Punky’s work with the Forest Service began in 1959 on the Los Padres National Forest working on an engine and as a patrolman on the Ojai and San Marcos Ranger Districts. Later he transferred to the Sequoia National Forest Hume Lake Ranger District as the Fire Management Officer and then to the Sierra National Forest as the Assistant Forest Fire Management Officer. His career encompassed a wide range of local and national wildland fire management activities. He served in most technical fire positions from firefighter to top forest fire management. Punky McClellan was a national and international leader in wildfire prevention.

Punky worked on many national level fire management assignments including the Safety First Program in the early 1970’s which led to such things as minimum engine staffing, training and qualifications standards, firefighter safety equipment such as nomex and fire shelters. The project ultimately led to Congress assigning the Forest Service with the development of the Incident Command System (ICS) system for all California fire agencies and eventually to national implementation.

Some of the characters that Punky helped develop for the PREVENTOR program.

While on the Sierra Punky was funded and assigned a national office position to manage the National Fire Prevention Program. He developed and distributed program materials for the Wildfire Strikes Home Initiative, developed training and guidelines for Fire Prevention Planning, and probably most memorable was the development of high visibility fire prevention education programs with professional sports teams and celebrities. Radio and television public service announcements using the celebrities and athletes were produced and thousands of fire prevention education materials were developed and distributed. In 1987 he organized a National Smokey Bear Day Event at every Major League baseball stadium.

After retiring from the Forest Service in 1990 after 32 years, Punky continued with his passion for fire management through his company THE FIREHOUSE based in Clovis, California. Working with NFPA and local jurisdictions he developed an urban fire safety program and set of hero characters called the PREVENTOR Program and a wildland set of characters for the Fire Education Team Program managed by the Department of Interior. He managed the training and mobilization of National Interagency Fire Prevention Teams. Punky also authored several books including “REMEMBER ONLY YOU” – A History of Outdoor Forest Fire Prevention Advertising and “THE FRONT LINE” – A Look at Some of America’s Historic Firehouses. He was active internationally with work in Russia, Mexico and Canada.

Here Punky is pictured with his friend and collaborator Rudy Wendelin, the artist who helped conceive and draw Smokey Bear for 40 years for the United States Forest Service.

Punky was honored as the recipient of the Gold, Silver, and Bronze Smokey Bear Awards (the Fire Prevention Oscars) for outstanding national public service in wildfire prevention and the Secretary of Agriculture’s Superior Service Award. He was truly an icon with the USFS, a man with utmost integrity and dedication to his work. Punky’s sense of humor and giving nature are truly irreplaceable.

Punky McClellan’s role in Three Forests Interpretive Association began in January of 2004. His talents in organization, management of meetings and knowledge of the needs of our government partner the US Forest Service were essential to the successes of the organization. His abilities to move projects along and get things done were legendary. Retired Director of Fire for the Forest Service in California, Kenton Clark, once commented “Do not ever give Punky McClellan a job to do that you don’t want to get done.”

Plans are underway to build a memorial statue and scholarship fund on Punky’s behalf. A Gofund Me account has been established in Punky’s honor, for further information on Punky’s legacy, write Riley McClellan at 2660 Alamos Avenue Clovis, CA 93611.

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Looking for printed maps to inform your next journey to the National Forests? Many traditional retail sources for these maps have been shuttered due to the pandemic. To keep these resources available to the public, 3FIA has now made printed maps for the Stanislaus, Sierra, and Sequoia National Forests available for sale online from our Shop Page. Choose from US Forests Service maps, the popular Tom Harrison Maps, and select maps from the National Geographic Trails Illustrated series. All prices include shipping.

Getting into the outdoors safely takes some planning. Printed maps now available for sale online include USFS Forest maps and atlases, as well as maps specific to the Dinkey Lakes, Carson-Iceberg, Mokelumne, Ansel Adams, and Golden Trout Wilderness Areas. Printed maps are still the best source for information while visiting the back country. Hikers, fisherman, backpackers, and all visitors to the forest can utilize these maps to enhance their experience of these public lands. Visit our Shop Page to view and order maps.

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In coordination with state and local health and safety guidelines, certain areas and facilities in the National Forests have been closed. Some are beginning to reopen. Please check with your local forest for specific status updates. 3FIA’s Stanislaus, Sierra, and Sequoia National Forest pages each has updated information and links to relevant USFS web pages.

Recreation services at forest facilities may be changed, suspended or offered through alternate approaches as we manage for the health and safety of the USFS work force and the public. Local forest managers are performing risk assessments of facilities and are limiting congregations of people and person to person interactions. Our decisions will align with local city, county and state actions to provide for human health and safety (i.e. quarantine, curfew, and other social restrictions).

