High Sierra Topix

that was from 6/27. As it should be.. Not a year to tempt fate. Hasn't there been enough smoke already?

This post is directed at no one in particilar.

Food for thought: how many fewer people would post reports if guys who talk about fishing got slammed as hard as people who ask questions about having fires.

A large percentage of the LNT crowd think fishing is irrespondible and damaging too.... even c&r. Heck, the second we go CC instead of stiicking to established trails we are leaving traces. And the way some people explode over the tp vs no tp debate? I have to scratch my head there.


Leave as small a trace as possible, but we all define what is responsible and what isn't differently. If you want to set your personal standards above and beyond those as defined by law, that's great, but don't attack people who don't subscribe to your exact same ethos. I know there are trip reports and I haven't posted in here for fear of somebody making snarky comments. I doubt I am alone in that respect. I am sure there are also lurkers who fear to ask questions when they see somebody else getting their head lopped off for asking a question about where they can have fires.

Maybe I'm just turning into a grumpy old man at 39, but I seem to encounter a lot more holier than thou LNTers these days that I remember from decades past. It's not cool. People should be encouraged to ask questions, and educated about LNT, not threatened with being reported to rangers.

I'm 5 weeks into almost 3 months of being stuck in a cast with a shattered foot. Since I had to cancel all my hikes this summer, I need all the trip reports I can get to get some sort of vicarious Sierra experience, so let's not do anything that would discourage people from posting them.

Just the internet 0.02 from a guy who hasn't even been backpacking in over a month. Take it for what it's worth.

I sure have missed having a fire this year. I usually set at least one trip where I drop below 10 K just to have a fire at night. Hell, Ill spend a little extra energy just to drop below and have a fire. It brings back fond memories of camping as a kid and scotch just doesn't seem the same without it. Since there was a ban, I cancelled any trips I had below 10 K and will go next year. I don't need one every night, but I sure do like to have one or two nights around a nice small fire. Phil

DavePloessel wrote:This post is directed at no one in particilar.

Food for thought: how many fewer people would post reports if guys who talk about fishing got slammed as hard as people who ask questions about having fires.

A large percentage of the LNT crowd think fishing is irrespondible and damaging too.... even c&r. Heck, the second we go CC instead of stiicking to established trails we are leaving traces. And the way some people explode over the tp vs no tp debate? I have to scratch my head there.

Appropriate comments. BTW, we do slam each other pretty hard in the fishing forums as well.

I don't think there was disrespect, in general. What I expect is that were possible, one should follow the rules. For this topic, when fires aren't allowed don't have one. If they are allowed when you go, knock yourself out. If you have a weather emergency and really need to and can have a fire, do so to stay alive.

Somehow the smoke always blows right at my tent during the night.

Also means I have to wash more often.

PS: hope your foot heals fast. Still nursing my ankle sprain from 6/30. Feels like another 3 weeks.

rlown wrote:Appropriate comments.

Indeed.. It's been my experience that nearly everyone here posts with good intentions; but I think a few could use some work on their deliveries. Some members come across as pretty abrasive and/or condescending - though I'm sure that is not their intention. Sure, educating others is important. But I don't think heavy lecturing or preemptive censure are helpful or necessary to getting one's points across.

Keep in my we are all different individuals with different minds. We all see things, interact, and relate though unique reality tunnels

Also....this is the internet....what do you expect?

on this thread, the one reality is if there is a fire ban in the area you want to go, don't have one. OP was asking where else to go. Even that begs the question that if you can have a fire should you. As we saw with lightning fires, they cause havoc/grief. Much safer to just BBQ at home. WD had the right idea. crawl into the tent. get up early and not stinking of smoke, and enjoy a coffee and a nice sunrise.

I don't have fires, but I am also not the type to expect others to abide by my wishes

Said with all due respect to everyone no matter what side of the fence your on!

rlown wrote:As we saw with lightning fires, they cause havoc/grief.

I just thought I'd beat a dead horse....The Aspen fire started at an elevation below 4000 feet (~3700)

I'm all for education, and letting people know information that they are seeking.

However, rarely is it productive to produce incorrect information. That makes one appear to be propagandizing an agenda, and misleading people generally makes them angry, when they are found out.

For example, the statement that 50% of wildfires are started by campfires is demonstrably incorrect, and an exaggeration. For example, in this website, they state that in their region, about 50% of fires are started by HUMANS, but only 1/3 of those are campfires. That's not even 20%!

The fire people that I work around tell me that in the high Sierra, lightning is responsible for a much higher percentage, probably because of the frequent afternoon thunderstorms, particularly in late summer, when things are very dry.