DO NOT GO HERE. Everyone and their uncle is flocking to this hike, courtesy of a certain Facebook group (that should really be renamed "The People for the Overpopulation of Lake Colchuck and Lake 22"). One person posts a filter-enhanced photo of the lake to that group, and it's on...
STAMPEEEEEEEEEDE!
Of course, everyone being the responsible outdoor enthusiasts that they are, all rules are respected and people who find a full parking lot just go somewhere else right? Nope. As this video (reposted by the outmatched Forest Service) shows, people park for miles along the road, creating a one-lane clog.
This mass stupidity is what hiking has become. I've seen the same thing at all the most popular trails. Do yourself a favor and stay away. I've taken up needlepoint. It's very relaxing.
Confidential to all the people who won't read this trip report, because they're too busy driving to the trailhead, two things: 1.) there's still a pandemic going on. In fact, it's on more than ever - we've done a great job spreading coronavirus. And you've done your part by crowding onto trails too soon. Nice work!! 2.) Only by really going out of your way to not pay attention can you act like you're the first person to reach the shores of Colchuck. Willful narcissism: it's what's for breakfast (and lunch and dinner and Instagram). It's not even a real lake! It's a reservoir. Stop rushing there and snapping photos of yourself like you've just stumbled on a natural beauty no one's ever seen before. Here - let's try an experiment. Do a google image search for "Colchuck Lake." I'll wait. How many photos did you find?
The two mindsets (hiking exceptionalism, covid do-nothingism) are related. The belief that each of us is the only person in the world (despite ample evidence to the contrary) and that our individual pleasure can be pursued regardless of impact to others is why beautiful places are getting trashed and why we've lost more people to a manageable outbreak than any other country on earth (until Brazil one-ups us - but trust me when I tell you that "not quite as bad as Balsonaro's Brazil" is really faint praise).
Forest Service: just close the road. Wall it off below Eight Mile. Tell everyone to let the mountains breathe for a while. The hares, the ptarmigans, the pikas, the goats, and the squirrels all deserve a few weeks of peace and quiet.
Comments
klola on Colchuck Lake
Did you listen to your own advice and not go?
Posted by:
klola on Jun 13, 2020 09:55 AM
Douglas S. Squirrel on Colchuck Lake
Textbook whataboutism (I could have gone and still be in the right with my comments), but I'll answer it, because in this hothouse, I am in position to throw stones. Yes: I in fact have stayed away from the mountains since the shelter in place order went into effect, and I encourage everyone to do the same.
Posted by:
Douglas S. Squirrel on Jun 13, 2020 01:44 PM
Jenniferkaye79 on Colchuck Lake
Yep, people want to enjoy nature and fresh air. It’s a big part of boosting your immune system, not to mention mental and physical health. I hope you are able to find some happiness. ✌️
Posted by:
Jenniferkaye79 on Jun 13, 2020 10:26 AM
Douglas S. Squirrel on Colchuck Lake
I find my fresh air in a responsible radius around my home. I find my happiness in doing the most I possibly can to help slow the spread of a deadly virus.
Posted by:
Douglas S. Squirrel on Jun 13, 2020 01:46 PM
seattlenativemike on Colchuck Lake
Agree..it’s nice to have a few hikes that attract the masses so the rest of us can find peace and solitude elsewhere. “Call someplace paradise (and post photos on Instagram), kiss it goodbye...” - Eagles
Posted by:
seattlenativemike on Jun 13, 2020 12:04 PM
emcat166 on Colchuck Lake
“The belief that each of us is the only person in the world despite ample evidence to the contrary” YEP. Such a vindicating rant, I’ve had so many of these thoughts in the past few weeks while hiking.
Posted by:
emcat166 on Jun 13, 2020 12:24 PM
BethS on Colchuck Lake
I didn't go to Colchuck after seeing the crowds too, but this and other crowded pretty places has made me think about how people experience the outdoors. I'm the type that wants to have a place all to myself, enjoy the wilderness with as few other people as possible. Other people don't mind the crowds, they may prefer a busy trail, and even feel safer from both wildlife and humans when there are other people always in sight. I do admit I scan the woods for cougars when I'm hiking a lonely trail, and I do think about humans with nefarious intent in some places. I think the crowds just represent a different way to enjoy the wilderness, and the parks and national forest should provide some means to handle them, like in Canada, perhaps well engineered trails, more toilet facilities, trash service and personnel to handle the crowds. These are all of our public lands, and we need to provide for all kinds of people to use them, lightly for sure, but perhaps in large numbers. There are the lonely trails waiting for those of us who love them.
