[pct-l] Marble Mountain Wilderness :: Sec Q is Closed!! due to fires!!

[Gary Wright]

On Aug 9, 2006, at 3:40 PM, Terry Norton wrote:
> Most hikers are ignoring the closure and going through.  There is a
> saw horse across the trail at Etna Summit with the closure notice
> posted on it.  The feeling is if the situation were serious, there
> would be someone posted at the trailhead.

The idea that the forest service could provide staffing for a person
at every trailhead (I assume there is more than one way to get into
the Marble MT. Wilderness) so as to actively dissuade/inform hikers  
of the dangers seems a bit unreasonable to me.  The absence of such a  
person
says pretty much *nothing* about the risks/danger of entering the
closed area.

Flagrant disregard for rules and regulations like this generally creates
a lot more problems down the line for the hiking community in general
and the long-distance hiking community in particular.

I'd ask thru-hikers to think of the ramifications of their choice should
a hiker get injured or needed to be rescued in the closed area or simply
the bad PR because hikers were known to have violated the closure.

Note: I have no opinion on whether the closure makes 'sense' or not.  I
just don't know enough about the fire, the suppression activities, and
the proximity of the trail to these areas.