[pct-l] Scott and Joe hiking closure

[Kent Spring]

Hi -

I guess that I would agree with some of the sentiment in this note, although I can't agree totally.  I hiked the section from Campo to Kennedy Meadows this year before needing to leave the trail due an injury.  During the time I was on the trail we faced three "official" trail closures, two for previous fires and one for habitat of endangered frogs.  

I can see where hikers have no business in active fire scenes.  That helicopter that dropped water might have dropped fire retardant - which might have been serious, plus hikers could either endanger themselves or the fire fighters.

However, these closures due to "old" fires were very questionable and apparently aimed at keeping off-road vehicles at bay, but hikers get caught in the wide brush of Forest Service policy.  The result is that hikers were put at risk by being told to take a long road walk, where they exposed to many vehicles.  Yet the hikers who went thru the area said that the trail was in fine shape, and there were no risks to either them or the habitat.

I think that the FS/gov't needs to take a much more nuanced approach.  They should keep hikers out of areas where they really don't belong.  Yet the authorities should still understand that hikers are not the same as off-road vehicles or other users in their destructive ability, and thus can safely hike areas where some "users" are excluded. 

It would appear that Scott and Joe were wrong to go thru an active area, but we should let them answer for themselves before we convict them….

Kent

> From: "Will Hiltz" <will.hiltz at gmail.com>
> Subject: Re: [pct-l] Scott and Joe hiking closure
> 
> I'm sorry- am I the only one who has a problem with
> this?
> 
> Fire closures are for everyone are they not?  As stewards
> of the trail,
> shouldn't scott and joe be striving to display proper
> respect for the rules
> and regulations of the trail, especially considering they
> are role models
> and particularly well-known along the trail?  Won't
> this increase the
> likelihood of other thrus doing the same thing and becoming
> less respectul
> of wilderness regulations/bear can laws/closures/LNT
> practices etc. because
> they think they're "experts"?  I know we all
> think Scott and Joe are
> super-awesome and hike really quickly but do we as a
> long-distance
> community, want to be seen as a group of hikers that view
> themselves "above"
> restrictions?  In case it isn't clear, no I don't
> think going for the record
> exempts them.   A record-breaking pace hike isn't any
> more important than
> someone trying to get from mexico to canada for the first
> time.  Or should
> we all be ignoring fire closures?
> 
> 
> YITOOD,
> 
> Easy
>