Posted by:
BethS on Jun 13, 2020 12:52 PM
seattlenativemike on Colchuck Lake
“ Other people don't mind the crowds, they may prefer a busy trail, and even feel safer from both wildlife and humans when there are other people always in sight. ”
Reminds me of hiking up there years ago and coming across a guy with a Glock in his pants who asked me seriously if there were any deer up there for shooting...
Posted by:
seattlenativemike on Jun 13, 2020 12:58 PM
Douglas S. Squirrel on Colchuck Lake
The argument has always been: if we let people use these lands, they will protect them. I don't believe that is really true. The myth of the natural leads people to consume wild spaces more and more. It's what drives development like Snoqualmie Ridge and Suncadia where previously wild spaces (mostly wild - perhaps logged years earlier) get repurposed for resource-intensive homes so people can feel "close to nature." We can either protect wilderness or pretend to care. We can't do both.
Posted by:
Douglas S. Squirrel on Jun 13, 2020 01:51 PM
BethS on Colchuck Lake
I don't recall saying I'm OK with vacation homes. The crowds in the front-country are inevitable. I say, find a way to embrace it and make it work or else, yeah, we'll get all those those vacation homes. Elitism doesn't work, not in environmentalism either.
Posted by:
BethS on Jun 13, 2020 05:41 PM
Douglas S. Squirrel on Colchuck Lake
This isn't about elitism. Making sure that *anyone* has access to wild lands does not require ensuring *everyone* has access (and not all the time). Crowds can be fun, sure, but they also bring in the lowest common denominator in greater numbers. If 1% of people at Colchuck cut switchbacks, bring a dog, have a campfire by the lakeside (I've seen all three behaviors), 1,000 people on the trail = 10 people causing damage. 100 would mean there's just 1 such person (and if the 100 are selected based on knowledge and care, maybe even that one doesn't get in).
Posted by:
Douglas S. Squirrel on Jun 14, 2020 06:02 AM
Cascadian_Hiker on Colchuck Lake
Relax
Posted by:
Cascadian_Hiker on Jun 13, 2020 01:57 PM
Douglas S. Squirrel on Colchuck Lake
I see I've met my match in rhetorical skill. I hacked into your computer so I could read your discarded drafts and reverse-engineer my way to cleverer retorts.
"Nunh unh!!"
"Don't be so uptight. Just let it happen."
"Caring is lame."
Dang, no way I can measure up to that. Just gotta admit when I've been bested.
Posted by:
Douglas S. Squirrel on Jun 13, 2020 02:17 PM
Sir-Hikes-A-Lot on Colchuck Lake
Stampede, indeed.
Another great, honest report. I like your name change, BTW. Douglas squirrels and needlepoint; two of my favorite things!
When physical distancing is lifted we should 'point together.
Posted by:
Sir-Hikes-A-Lot on Jun 13, 2020 04:34 PM
Douglas S. Squirrel on Colchuck Lake
I like big boots and I cannot lie.
Posted by:
Douglas S. Squirrel on Jun 13, 2020 04:54 PM
Douglas S. Squirrel on Colchuck Lake
new name wasn't my first choice, but lawyers said there would be "issues" with "David S. Pumpkins."
Posted by:
Douglas S. Squirrel on Jun 13, 2020 05:35 PM
Jarv on Colchuck Lake
Loved your rant. The FS sells lottery tickets for $5 in order to have a chance to be one of the few who get to hike to the Wave each day. Somedays there will be 50 people waiting for the drawing early in the morning. You pay for a chance. Only a few are allowed in each day. Maybe the FS could do the same with Colchuck and make money for trail maintenance or a good end of the season beer fest for the FS employees.
Again, loved your rant.
Posted by:
Jarv on Jun 13, 2020 06:12 PM
Douglas S. Squirrel on Colchuck Lake
I don't love lotteries. Lotteries are arbitrary. I would prefer something meritocratic. Your odds of getting to see a place like this should be directly proportional to the extent to which you give a s***. I'd want an application that has to be filled out just right, with information that takes a bit of homework you have to have done in advance. How about: they divide the area up into even more zones, and you have to provide an itinerary of the zones you'll, in the correct sequence from entry point to intermediate destinations and exit point, even for day permits? To provide the incentive and funding for enforcement, you provide a $100 no-questions-asked version of the permit: essentially a tax on the wealthy and stupid who show up here unprepared. Now that I could be down with.
