A new documentary uses a 200-mile bikepacking trip across Oregon to tell two overlooked stories: how wilderness can help veterans heal from the invisible wounds of war and how Black soldiers helped protect the state's forests during World War II.
"Unseen," filmmaker and conservationist Chad Brown's latest documentary, follows five combat veterans along the Oregon Timber Trail while exploring the legacy of the Triple Nickles, the nation's first all-Black paratrooper unit. Brown said the film challenges who gets represented in outdoor spaces and argues that nature can be a powerful tool for healing.
For the veterans featured in the film, the grueling trek through Oregon's backcountry became a transformative experience. Brown said the wilderness provided a place for people living with post-traumatic stress disorder, traumatic brain injuries and other invisible wounds to begin healing.
"Nature starts to become a therapist to each one of these veterans," Brown said.
The film also tells the story of the Triple Nickles, who served as smokejumpers in Oregon during World War II, parachuting into wildfires sparked by Japanese balloon bombs. Brown said the contributions of Black Americans to the nation's outdoor heritage have often been overlooked.
"Those stories definitely do not get put into the books or get talked about or get written about," he said.
Brown's conservation work extends beyond the film. He has led more than 30 expeditions into the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge as the first Black American to hold a backcountry guide permit there. He described the Arctic as a witness to climate change and Indigenous struggles.
"The Arctic is the storyteller," he said. "It tells you what's happening and what's going on."
Through his nonprofit, Love Is King, Brown works to make the outdoors more welcoming for marginalized communities. He founded the organization after being shot at while fly fishing, an experience he said underscored the barriers some people face when spending time outdoors.
Today, Brown said everyone deserves to experience nature without fear.
"Every one of us has a right to roam nature," he said. "It's an undeniable human right."
Guest
- Chad Brown, documentary filmmaker, "Unseen," and founder, Love Is King
