[pct-l] Angeles National Forest Closure Extended

[dsaufley]

I can truly relate -- I went through some very genuine depression when the
fire occurred, and all the places I love in the San Gabriels burned.  It's
not just where I can most easily go to play and restore my soul, it's the
view I have on my porch facing the northern flank of the range.  I think of
it every day, and the two precious lives that were lost in the fire near Mt.
Gleason. Homes and fire stations burned to the ground, and people lost
everything.  It puts things into perspective.

What I understand from those who have been inside of the closure is that it
did not burn everything within the burn zone.  There are patches of trees
and shrubs that did not burn, and some trees burned but will survive as it
is part of their cycle of life. This past season grasses and flowers came
up, as they hopefully will again this coming spring. They are certainly
needed to keep the sandy soils from eroding. 

It's substantially further to road walk down to LA, and around to where the
trail opens in Soledad Canyon. Know that the current recommended alternate
around the back side has some highlights, and some great stops (Devil's
Punchbowl, Littlerock, Blum Ranch, and the KOA) that the hikers spoke highly
of this year.  It seems that if people were talking, laughing, and playing
games with their fellow hikers, the road walk wasn't that bad at all.
Conversely, those who chose to have a bad attitude about the road walk
certainly did.  As Abe Lincoln said, "People are as happy as they make up
their minds to be," or something like that.

We also have a stretch of the Angeles Nat'l Forest to the north of us that
burned several years ago ("Buckweed" fire).  They closed those areas for two
years, so I wasn't surprised that the Station Fire closure was extended for
a second year.  It's my hope that they will reopen in the third year, so if
you can wait to hike that section until 2012, I'm willing to wager Section D
may be open by then.

Expectations usually disappoint us. If we expect something to be just like
it was before, chances are good it will not be.  If we open our minds to
accept the reality presented to us, we can discover the new and wonderful.  

L-Rod

-----Original Message-----
From: pct-l-bounces at backcountry.net [mailto:pct-l-bounces at backcountry.net]
On Behalf Of Cosmic Cat
Sent: Wednesday, October 06, 2010 9:03 PM
To: Thelma Fredricksen
Cc: Pct-L at backcountry.net
Subject: Re: [pct-l] Angeles National Forest Closure Extended

Last night, I woke up in the middle of the night and was sad about this.
Section D is the best PCT hiking in SoCal IMHO. What is really sad is that
much of my good memories are now completely history. That PDF is crappy
quality and it took me a while to fully grasp the extent of the fire. That
is half of the entire section, completely trashed.

How much is really gone? What about that cute little scout camp with the
spring? We went past there early in the morning and the owner and his lady
friend offered us whiskey. Messenger Flats with its water and
shade? Humongous slept in the shitter there, after he encountered a cougar
after dark. Is anything left after the fire?

I was looking forward to seeing these places again, and overlaying a whole
new chunk of good memories over the top of it all.

Now I have a big road walk to look forward to. In the desert.

Has anybody given thought to a different alternate route? Like perhaps
through the urban jungle of the greater LA area? No shortage of water, food,
shade or interesting things to see. Heck, you wouldn't even need to carry
food. You would have to scout out the route to go through the safer, more
affluent bits (near the mountains I hope). You would also need a general
idea of where the motels are along the route. Sleeping outdoors in the LA
jungle is reserved for only the most adventurous of Thru Hikers. The only
challenge would be finding a place to pee.

Would any of the folks that live in that area be bold enough to propose a
route?

Goodness

On Tue, Oct 5, 2010 at 11:00 AM, Thelma Fredricksen <
thelma.fredricksen at gmail.com> wrote:

> I like your lyrics.....
>
> On Mon, Oct 4, 2010 at 10:24 PM, AsABat <asabat at 4jeffrey.net> wrote:
>
> > How many roads must a man walk down
> > Because the trail is banned
> > How many cars must a hiker dodge
> > Because "they" say hike we can't
> > How many times must the people try
> > Before they are forever banned
> > The answer, my friend, is blowing in the wind
> > The answer is blowing in the wind
> >
> > Sigh...
> >
> > AsABat
> >
> >
> > On Mon, Oct 4, 2010 at 8:00 AM, <gwschenk at socal.rr.com> wrote:
> >
> > > The Station Fire closure has been extended until Sept., 2011. Sections
> of
> > > the PCT are included according to this order and exhibit.
> > >
> > >
> > >
> >
>
http://www.fs.fed.us/r5/angeles/orders/StationFireClosure_01-10-05_8x11_Publ
ic.pdf
> > >
> > >
> >
>
http://www.fs.fed.us/r5/angeles/orders/StationFireRecoveryAreaClosureOrder01
_10_05.pdf
> > >
> > >
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