I recently had a terrifying experience. A loved one of mine, a very intelligent, self-controlled, emotionally stable man, decided to give Salvia a try. Salvia Divinorum is an unregulated over-the-counter drug sold in colorful little packets easily obtained at a smoke shop in Durango. He was picking up some rolling papers when he saw the Salvia sold in packets as if they were tobacco. The packets give absolutely no information about how the drug works or what dosage to take. It comes as a dried leaf, much like tobacco or marijuana.

We came home, he put some in his pipe and took one hit. Almost immediately, I saw his face turn blank, his eyes open wide like a deer in headlights, and his forearms curl up like a person with a severe mental handicap. For the next two minutes, he babbled and walked around banging into walls trying to leave the house. His pulse was extremely elevated and he seemed to be having a fight-or-flight response. He did not seem to see me or acknowledge my words as I told him to sit and calm down. Finally he laid down and slowly came to, having no recollection of the experience.

When he came to, he decided that the drug was dangerous and couldn’t believe it was sold legally in the smoke shop in that manner, when something like marijuana which is much safer requires a prescription. He is an experienced user of marijuana, and has occasionally used LSD, mushrooms and DMT, always having had positive experiences without ever having it feel dangerous. He never expected to completely lose it with an over-the-counter herb.

To be fair, Salvia Divinorum has been used safely in natural form for centuries in Mexico to facilitate spiritual experiences. However, Westerners need to realize that it is a very powerful drug that can cause users to be knocked completely out of touch with reality, which could lead them to accidentally hurt themselves by walking into traffic or jumping off a building. Just because it is sold over the counter does not make it safe. Be warned. In the name of harm reduction, I suggest the city of Durango require smoke shops to provide customers with information about dosage and potential side effects.

– Name withheld, Durango

BLM should deny new ATV trail
Dear editor,

The Monticello BLM office is requesting comments on its environmental assessment, which analyzed a proposal to give San Juan County, Utah, a right-of-way to construct a new ATV route across scenic public lands next to Indian Creek, directly east of the Needles District of Canyonlands National Park. This ATV route would irretrievably impact the Indian Creek-Lockhart Basin proposed wilderness area and would be a significant conflict with other recreational uses of the area.

 

The Indian Creek area, located on the east side of Canyonlands National Park, south of Moab, is famous for its dramatic and sheer Wingate Sandstone cliffs and is an internationally known and treasured rock climbing destination. Beyond the sheer walls, as Indian Creek continues its journey downstream toward Indian Creek Falls and its eventual confluence with the Colorado River, off-road vehicle users enjoy many miles of trails that allow for recreational adventures and exploration of the vast Canyonlands basin.

Even though the BLM has designated more than 3,000 miles of off-road vehicle routes in San Juan County, including dozens of routes in and near the Indian Creek area, San Juan County is requesting that the BLM grant the county a right-of-way for yet another off-road vehicle trail “to provide an exclusive recreational opportunity for ATV enthusiasts.”

The proposed ATV trail, approximately 4 miles long, would bisect a roadless area and could adversely affect this stretch of Indian Creek – a desert stream that supports a variety of wildlife species including desert bighorn sheep, mule deer and golden eagles, as it meanders through the redrock and high-desert grasslands on its way to the Colorado River.

There are reasonable alternatives to this proposed ATV route (i.e., using existing off-road vehicle routes and roads) that would not impact wild lands, Indian Creek and its world-famous scenery and would minimize conflicts with other users of the Indian Creek area. However, the BLM failed to analyze these alternatives in its environmental review.

Please tell the BLM by Thurs., Dec. 22, that there is no need for additional ATV routes in the Indian Creek area.

With your help, we can preserve the scenic and wilderness qualities of the Indian Creek area.

– Thanks for your support, Liz Thomas, Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance

Talking dust with David
To the editor,
David Feela’s excellent essay, “Dust Thou Ain’t” reminded me of a poem that I wrote quite recently. Here it is:

“An Ugly Dream of Dust”

What are the specks that drift from room to room
That make the smoker hack and sickly sneeze?
If not me now then surely some day soon
I too will know the lung, the cloth, the breeze
Though not here now it’s always in the post
Long after bone is bleached, when concrete’s gone
When everything will blow from coast to coast
With no one to go gently or rage on!

So learn to love the will of wind and air
But spare a thought for dust and you will see
Through high and low of laughter and despair
Just what it was and is and yet will be