Posted by:
Douglas S. Squirrel on Jun 14, 2020 05:42 AM
KJ the Pole Pusher on Colchuck Lake
PREACH!
Posted by:
KJ the Pole Pusher on Jun 13, 2020 07:09 PM
tim0 on Colchuck Lake
Hilariously entertaining. Thanks.
Posted by:
tim0 on Jun 13, 2020 07:30 PM
Muledeer on Colchuck Lake
This makes the Enchantments a whole lot less enchanting! I was up there once in the fall during the week, not near as crazy. Now it looks like a good one to miss! This must be the eastside version of Lake 22.
Posted by:
Muledeer on Jun 13, 2020 07:49 PM
hayleygardner19 on Colchuck Lake
You’re totally right! Honestly, we should all be hiding under our beds in pure fear. Don’t go outside and enjoy nature, you’ll catch the plague the moment you step outside and breath fresh air. It’s terrible for you!!!! Mark my words, the more we enjoy nature the more nails in our coffins.
Posted by:
hayleygardner19 on Jun 13, 2020 08:09 PM
Douglas S. Squirrel on Colchuck Lake
1.) COVID actually is terrible for you. 2.) That notwithstanding, I'm not cowering in fear. I've sized up the situation (it's a pandemic yall!) and concluded that the right and useful thing to do is to postpone hiking. I want things to go back to normal as reliably and quickly as possible (too late for that, thanks to attitudes like yours, but still...), so if I can help increase the likelihood of that by not hiking, sign me up. 3.) Beyond that, if a very beautiful place is getting so much traffic that people have to turn a dirt road into a single-lane alleyway just to get their chance to see it, I think we all and each need to reduce that impact. I love Colchuck - who doesn't? - but the place means more to me, though, than my desire to see it. That's why I stay away.
Posted by:
Douglas S. Squirrel on Jun 14, 2020 05:32 AM
Dream Delay on Colchuck Lake
Thank you for your report.
Posted by:
Dream Delay on Jun 13, 2020 08:12 PM
Douglas S. Squirrel on Colchuck Lake
You are welcome.
Posted by:
Douglas S. Squirrel on Jun 14, 2020 05:32 AM
JeffReigns on Colchuck Lake
Agreed 100%. Social media is killing hiking in general. Gone are the days when places can be truly special. All it takes is one schmuck who decides he/she wants some imaginary internet points to post some pictures of a place, drop the name and how to get there and BAM stampede because now every Karen, Kyle and Jane has to go up there, take the picture doing the same tired yoga pose with the scenery in the background, Kyle walking down the trail blasting his music on his Bluetooth speaker... and then most have the nerve to complain about how busy the trail was and how they wish they could have more solitude.
Posted by:
JeffReigns on Jun 13, 2020 09:04 PM
snowmonkey on Colchuck Lake
I feel your pain DS, however, no lottery, rule, closure or virus will solve the core problem which is, as I see it; too many people in the PNW, outdoor retailers who market skill and knowledge with the simple procurement of their products and the cult following of social media. As the saying goes “if you can’t stand the heat....” My advice?; Wyoming, but don’t tell anybody 😉
Posted by:
snowmonkey on Jun 14, 2020 05:53 AM
Douglas S. Squirrel on Colchuck Lake
We can solve it if we want to. Running won't help. Wyoming is already plenty crowded in its own right, and the more people pursue the strategy of finding their own empty corner of wilderness, the fewer empty corners will remain.
100% agreed, though, that the forces driving the situation I describe are formidable.
Posted by:
Douglas S. Squirrel on Jun 14, 2020 06:07 AM
SeattleCyclist on Colchuck Lake
Oh my god. This post is sanctimonious entitled garbage.
Posted by:
PDX Hikes on Jun 14, 2020 07:58 AM
SonicsGhost on Colchuck Lake
I agree SeattleCyclist, your post is sanctimonious entitled garbage.
Help me understand where you're at. Sooo... you are in favor of crowds on the trails. During a pandemic. Exponential increase in high impact activity in sensitive alpine/subalpine terrain. And thumbs up for illegal parking. Did I miss anything?
Posted by:
SonicsGhost on Jun 14, 2020 12:10 PM
Muledeer on Colchuck Lake
So that means of course, that you are going to take a large garbage bag next time you go and pick up all the used TP, dog poo bags and trash on the trail, then fix the cut switchbacks and destroy the illegal fire rings. Good! cuz I'm tired of doing it
Posted by:
Muledeer on Jun 14, 2020 03:24 PM
Douglas S. Squirrel on Colchuck Lake
Here's what entitled sounds like: "I went to the Stuart Lake Trailhead. The parking lot was full. I parked in a no parking zone and hiked anyway, because I HAVE A RIGHT TO HIKE ANYWHERE I WANT WHENEVER I WANT."
