"shortcuts" on Skyline

[Florian]

Steve, you cut my head off!

-Florian

[bluerail]

you stood on a ROCK !!! (well, thats probably better than standing in the dirt actually)


Just for the record, I ALWAYS pee on rock when I'm in the desert ! Never on the soil !

But probably never that particular rock Florian.

[halhiker]

It’s the dang internets that are at the root of the problem, I tell ya!

Seriously though, the Web and GPS have made many routes accessible which had been previously unknown and/or too remote for many hikers. A couple of examples that come to mind (besides Skyline) are Register Ridge on Baldy and the Mountaineer’s Route on Whitney—both trace trails just a few years ago; now major thoroughfares. It’s simple—you put more boots on the ground and there’s going to be more boot prints. And if there is no established, maintained trail then there will be multiple paths, hopefully with one or two eventually prevailing (as Zip stated). You can try educating people about erosion and wilderness ethics and “morality”, but if your aim is to have the area return to how it was in some earlier time, then regulating usage and/or constructing a “real” trail (and I’m not advocating either) is likely the only solution in the long term.

As far as blaming the shortcuts and switchback cutting on those trying to improve their PR, I wonder if that’s the case. I mean, can you really go faster slipping and sliding on all fours uphill than you can by jogging up a properly built trail with switchbacks? You’d save time going downhill for sure, but there is a point of diminishing returns when climbing.

I’m not sure where the real trail is either (I just go the way Cy showed me ), but I think that we can all agree that Tina’s Christmas tree needs and deserves our love.

Thank you DaveG.

My tree has grown a couple feet in the past three years that i have been doing skyline (i think its three now, not sure). Point being, i say hello to my tree, i water it with my bladder (camel back bladder) water and pull off the dead branches. call me crazy, i admit i am, if you have a problem
with it sue me........pun intended.

Now I'm tempted to do Skyline just to water this tree with my bladder. I, of course, do not use a Camelbak so I'll have to make do.

[bluerail]

http://www.duskyswondersite.com/category/animals/

scroll down on mixed species....these guys are friends

[tinaballina]

As long as you don't try fertilizing my tree i think its all good. who would have known my tree would become so popular.

Kinda like the tree that is decorated up near sierra club hut on baldy. this is where i originally got the idea two years ago. i saw the decorated tree, made me happy, hence, my skyline tree.

[bluerail]

...in the off-road world, if you put a cross and a bunch of whiskey bottles somewhere, people will leave it alone.
===============================================
btw, got this in one of the PM's surrounding this thread and have to share it;

"Ze and Cynthia sound like they're married. Gotta love it."

[Andy]

http://www.duskyswondersite.com/category/animals/

scroll down on mixed species....these guys are friends

I usually try and steer clear of words like "darling" and "cute" but those pictures are down-right ADORABLE! Ok, now I need to go find a pair

[Zé]

lol. well she probably hates me. is that like married life?

and we have a child named FIGHT ON

didn’t see any signs? LOL! THAT, IS SOOOOOO LAME! ever try calling up # 661-296-9710? Or looking at the closure map on the the Angeles National Forest site? You “planned” to go into a closure area??? And “knowing”, you weren’t supposed to????? Wow. I’m curious how you process this? It’s on the Angeles Crest website, There’s a map that clearly shows twin peaks inside the closed area, you know it was closed. So what goes through your mind when you set foot inside there? What do you say to yourself? “oh nobody can see me? Nobody cares? I’m special? Rules don’t apply to me? I’m entitled because, I’m me? I want to go there? I got a bunch of druggies with me and it’s lord of the flies 2010?” Seriously, You guys should be ashamed. Hiking in a closed area. and woe unto you when the men of the world speak well of you! Shame I tell you Big bad shame all OVER you! might as well change your name to Zeggie Zush!

[michael]

[bluerail]

...yea I'm with you on that one Micheal, maybe I'll just wait till we're kickin dirt and killin bushes to find out where that came from.