Yukon activist plans cross-country ANWR trek

by The Associated Press

A Canadian activist plans to bicycle across the United States to urge Americans against oil drilling in Alaska’s Arctic National Wildlife Refuge.

Ken Madsen, an activist and photographer from the Yukon Territories, will start the 2 1/2-month trek in Seattle and conclude in Washington, D.C.

He will bicycle and walk the entire route and will be joined by his wife and son who will trail him in a support vehicle along with the former manager of the refuge, Don Ross.

Madsen is undertaking the trek for the Caribou Commons Project, which lobbies in favor of protecting the Porcupine caribou herd that relies on the refuge for habitat.

The trip is timed to coincide with current congressional campaigns going on across the nation. Madsen said he doesn’t expect to change President Bush’s mind, but hopes to sway voters and candidates.

“We believe the fall is going to be a critical time,” Madsen told The Whitehorse Star.

Opening the Arctic wildlife refuge to oil exploration has been a centerpiece of the Bush administration’s energy agenda. There is widespread support for such a move in Alaska, but support in the Lower 48 is less clear.

But environmentalists and those opposed to drilling contend that oil can be found elsewhere without risking the refuge and its wildlife, including a herd of more than 120,000 caribou that calve there each year. Musician Matthew Lien will be on hand at some of the bigger events for the Walk to Washington, such as the initial kickoff in Seattle on Aug. 23 and the final event in the nation’s capital.