It was yet another afternoon of record-setting heat. I loosened my tie, rolled up my sleeves, and plugged in the fan, hoping to get some of the heavy, humid air moving, then sat in my creaky office chair and contemplated a city wrapped in a cloud of smog.Time for a vacation, I thought. I needed to get out of the city and away from my cramped office, the dusty keyboard, and my usual order at the diner down the street. I wanted clean, cool mountain air and wilderness as far as the eye could see.

The...