Here's what the opposite of that sounds like (I'm quoting myself here): "I in fact have stayed away from the mountains since the shelter in place order went into effect..."
As for garbage, you are entitled to your opinion, but a lot more people like my opinion than like your opinion.
It is sanctimonious. Sorry not sorry.
Posted by:
Douglas S. Squirrel on Jun 14, 2020 06:31 PM
Griselda on Colchuck Lake
Very entertaining! Love it. Thanks everyone, I agree with all of you ;)
Posted by:
grisbarr on Jun 14, 2020 09:05 AM
Testudo montana on Colchuck Lake
Great trip report! Maybe we need sacrifice zones for vanity hiking, same way we have them for mining and logging. Vanity Hiking Areas would be Open to All, while other trails would require a license, which you'd acquire by proving knowledge of and respect for the natural world. There'd also be an annual volunteer hours requirement. You could lose your license for infractions such as picking flowers, refusal to follow social distancing guidelines, and playing music without headphones.
Posted by:
Testudo montana on Jun 14, 2020 12:15 PM
Douglas S. Squirrel on Colchuck Lake
Yes! This! These are the kinds of conversations we need to start having, like, 10 years ago. I like where your head is at.
If it took a snarky squirrel to shake us out of this assumption that hiking is an intrinsic good no matter how it's done and in what quantities and start dealing with the mess on our hands, great!
Posted by:
Douglas S. Squirrel on Jun 14, 2020 01:18 PM
Scratch_That_Hiking_Itch on Colchuck Lake
I see a hike this crowded and I immediately turn around.
Who the hell wants to try and enjoy nature when the line is like Disneyland? Complete turn off, and that was before covid.
Posted by:
Scratch_That_Hiking_Itch on Jun 14, 2020 01:16 PM
ngie on Colchuck Lake
I understand the annoyance, but I don’t think this is the right forum to complain about this trail’s use.
While some of the gripes you have are constructive, they have been played time and again and are well known to land stewards (areas being loved to death, etc).
Seems like this energy (in this trip report and others) can be better put to use by working with land managers, volunteering time, and coming up with constructive solutions instead of just complaining into the void for 15 minutes of collective attention.
Posted by:
ngie on Jun 14, 2020 11:05 PM
Douglas S. Squirrel on Colchuck Lake
WTA is the most influential hiking advocacy group in the state, and a trip report like this is a way for this community to communicate in a very visible way that there is a concern that isn't being discussed. I have no way of knowing for sure, but a trip report like this probably generates more chatter than all their blog posts and 1,000 normal trip reports combined. I am pretty sure 100+ helpful votes makes this the second most up-voted report ever posted. It's an emphatic statement, and it's clearly not a void I'm shouting into. A lot of people are shouting back.
I've volunteered. I've contributed to policy. Neither can accomplish anything, if the solution (more access, more hikers) is the foundation on which those discussions happen. These trip reports aren't a solution in and of themselves (i'm still wrestling with what else to do, honestly - what a strategy towards a solution might look like, if it's even not too late), but they're a small down payment: a first attempt to crack open the bedrock assumption that more = better.
Overuse isn't on WTA's radar in any serious way. Coming up with creative approaches to managing that overuse isn't a policy priority, near as I can tell. I know it's not an easy solution to contemplate, since the slashing of public expenditures has trapped DNR and USFS in a fee-for-service model for funding; but I can't think of anything more important to hiking (much less the state of Washington's most beautiful places) than directly confronting that catch-22.
If nothing else, it is a temporary salve for the anguish I feel at watching places I love get treated like disposable distractions. Out of concern for my own impact on those places, I am increasingly ceding them to people who don't even bother to learn the basics before they set foot to trail. Putting words to that anguish feels good and motivates me to think about what else to do.
That makes this the perfect forum.
Have a great day.
Posted by:
Douglas S. Squirrel on Jun 15, 2020 06:47 AM
Testudo montana on Colchuck Lake
"Our trails are being loved to death". That misleading trope right there is a big part of the problem. If all the people out there hiking actually LOVED the wilderness, we wouldn't see cut switchbacks and piles of human waste, and we wouldn't have to listen to others' music and boisterous conversations, while dodging their off-leash dogs. As it is, most of the vanity hikers don't give a rat's about the well-being of the places they're exploiting, or their non-human inhabitants.