For more details on the USFS response to the virus, visit Forest Service Coronavirus (COVID-19) updates page. Be safe out there!

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If you were lucky enough to be visiting the Stanislaus National Forest on a Tuesday over the last 30 or so summers, chances are you got to hear the stories and songs, and experience the warmth of this Tuolumne County legend. For over 25 years thousands of adults and children were charmed by Bill with the unique interactive “Tall Tales and Silly Songs” program he performed at Pinecrest Lake. His show mined traditional folk and children’s music and storytelling and combined it with his own personal sensibility and insights.

Accompanying himself on guitar, and employing both humor and wisdom, Bill’s unique connection with his audience allowed him to impart lessons about conservation, forest stewardship, and life in general that went straight to the heart and helped visitors to the Stanislaus gain a greater understanding of the forest and their relationship to it. Sponsored in part by Three Forests Interpretive Association, Bill’s presentations were in clear alignment with Forest Service’s mission to cherish and conserve these precious public lands. illustration by Ann Hince

Bill’s consummate skills as a storyteller and human being weren’t limited to his forest programs. His career as a teacher, folk singer, storyteller and school administrator were all pieces of an inspired lifetime. He brought a sense of joy to every new endeavor. As a founding member and long time faculty member of Sierra Waldorf School in Jamestown, Bill’s long career touched and brightened the lives of many.

In addition to his live performances, Bill recorded several CD’s of music and stories along with other nationally recognized storytellers B.Z. Smith and Cynthia Restivo, also known as The Story Quilters. In July, the National Storytelling Network honored Roberson with its 2019 Oracle Award for Service and Leadership in the Pacific States Region.

Stories are how we learn about the world. Sitting around a campfire and sharing tales is a tradition that is embedded in the National Forest experience in America. Bill will be sorely missed, but certainly many of his stories and songs will continue to be shared for years to come. A fund to support Bill’s daughter, Piper Roberson, has been set up at the Bank of Stockton at 242 S. Washington St. in Sonora.

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Over one thousand fourth graders visited and learned more about the Stanislaus National Forest thanks to a grant sponsored outreach and engagement program presented by 3FIA, the Tuolumne River Trust and the Stanislaus National Forest. For many, it was their first real encounter with their public lands. 

Last fall forest interpretive specialists from the Stanislaus began visiting fourth grade classrooms in Tuolumne, Mariposa, Stanislaus, and Alpine Counties presenting a hands-on wildlife program entitled, “Skins, Scat, and Skulls.” Local school environments and animals are identified in these classroom presentations to help foster awareness and appreciation of wildlife/natural resources while motivating curiosity.

The program also prepares students for a visit to the forest where activities include guided hikes, becoming a “Junior Ranger”, park volunteer cleanups, discussion of “Leave no Trace” wilderness stewardship concepts, tree planting in the affected Rim Fire area, and a discussion of renewable resources and fire safety.

Upon completion of the classroom program, students received an “Every Kid in the Park” pass good for fee-free access to all federal lands and waters, including nearby Yosemite National Park. The pass is valid for fourth grade students and their families.

The pass and transportation grant are part of a larger initiative launched by the National Park Foundation. The “Every Kid in the Park” initiative is aimed at increasing access to nature for all.

While all of the students participating in this outreach effort live approximately 10 to 50 miles from the Stanislaus Forest, many have never visited this local public treasure. Not all kids have the same opportunities to connect with nature, particularly those living in an urban setting.

This initiative helps people from everywhere and from all backgrounds to discover their own connection to our national parks, forests, wildlife refuges, and other public lands and waters.

“Every Kid in the Park” challenges us to think about the next 100 years. What will the future of our outdoor legacy look like if we don’t make sure all kids have a chance to experience it?

Fourth graders can get a free “Every Kid in a Park” Pass for themselves and their family online at www.everykidinapark.gov

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You Can Help – Learn More About Stewardship
A good place to start is the website and programs of the LEAVE NO TRACE CENTER (www.LNT.org), a world leader in teaching minimum impact skills to adults and young people. Additional information can be found at wilderness.net. Contact local wilderness managers for other ideas promoting stewardship.

Sierra Nevada Wilderness, An American Treasure
Much of the beloved “High Sierra” is protected as Wilderness Areas to provide for present and future generations “an enduring resource of wilderness”. The United States is unique among nations in creating a National Wilderness Preservation System. Less than 4% of the land area of the U.S. is protected as Wilderness, but this represents some of the most beautiful, undisturbed, natural landscapes in the world.

2014 marked the 50th anniversary of the Wilderness Act which defines Wilderness as a place “Where the earth and its community of life are untrammeled by man” and mandates that “Preserving the Wilderness Character” is the primary goal in the management of Wilderness Areas.

