The Battle for The Bears Ears, Part I: The Legislative Landscape

On a clear day, the Bears Ears offer nothing but peace. The twin buttes stand eerily silent in the thin air, rippled only by a whispering breeze or the cries of a lazy raven riding an updraft. A vast landscape of desert wilderness stretches out below, empty of human presence. On a clear day, the Bears Ears offer nothing but peace. The twin buttes stand eerily silent in the thin air, rippled only by a whispering breeze or the cries of a lazy raven riding an updraft. A vast landscape of desert wilderness stretches out below, empty of human presence. On the other side stand an array of conservative forces, including most local residents. To them any federal action would amount to a massive land grab: an attempt to seal off the countryside from a range of beneficial uses. In a state where 67% of the land is already owned by the federal government, new “protection” means the loss of freedom, economic opportunity, and a way of life that has sustained their community for generations. The heart of the proposed monument is Cedar Mesa: a 1,000-square-mile plateau incised by Grand Gulch and its tributary canyons as they wind their way to the narrow gorge of the San Juan River, 3,000 feet below. Archaeologist Nels C. Nelson visited the mesa in 1920 and described it as “One of the least frequented and… most inaccessible parts of the United States.” He would still recognize it today. The Hole-in-the-Rock Mormons settled on Cedar Mesa’s eastern flank, establishing the isolated towns of Bluff and Montezuma Creek. Their lives on the frontier were demanding and unforgiving. Paid work was scarce and unreliable in the cash-poor economy. Ranching and farming were difficult and unpredictable in the arid, high-desert environment, where temperatures could soar into the 100s in summer yet drop below freezing for weeks in the winter. Mining was dangerous and brutal. But the settlers soon made a valuable discovery: the canyons were rife with ancient rock art, ruins, and artifacts, left behind by the people they called the Cliff Dwellers...more