And as to your suggestion that Mr. Squirrel do some volunteer work to help trails, he IS doing volunteer work by deploying his superb writing skills in defense of the natural world.
Posted by:
Testudo montana on Jun 15, 2020 10:49 AM
Muledeer on Colchuck Lake
This: "If all the people out there actually LOVED the wilderness, we wouldn't see cut switchbacks...etc" Excellent point.
Posted by:
Muledeer on Jun 15, 2020 12:12 PM
Douglas S. Squirrel on Colchuck Lake
you know, it's a fair push that I should DO more instead of just SAYING more, and I'm curious to see if he has specific ideas. If he means volunteer for work parties, that doesn't solve the things I'm talking about. I'm hoping he weighs in with specifics and shows that this isn't just his way of saying: "I don't want to hear it / shut up." His response on the other trip report on this topic (the one by the guy with anger management and communication challenges) came across VERY paternalistic. We'll see if there's more to it than that.
Posted by:
Douglas S. Squirrel on Jun 15, 2020 12:24 PM
Muledeer on Colchuck Lake
Actually there IS something people can do about overrun trails. First, don't hike them.There are trails that are rarely hiked and could use a few more boots. Find a trail that is in danger of being lost, take a pair of clippers and go hike it, clipping brush out at the same time. Then post a report on the hike. C P is an excellent example of this kind of hiker. He has opened up quite a few trails off the MLH and in the North Cascades doing this. Advocate for clearing up the access roads. So many trailheads have become inaccessable to the regular family car that the ones that are easy to get to are overrun. I can think of a few off the MLH that make excellent family hikes, but you can't get there in your average paasinger car anymore.
Posted by:
Muledeer on Jun 15, 2020 01:41 PM
ptaylor on Colchuck Lake
This is the exact approach we that should 'not' be taking. Popularizing locations where there is no infrastructure (roads, sanitation etc.) nor capacity for handling crowds would be detrimental to the environment and not to mention encourage folks to drive 2+ hours one way to reach. The DNR approach of building in capacity seems the best, focus the crowds in the various 'sacrificial areas' e.g. Mt Si, Mailbox, Teneriffe, Granite Lakes, Otter falls etc. and focusing on controlling capacity in other areas e.g. Colchuck
Posted by:
ricola on Jun 15, 2020 02:22 PM
Douglas S. Squirrel on Colchuck Lake
Agreed. The default strategy everyone comes up with is: increase capacity. Spread out. Pick less popular trails. Rehabilitate lost trails.
No one ever wants to deal with the other side of the equation, which is much more important: demand. We need to create the incentives to discourage demand and raise the level of the common denominator who shows up on trail, otherwise we will wind up with lotteries or closures. Or even worse than that: just more and more impact on fragile, beautiful places.
Posted by:
Douglas S. Squirrel on Jun 15, 2020 03:02 PM
Muledeer on Colchuck Lake
You can't turn back the clock. There are just more people here than there was even 10 yrs ago. Spread people out and reduce impact. Old trails are not going to be hiked by the masses looking for the trophy hikes anyway. Who's going to be the arbitrator of who gets to hike? What are the criteria to be used to determine this, unless it's by permit lottery, which the majority of people commenting seem to be against. Everyone pays taxes and this is public land.
Posted by:
Muledeer on Jun 15, 2020 04:18 PM
Douglas S. Squirrel on Colchuck Lake
The land is public and everyone can use it, but the improvements to it are classified differently. If the DNR and USFS can charge a fee for the pass that lets you use the parking lots and the outhouses, I would assume they can also require certain basic standards before issuing the Discover Pass and NW Forest. That's what I would like to see, along the lines of what Testudo suggested above. Turn the pass into a license conditioned on ability to demonstrate knowledge of how to travel in the outdoors responsibly. Roads are paid for with public funds, but we you still have to pass an exam before you hop behind the wheel. Create an extra hurdle that shows you care.
Alternately, jack up the cost of the passes to $500 each, but give them out for the current cost to people who volunteer with the WTA, the Mountainers, the Conservation Corps, or other similar orgs. You have a different appreciation for a place when you've invested sweat in. Most people on trails haven't invested anything in the land, and it shows.
