迷人的水晶湖，高山湖泊，华盛顿州，美国 Crystal Lake in the Enchantments, Alpine Lakes Wilderness, Washington (© Mitch Pittman/Tandem Stills + Motion)

迷人的水晶湖，高山湖泊，华盛顿州，美国 Crystal Lake in the Enchantments, Alpine Lakes Wilderness, Washington (© Mitch Pittman/Tandem Stills + Motion)

原始之美，人人共享 Unspoiled beauty for all

《荒野法》周年纪念日

有时候，逃离尘嚣也是一个不错的选择。多亏了环保主义者霍华德·扎尼泽，美国人才可以在该国众多的荒野之一中实现这一愿望。尽管创建国家森林公园等保护工作始于19世纪末，但到1960年代，原始的荒野面积已减少到仅占全国土地面积的2.5%。为了扭转这一趋势，扎尼泽起草了许多保护性条款，它们后来成为《荒野法》的大部分内容。该法案于1964年9月3日由林登·约翰逊总统签署成为法律，如今保护着超1.09亿英亩的土地——占美国土地的5%。

图中所示的水晶湖就位于这样一个保护区内。它坐落于华盛顿州的高山湖泊，这个“魔幻仙境”拥有700多个湖泊和池塘，以及美国西部一些最佳的攀岩地点。这里也是高山山羊、雷鸟、鼠兔以及多种高山花卉的家园。不过，如果您想亲眼目睹高山湖泊的风光，就得做好等待的准备。日间徒步旅行的许可证很少，去年参加过夜许可证抽签的40,000人中，只有2558人获得了许可证。

Wilderness Act anniversary

Sometimes it's nice to get away. Thanks to environmentalist Howard Zahniser, Americans can do that in one of the country's many wildernesses—sheltered from human activities. While the protection of national forests and parks began in the late 1800s, untamed wilderness had dwindled to only 2.5% of US land by the 1960s. To reverse this trend, Zahniser wrote most of what became the Wilderness Act. Signed into law by President Lyndon Johnson on September 3, 1964, today it protects more than 109 million acres—5% of the land in the US.

Pictured in today's image, Crystal Lake, in the Enchantments, Washington, is in one such protected area. Located in the Alpine Lakes Wilderness, the Enchantments region has more than 700 lakes and ponds and some of the best rock climbing in the Western US. It's also home to mountain goats, ptarmigan, pikas, and many alpine flowers. If you want to see Alpine Lakes Wilderness yourself, however, be prepared to wait. Few permits are granted for day hikes, and of the 40,000 people who entered last year's lottery for overnight permits, only 2,558 received one.