Duckwater Shoshone Tribe of the Duckwater Reservation

At the dying southern grove, the future feared for Basawabi is already taking shape.

Rather than defend Basawabi from each new threat as it arrives, the Ili Shoshone Tribe, Duckwater Shoshone Tribe, and Confederated Tribes of the Goshute Reservation together representing approximately 1,500 enrolled members, are seeking more enduring protection through the creation of the Basawabi National Monument.

The proposed monument would encompass 25,000 acres and transfer management from the Bureau of Land Management to the National Park Service, an agency the tribes believe would be a more suitable partner for telling their story and establishing a framework for co-stewardship.

Despite unanimous support from the Nevada legislature in 2021, backing from both Nevada senators, and a 2023 poll showing that 77% of Nevadans supported the monument, legislation introduced by Senator Catherine Cortez Masto in 2024 never made it out of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee.

True friends.

Still to this day, Bea is good friends with folks who live out on the Duckwater Reservation, which I visited on my trip, or the South Fork Ruby Mountain Reservation near Elko.

So friends in that way, but also strategic allies

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