent.

Second, the value of the wilderness to refresh body and spirit has been recognized since Biblical times. Closely confined by a complex civilization, we have begun to develop a recognition of the necessity of preserving a few islands relatively free from the touch of man.

Third, almost conversely, the girls learn to appreciate the comforts of civilization, which they have always taken for granted. For example, after a week in the back country, they become quite certain that the greatest achievement of mankind was the invention of a simple table and chair.

Fourth, a group which undertakes a backpack hike becomes welded together in the finest example of a unit of democracy. Each girl must accept responsibility in order to make the trip a success. She carries not only her own equipment but also her share of what is necessary for the common good. She arranges her own sleeping spot, but she also performs some of the general tasks of firebuilding, cooking, and cleanup. Differences of race, religion, color, or wealth are of no importance on the trail. Instead, a girl learns that each citizen has a contribution to make to the welfare of the group.

Fifth, there is the challenge of attempting a different and difficult activity. After hiking for a week in the wilderness, one of our seniors wrote that "Sometimes you have to put yourself to a test so that you will learn how great your physical and spiritual resources really are." A long trek requires both stamina and courage. But the greater the challenge, the greater the feeling of accomplishment and self-confidence at the successful completion of the mission. To climb southern California's highest mountain provides a thrill which cannot be matched by any experience in the city.

Sixth, we take the girls backpacking in order to introduce them to a sport which can be a major recreational activity for them during most of their adult lives. And this brings us to the point which I wish to stress most strongly.

The highest possible use for the San Gorgonio Wilderness Area is, indeed, for family recreation, but the type of recreation for which it is uniquely suited is hiking and wilderness camping. The other mountains in southern California are liberally sprinkled with cabins and resorts for those who wish to take their children up for a picnic or a day in the snow. But San Gorgonio is the only untouched area remaining for those who wish to take their children wilderness camping during the dry seasons. It is essential that we preserve the Dry Lake Basin for this purpose because Slushy Meadow and Dollar Lake are overused. Dry Lake will be the hub of a series of trails now staked out by the Forest Service, not only to North Fork Meadow and up the southeast shoulder of Gorgonio but also to the Fish Creek Canyon. The State of California is planning to develop family recreation and picnic areas in the Heart Bar and Fish Creek regions. So, when all these developments are completed, San Bernardino County will have the finest network of trails this side of the High Sierra. However, a road and a parking lot at Dry Lake right in the center of this network would destroy the esthetic and ecological values of the area. And, what would we have in exchange but another resort with really not very much to offer the person who can remain for only a day. The Dry Lake Basin is above 9,000 feet in elevation. Most persons who live near sea level cannot engage in strenuous activity at that altitude without allowing days for acclimatization. Dry Lake is even higher than Mountain Station on the San Jacinto tram; yet, the man in charge of first aid there has found it necessary to administer oxygen to many persons who merely ride up the tram and do not even attempt to engage in any activity. Furthermore, it appears that there has been some exaggeration of the amount of snow available on Gorgonio.

For example, in November 1963, I accompanied some girls to above the 10,000-foot level on the northeast slope in the vicinity of the Big Draw. Even our lug soles didn't prevent us from slipping on the thin layer of ice which covered the ground in the shady areas under the trees. There was certainly no snow on the mountain. Yet that very day we read in the Los Angeles Times a long article decrying the fact that a handful of conservationists could deprive the local skiers of the opportunity to use the fresh powder which they said was at that time decorating the very area in which we had hiked. Let's face it: San Gorgonio is not Mammoth.

It is true that a large proportion of the local hikers are members of the youth character-building organizations. But these youngsters are acquiring skills and mountain manners which they can use at many other times and places. In all the families whom we have encountered in the back country, there has been at least one member who was introduced to the sport through one of the youth groups. So it was in our family. My husband accompanied our son's Scout troop on their expeditions to Mount San Gorgonio; so our daughter and the teenagers in our Camp Fire Girls group talked me into making a similar climb. Thus, at the age of 43, I became a backpacker, and I

shall always be grateful to the girls for opening this new world to

me.

Hiking is really the only sport in which I can participate, because of an attack of polio in 1949 which left my shoulders too weak for any activity which requires arm motion. It has been said that only the strong and youthful are able to enjoy the wilderness area, but it was on these trails that I regained the use of my legs. Similarly, my husband is barred by arthritis from any sport which requires the hands to grip an object. Our family vacations during the past 6 years have all involved backpacking trips-in San Gorgonio Wilderness Area, the High Sierra, the North Cascades, and the Tetons. Since our son and daughter both attend college during the school year and work during the summer, the only family recreational activity which we have shared during the past year was a backpack trek in the shadow of the Grand Teton.

There just aren't too many activities which teenagers enjoy sharing with their parents, but hiking can be one of them. Wherever we have traveled, we have met families who have maintained their solidarity through this activity. There was, for example, one family with four youngsters ranging from 4 to 16. The first grader was a short little fellow, but he was walking 10 feet tall because he was carrying a pack the same size as those worn by his big brother. His mother confided that it was stuffed with popcorn and potato chips. Then, last summer after hiking all afternoon in the rain, some of our teenage Camp Fire Girls and I reached our destination as darkness was falling.

We were resigned to munching a cold supper because there was no dry wood in the area. But we had scarcely begun to string our tubetents when a young couple camped nearby with four boys came over to give us enough dry wood to cook dinner. On another occasion when some of our seniors became altitude sick on a climb up Mount Whitney, a family of backpackers not only carried their packs but also started a fire for them. It is interesting to note that the seniors who have taken our annual High Sierra treks have all exclaimed about the glorious scenery-true; but they have been even impressed by the friendliness and helpfulness and the integrity of the families whom they have met. Where else in this State could you leave your camera and wallet in your campsite and know that they will still be there when you return? High school students appear to develop a touch of cynicism about the adult world, but those who take the high country hikes return with their faith in human nature restored.

The experience which to be best illustrates the ideal of family recreation took place three Septembers ago in the San Gorgonio Wilderness Area. We hiked past Slushy Meadow and Dollar Lake because they were much too crowded and had proceeded to High Meadow Spring. This is a tiny campsite at the 10,400-foot level with a pocketsize meadow and no level ground so that I felt like tying my sleeping bag to the tree to prevent my rolling down the mountain into Forest Home. Five families were represented there that night, and we shared the single firepit. There was a 5-year-old boy and a 55-year-old grandmother, with assorted teenagers and adults in between. Their homes range from San Diego to Santa Barbara. All had come to San Gorgonio in search of the unique experience which only this mountain can still provide.