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Volunteers assembled August 24th at the Trail of 100 Giants in the Giant Sequoia National Monument to install a set of four new information boards at the Trailhead. The workday was organized by the Giant Sequoia National Monument Association and hosted by California Land Management who provided lunch for the group. Sequoia National Forest, who administers the Monument, was also on hand to help direct the project. The signs were purchased by the Giant Sequoia National Monument (GSNM), California Land Management (CLM), and Three Forests Interpretive Association. 3FIA is working in partnership with GSNMA and CLM in the effort to improve the infrastructure at the site.

The 1.3 mile Trail of 1000 Giants is a popular interpretive trail winding through a grove of old-growth Giant Sequoia trees, some of the biggest on Earth. The funds 3FIA is using were donated by Jane Von Bothmer to 3FIA in honor/memory of her father, Art Cowley, who along with Jerry Eoff was instrumental in the original development of the trail while both worked for the Sequoia National Forest. Without their drive and determination the project would not have been completed.

Art Cowley was inspired by the Giant Sequoias and made preserving and understanding them part of his life’s work. Cowley was born in Jefferson City, Missouri, graduated with a bachelor’s degree in forestry from the University of Missouri, and earned a master’s of education from the University of Arkansas. Moving to California in 1979, Cowley was able to further pursue his love for the forests. As Big Tree Coordinator for the American Forests’ California Registry of Big Trees, Art cataloged hundreds of ancient Giant Sequoias. Serving as a board chairman of 3FIA, Art worked to inform, educate, and share his understanding and awe of these giant trees. He considered planning the Trail of 100 Giants to be a major landmark of his work with the Forest Service.

Art Cowley’s life and career embodied the values we share at 3FIA in regards to appreciation for our National Forests. He understood the value of our vast public lands and believed that by studying and sharing in an understanding of the forests, people would be inspired to advocate for their protection and conservation. Standing under a soaring Giant Sequoia  and watching sunlight filter through its branches on a summer afternoon is a truly singular experience. Walking among these trees that have stood for thousands of years, it is easy to see what inspired Art Cowley.

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Along the canyon wall above the North Fork of the Tuolumne River, a unique, highly-accessible public trail winds for five miles through the Sierra Nevada Mountains. Offering stunning vistas of the river below, up-close, spring wildflower encounters, and views of distant mountain ridges which beckoned gold miners and timber barons of the past, the recently revamped trail now also connects fascinating local history with an easy hike and family recreational opportunity.

The trail sits atop the former site of the Hetch Hetchy & Yosemite Valley Railroad, constructed in 1898 and in operation as a narrow gauge rail line serving the timber industry until the late 1960s. The recent upgrades to the Westside Trail were spearheaded by the 3 Forest Interpretative Association (3FIA) and a diverse collection of collaborators, working in partnership to create and installed a series of interpretive panels and signs along this historic stretch of railroad grade.

In one panel entitled ‘Fire,’ a period photograph of a fire lookout, bold graphics of locomotive wheels grinding metal on metal, and an engaging narrative combine to recreate a sense of the fears and dangers of wildfires in the past. Another panel displays detailed line drawings of native plants and Me-Wuk handiwork while relating the tensions and disparities between the Native and European cultures when the logging industry was booming, and Indian cultures suffered.

Beginning in 2012 when the Federal Highway Administration scheduled improvements to the adjacent roadway, 3FIA began working with the U.S. Forest Service, Bureau of Land Management, the Me-Wuk Indian Tribe, Tuolumne Park and Recreation District, and Tuolumne County Transportation Council to implement the project. The trail crosses land belonging to many of these groups, as well as private landowners. The Tuolumne County Historical Society, Carlo M. DeFerrari Archive, the Tuolumne City Memorial Museum, and trail enthusiasts also contributed to the effort.

The signs are constructed of rugged, anodized aluminum, enhancing the historic railroad theme of the display. Computer graphics interns from Columbia College made numerous trips to the site and local historical archives to unearth real-life stories and accurate details about the railroad’s history. A special effort was made to ensure the information on the panels does not duplicate information published elsewhere. On National Public Lands Day in September 2013, volunteers installed the first panels. The Tuolumne West Side trail is part of a more extensive, state-wide trail system under construction.

Project contributors sought to highlight for the enjoyment and edification of hikers, bicycle enthusiasts, and horseback riders the cultural heritage preserved in this historic stretch of old railroad grade. The project enhances a trail following the last of the timber industry’s steam-powered, narrow-gauge railroad lines to operate in the West.

The West Side Trail’s history as a vital access route to logging camps deep inside the Stanislaus Forest in the 19th and 20th centuries has made this site eligible for the National Registry of Historic Places for its significant insight into the early history of the timber industry in California.

Learn more at the official project website and USFS Rails to Trails page.

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