[pct-l] burning TP and fire risk

[Gary Wright]

On Jan 29, 2010, at 2:27 PM, Dan Africk wrote:
>  I believe all hikers need to be
> responsible when dealing with their environment, especially when it comes to
> fire. But just because some people have been careless or irresponsible in
> the past, doesn't mean that no one should ever use fire or that everyone
> else is incapable of using it responsibly.

I certainly can agree that some people are more responsible/cautious than
others and in many situations it is OK to leave it at that.  But in places
where incautious behavior endangers others it is better to be safe.  In
particular it is pretty hard to draft any sort of official regulation or
criminal statute that differentiates between 'responsible people' and
'irresponsible people' and so these rules tend to be written with the
assumption that the world is full of irresponsible people (which it is).

I'm from New England and didn't really understand the scope and nature
of forest fires until I hiked the PCT. Forest fires just aren't part
of most people's everyday experience in New England while in the west it
is an expected annual event (i.e. fire season).

Gary Wright (Radar)