Article about status of PCT restoration

[Ulysses]

http://idyllwildtowncrier.com/2015/11/24/portion-of-pacific-crest-trail-may-re-open-in-spring-2016

[Myth]

Sounds like a long haul to get the trail fully restored. Wow.

[Wildhorse]

So much goes into a trail like the PCT. I have come to doubt the value of such trails to us.

I wish that those of us walking in the San Jacintos were so few in number that trails were unnecessary. We need them to shepherd the great herd of destructive beasts that we are, but otherwise we don't need them at all.

Wilderness is not found on a trail. Something vital is lost on a trail.

[Myth]

I travel cross country almost always, but I enthusiastically support trails and I really desire to one day thru-hike the PCT and CDT. I got my start hiking - and my enduring love of the wild - on trails. Long may they give others that gift.

[Andy]

So much goes into a trail like the PCT. I have come to doubt the value of such trails to us.

I wish that those of us walking in the San Jacintos were so few in number that trails were unnecessary. We need them to shepherd the great herd of destructive beasts that we are, but otherwise we don't need them at all.

Wilderness is not found on a trail. Something vital is lost on a trail.

I disagree.

Trails have always had a place in the wilderness whether built by modern man, our native predecessors or wild animals. Sure I'd prefer many of the areas I visit to be less popular, but is it my place to judge who can or cannot access a portion of public land? The very idea of a group of people getting together to fund, construct and maintain a well engineer trail system is something I think we should be proud of as a society and I am grateful to have the option to use it.

[Wildhorse]

What is lost on trails has at least two dimensions. First, trails enable more human use of wilderness for recreation, which threatens other species. Second, more human use impairs the experience that draws us to wilderness.

I wish Cheryl Strayed and Bill Bryson had stayed home. But ultimately it is the size of the human herd that is the problem. Darwin gave us this realization in Origin.

So, with these thoughts in mind, I feel sorry that the PCT is being restored, even while I look forward to someday being in those special lands again.

For those who may be inclined to understand more about the harm hikers cause, here is an interesting piece in the NYT.

http://mobile.nytimes.com/2015/02/15/op ... again.html