Senator Patty Murray and Congressman Dave Reichert announced they are introducing legislation to add 22,000 acres to the Alpine Lakes Wilderness. Standing on a sandbar alongside the Snoqualmie River outside of North Bend, earlier today, both expressed their enthusiasm for protecting the land and ecosystem along the river’s headwaters.Straddling the Pratt River and Middle Fork of the Snoqualmie and covered with second growth stands of Douglas fir, the area is remarkable not only for its natural setting but that it is so close to a major metropolitan center, less than an hour drive from Seattle. A map of the proposed Wilderness area can be found here.The original Alpine Lakes Wilderness was designated in 1976. But it was the nearby Wild Sky Wilderness, that was signed into law almost a year ago today, that appeared to be on the forefront of both elected officials minds. The standard joke of the day was “I hope it doesn’t take as long to pass as Wild Sky”.And that would be nine years what with political rancor over land use and access.A mouthful to write or say, the Alpine Lakes Wilderness and Pratt and Middle Fork Snoqualmie Rivers Protection Act will be forwarded to the appropriate sub-committees in both houses, where they’ll thrive or die based on the amount of cooperation Murray and Reichert can obtain.Extra: Of a more pressing concern is that many of the trailheads and access roads leading into the proposed wilderness area (and other federal lands across the state) have been damaged or completely wiped out by historic flooding earlier this year. What’s the point of designating an area a wilderness if the only way the public access can recreation sites, at the moment, is with a helicopter.So far federal bailout money has not been directed towards these repairs, going instead to “shovel ready” infrastructure projects designated by the state. Both Murray and Reichert made assurances that the ball would get rolling in bringing some greenbacks to the state to fix the problem.