The Spring Mountains ECHO The Spring Mountains Association Sponsors of The Festival In The Pines In This Issue: Festival in the Pines 1997 Reflections on a Special Place Think Like A Mountain SMA Has U.S.G.S. Maps for Sale Hiking Mt. Charleston Voluntarism: Make a Difference President's Corner Forest Service Recreation and Visitor Center Update SMA is Wired Meet the Mountain Car Tours Christmas Shopping "Bee Advised" Make a Difference Day Mark Your Calendar Special Donations Sought Membership Application Echo brought to you by...

ECHO Vol. 8, NO. 4 November 1997 to January 1998

FESTIVAL IN THE PINES 1997 - DO IT ON THE MOUNTAIN, AGAIN!!

By Barbara Washington

Regardless of threatening weather and unsettling world events, the Festival In The Pines took place September 6 at the Las Vegas Ski and Snowboard Resort in Lee Canyon.

SMA members working on the festival gathered at Pat and Bobbye Fitzgibbons' Lee Canyon home, Alpenglow, on Friday evening. We spent the night and headed to the resort after a hearty breakfast. Remembrances of flash floods on the Tuesday before were in our minds as we awoke that night to lightning flashing across the sky. Television newscasts of Princess Diana's funeral gave us sober thoughts at breakfast. However, we had many people expecting us to do our very best for the day, so . . .

Do It On The Mountain, Again!! welcomed Barb Henderson back as our host. Our commercial sponsors were the Las Vegas Ski & Snowboard Resort and Vasque located at Red Wing Shoes, West Charleston - Home of Hiking Footwear. Both businesses are involved with people participating in the many activities that can be held in the Spring Mountains National Recreation Area (SMNRA). Thanks, Barb Henderson, Russell Highfield and Charles Cavanaugh, for your support. The cast of volunteers is numerous. They range from those board members and committee heads who gave several hours every week for months on end to those two guys, who work with my husband. They aren't even members, and their rewards were: a great day on the mountain, a T-shirt and lunch from our cooler. The credit for the success of the day goes to all helpers with a special recognition to the Soroptomist International of Las Vegas Valley, for tending the gate and taking the surveys; the Metro Explorer Troop, for parking assistance; and Boy Scout Troop 436, for clean up.

Joining us and 2,000 visitors were forty-one booth participants representing not-for-profit organizations, for-profit companies, governmental agencies, and artists and crafters. Artists and crafters joined us from as far away as Cedar City, Utah and Tuba City, Arizona. Of course, we had local favorites and some interesting newcomers, too. Terrific entertainment was provided by the "Elegant Outlaws." They had all of us tapping our toes and snapping our fingers! Lions and tigers and monkeys (no bears)! Oh My! Were a highlight brought by the Keepers of The Wild. The Las Vegas High Rollers and Strollers held a sanctioned Volksmarch on the Bristlecone Trail. If you missed this Festival, you better make plans to attend the next one to experience "Do It On The Mountain: One More Time."

The Spring Mountains Association's proceeds from the day were supplemented by a grant from the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority and (hopefully) from the State of Nevada Division of Tourism. All profits benefit the Spring Mountains National Recreation Area and are used for the production of educational materials, inventory for the Kyle Canyon Information Center, and other projects to enhance the public safety and enjoyment of the SMNRA.