Posted by:
Douglas S. Squirrel on Jun 15, 2020 05:32 PM
Muledeer on Colchuck Lake
Interesting idea, I've earned both my Discover pass and a FS pass doing trailwork, and you do have an appreciation of the work involved in making and maintaining a trail
Posted by:
Muledeer on Jun 15, 2020 07:05 PM
Douglas S. Squirrel on Colchuck Lake
See? I'm more than just a cranky squirrel. I'm a little mammal with big ideas.
Posted by:
Douglas S. Squirrel on Jun 15, 2020 08:40 PM
ptaylor on Colchuck Lake
I vote for Mr Squirrel to head up WTA and turn this ship around. Additionally, I will never understand why people actually spend time writing "trip reports" on this site. As a climber I appreciate good beta and traditionally would look for condition reports for specific alpine objectives. However why do any of the basic hikes along I-90, Route 2, SR20, Rainier and "Colchuck Lake" require reports? It used to be that you would find a location in a book, or better still a map, research and then get prepared which was part of the appeal and why traditionally hikers were survival experts.
Now we seem to have "amazonified" hiking in which the masses open an app and 'scroll down' to receive step by step directions, details of bugs and even ratings so you can enjoy your "best" experience. I can only conclude its another form of begging for ephemeral 'social media' currency …. "look what I did today" … sorry but nobody cares.
Posted by:
ricola on Jun 19, 2020 10:58 PM
Douglas S. Squirrel on Colchuck Lake
I accept your nomination. "Douglas T. Squirrel, Lord Chancellor of Washington Trails" - that has a nice ring to it!
With my newfound power, I command you, oh hikers of Washington: WRITE MORE TRIP REPORTS! It is not enough to have daily updates from the dangerous wilds of Lake Serene, Lake 22, and Mount Pilchuck. Without hourly reports, an unwitting hiker might show up and twist their ankle on a rock that has been loosened in the last 60 minutes or they might be caught unawares by the last remnants of a small snow patch and - having not been told to pack microspikes, crampons, ice skates, bear spray, and a zamboni - slip, strike their head AND DIE. Or - even worse - crack their Pixel and be unable to snap a selfie. We must avoid this at all costs. Whatever it takes, hiking "community."
I further decree that the types of reports shall be three, with a fourth reserved solely for royalty:
- The Ira Spring: This is the one where the person decides to re-write the description of the trail itself.
- The Dawn Wall: Please provide a detailed expedition-style report as if you are the first person ever to attempt the heroic feat of reaching the never-before-glimpsed wonders of a 6-mile hike gaining less than 2,000 feet. With stairs. (I appreciate your parody of this type of report. Congratulations, btw, on your brave trek up the imposing Mt. Si.)
- The Tana Mongeau: We need selfies. And a link to your Insta. And your blog. Because the most edifying purpose of the wilderness is to enable you to earn some sweet sponcon scratch. Please let us help you get your follower count up, you attention w...uh, I mean: narcissist.
- The Douglas S. Squirrel: When the spectacle of 10's of thousands of people buying millions of dollars of plastic gear and driving millions of collective miles just to get their own version of a photo millions people took before them, all for an ostensible love of nature, gets to be too much, you skewer our collective hypocrisy in righteous anguish at what we're doing to the world. But make it fun to read. The people need to be entertained.
Posted by:
Douglas S. Squirrel on Jun 20, 2020 08:44 AM
Douglas S. Squirrel on Colchuck Lake
This thread is winding down. My last note is to the WTA itself: the staff, the board, the donors. Trail overuse should be the #1 issue on your radar. Look at the response here: 208 helpful votes. What else gets you this kind of response?
Your community is speaking to you. And it's not the first time.
You can't accomplish your mission if you turn a blind eye to the reality of trail use c. 2020.
The people swamping trails? They're not who will support you. That hike they did? Just another tick on the ol' bucket list, forgotten as soon as the next new thing gives them a stab of FOMO. They don't care what it takes to maintain trails and trailheads. Trails aren't their problem. Their problem is that they need content to get likes from friends and strangers. The stuff that gets them that content? It's just there, like magic.
Maybe WTA doesn't care either, since membership isn't really that meaningful to your budget. Maybe all the folks giving you their life savings in order to attach their name to the illusion of wilderness will keep bequeathing, regardless of what's actually happening out there, in the beautiful places we all supposedly love so much.
The stark truth, though, is that this isn't sustainable. Pretty soon, there isn't going to be anything worth preserving access to. You're in a position - maybe the best position of all - to do something about it.
Posted by:
Douglas S. Squirrel on Jun 30, 2020 08:32 AM