by cynthia23 » Tue Jun 23, 2015 11:38 am
From what Guest says, Ed,it appears that the hiker who went downhill (and was later rescued) was given the bottles of water by a couple who successfully climbed the trail that day (and apparently ran into the group in trouble. It sounds as if the two other members on the in-trouble group were rescued by another SAR group, in a second rescue.)
As many know I've never been a fan of the Rescue Boxes. While they were (very) well-intentioned and I admire the selflessness of the people who restock the boxes, I think the boxes cause more problems than they solve. For one thing, they're usually empty. Perhaps it's because they've been emptied by desperate people, but the likelier scenario seems to be it's the lazy and ill-prepared. The problem is the boxes create a confusing situation where sometimes they've got water and sometimes they don't, and here we see a rescue that was actually caused by the presence of the box (and the fact that it didn't have water in it at the time.) My two cents is remove them. They aren't helping and may be harming.
Also, they add to the 'attractive nuisance' quality of the Skyline trail. An 'attractive nuisance' is a legal term referring to a dangerous element (such as an unfenced swimming pool, or a pet cougar, or a giant cave) which a landowner has left unguarded on his property, luring ignorant children to their doom. Skyline, it seems to me, is such a thing. Strangely, every element that seemingly should make the trail safer--from the Rescue Boxes to a trailhead in an urban area to information on the internet to the Tram itself--has actually increased rescues, by making what would otherwise be a formidable and unappealing hike seem appealingly doable to the halfway fit. It's counter-intuitive, but removing the boxes and putting out LESS info about the trail could decrease rescues.
I doubt that a summer closure would make it more appealing. Fines are a frequently used tool in governance because, let's face it, they usually work. Most people would stay away, and in this instance, "most" would be a big help.
Also, getting back to the original post here--the Desert Sun writer wanting to write about some imaginary people who supposedly view climbing C2c in summer as some kind of 'extreme challenge'--I have never met anyone like that. Almost all of the people I've met or known who did Skyline in summer did it for one dumb reason: that's when their vacation was. Pointing out that it is a dangerous and virtually impossible time of year to do it just elicits denial and excuses --"I know it's hot but that's the only time I have off" "I'll carry lots of water" "I'm used to doing marathons so I'll be fine." Basically, they don't want to or can't reschedule, and don't understand how dangerous it is, and it's as simple and stupid as that.
Q: How many therapists does it take to screw in a light bulb? A: Only one, but the light bulb has to want to change ...
