NEMO means "no man" in Latin — a fitting name for a brand built around seeking the paths less traveled. Growing up in New Hampshire, I didn't have the vast roadless expanses found in Montana or Utah. But in places like the White Mountain National Forest, especially in the colder months, you can hike far enough from a road to find a silence so complete you become aware of the sounds inside your own body.

I first felt that silence in high school. During my senior year, a classmate and I got permission to spend a trimester hiking the hardest sections of the Appalachian Trail through New Hampshire and western Maine. The grandeur of the landscape — and the deep sense of belonging I found out there — has shaped the course of my life ever since. Not long after that trip, I committed to starting NEMO and dedicating myself to enhancing other people's adventures outdoors.

Our mission has always been rooted in a love for adventure — and a responsibility to the places and people that make those adventures possible. We design thoughtful gear that helps people spend more time outside, and we believe that comes with an obligation to protect the landscapes where that time is spent.

For our customers, those places stretch from the forests of New England to the mountains of the West and the vast landscapes of Alaska. They are where we hike, camp, hunt, fish, paddle, climb, and gather with the people we care about. They are also places we have a shared responsibility to protect.

Today, one of our nation's most effective tools for conserving these landscapes is at risk.

The 2001 Roadless Area Conservation Rule protects more than 45 million acres of national forest lands across the country from most new road construction, road reconstruction, and commercial timber harvest. Now, the U.S. Department of Agriculture has proposed rescinding the rule, removing a consistent national safeguard that has been in place for 25 years.

We urge the USDA and the U.S. Forest Service to keep the Roadless Rule intact.

The Roadless Rule does not prevent people from enjoying or responsibly managing our national forests. It contains exceptions that allow for important work, including actions needed to protect public health and safety, restore habitat, and uphold existing access rights. What it does is provide a thoughtful baseline for protecting some of our country’s most intact national forest lands from unnecessary development and fragmentation.

That balance has served Americans well.

Roadless areas provide habitat for fish and wildlife, safeguard sources of clean drinking water, and help forests remain resilient in a changing climate. They also sustain the outdoor experiences that millions of Americans seek every year. These lands support guides, outfitters, retailers, manufacturers, restaurants, lodging providers, and rural communities whose livelihoods are connected to healthy forests and reliable access to outdoor recreation.

As the founder of an outdoor equipment company, I see that connection every day. NEMO's customers invest in tents, sleeping bags, sleeping pads, and other equipment because they want to spend meaningful time outside. Our business, like thousands of others across the outdoor industry, depends on people having beautiful, healthy, and accessible places to explore.

From our home in New Hampshire, we understand how deeply public lands can shape a region's identity. The White Mountains draw people from across New England and beyond to hike, camp, ski, and experience the kind of quiet and solitude that is increasingly difficult to find. Although the landscapes protected by the Roadless Rule extend far beyond the Northeast, the principle behind the rule is one we know well: once an untouched place is fragmented by roads and development, restoring its original character is extraordinarily difficult, if not impossible.

We recognize that managing national forests is complex, and communities near them face real challenges. The existing Roadless Rule allows for necessary, local action while establishing a durable standard for the lands that remain largely undeveloped. Rather than discarding that balance, we should build upon it and protect the rule that is working exactly as intended.

Years after my formative time on the Appalachian Trail, I joined friends from the Southwest in search of the farthest point from a maintained road in the lower 48. We followed remote tracks, hiked, and scaled cliff bands deep in Utah until our GPS units confirmed we had reached it. I often return to that experience. In lives crowded by demands and routine, venturing far off the beaten path can restore perspective and place your well-being squarely in your own hands. Protecting the places that make those moments possible is not just sound policy — it is a responsibility the outdoor industry must take seriously.

The decisions we make about these lands will endure far beyond any one administration, election cycle, or business quarter. We should approach them with that same long-term perspective.

The USDA is accepting public comments on its proposal through September 21, 2026. We encourage outdoor businesses, recreationists, community leaders, and everyone who values America's national forests to speak up. We also ask decision makers at the USDA and the U.S. Forest Service to listen to the people, businesses, Tribes, and communities that depend on these landscapes.

Keep the Roadless Rule in place. Protect the lands that sustain our communities, our economy, and our shared sense of adventure. Some places are worth keeping roadless.

You can voice your support for maintaining the current Roadless Rule by visiting the link here. 265,764 acres in New England are at stake.

Cam Brensinger

Founder & CEO, NEMO Equipment