MISSION:
Inspiring public lands advocacy by providing information and education designed to encourage and facilitate outdoor recreation and activity.
VISION:
1. Increased responsible recreational usage of our public lands;
2. Increased awareness of the outdoor recreation economy and livelihoods contingent upon open access to our public lands;
3. Increased advocacy when threats are posed to the conservation or recreational qualities of our public lands or our ability to access them.
OUR STORY:
Support Public Lands began in 2017 as the ‘Public Lands Project,’ when long-distance hiker Michelle Markel abandoned plans to thru-hike the Appalachian Trail to instead visit several National Monuments in our western states that had been targeted for possible reduction, redesignation, or elimination entirely.
The first version of this site launched later that year, and grew to include nearly 100 pages of content documenting a wide array of public lands units in a dozen states, the people who enjoy them, and businesses that rely upon our ongoing ability to access them.
This current version is an ambitious extension of the first, and has been entirely redesigned to improve usability, usefulness, and relevance. Future plans include the addition of unique merchandise created by artists and makers who also love and enjoy spending time on OUR public lands, and a membership area in which outdoor recreation enthusiasts and activists can connect, share, and commune.
Thanks for visiting.. I’m glad you’re here!
OUR STRATEGY
ENGAGE
.. by inviting people into the outdoors recreation community.
ENCOURAGE
.. by providing information and resources to help people adventure outdoors with confidence.
EDUCATE
.. by sharing the people and businesses that rely on recreational public lands access.
ADVOCATE
.. by highlighting the issues and threats to our public lands and opportunities to ensure access.
PRESS & COLLABORATIONS
Redlands Community News: Redlands thru-hiker comes full circle around Emerald Necklace (February 2021)
Redlands Community News covering SPL Founder’s fundraising thru-hike of the city.
KCAA Radio: On the Brink Morning Show (January 2021)
January 2021 interview with Erin Brinker of the KCAA morning radio show ‘On the Brink’.
Social Sport Podcast: Episode 7 (May 2020)
Interview with Emma Zimmerman about the realities of van life and long-distance hiking.
TEDxSkyforest (August 2019)
‘Opening the Heart at Three Miles per Hour’
Blue Ridge Outdoors: Alternate A.T. (March 2019)
Promoting the Pinhoti in a March 2019 Blue Ridge Outdoors article.
KCAA Radio: On the Brink Morning Show (May 2017)
May 2017 interview with Erin & Tobin Brinker on their KCAA morning radio show.
MEET THE ‘TEAM’
Michelle 'SuperClassy' Markel
Founder
I fell in love with OUR public lands over the course of hiking +8K mostly solo, mostly long-distance trail miles, and I fall deeper in love every day. When I’m not ganking power & WiFi off family & friends to work on this site, I can typically be found on a trail, or boondocking somewhere on OUR +850 million acres of public lands.
You can follow my explorations on YouTube (PSA: *salty!*) and on Instagram.