[Philmont]: Carrying "It" Out - Editorial Commentary

More insanity from the enviro-nuts - a good percentage of whom would
much prefer to see no humans ever in the backcountry (beyond themselves
and a select few of their "enlightened" friends, of course). And just
what the already-stretched-beyond-the-breaking-point NPS Ranger force
needs, another ridiculous and unenforceable rule that (like all such
laws) engenders contempt for *all* backcountry rules and guidelines, and
more importantly engenders disrespect (and worse) for those unfortunate
few who have to try and enforce them. I simply can't wait to run into
the Poop Patrol!

I have said it here before and will say so again: Recommendations that
are crucial at high altitudes, high latitudes, and in similar pristine
and/or sensitive enviroments, should be confined to those environments.
  If you want to have rules that apply above the treeline, or above
Latitude 60, or in Death Valley, OK, any of us can see the rationale.
But blanket rules that treat the top of Mt. Harvard (a 14-er in
Colorado, well above the treeline) the same as Swift Run Gap in the
Shenandoahs, are short-sighted and ill-advised. And in many ways,
simply mean-spirited. There is a difference between use and abuse, and
the setting is often a lot more important than the behavior. Low-Impact
and Leave-No-Trace are perfectly adequate guidelines for 95+ percent of
the areas that 95+ percent of all camping Americans visit. If they
weren't, half the National Parks on the East Coast would be
uninhabitable by now. And guess what? - with few exceptions, they're
just fine, despite the fact that a lot of the users *ARE* abusers!

We as Scout leaders need to be very wary of hyper-restrictive rules that
are promulgated to "protect" the enviroment but are de facto designed to
strongly discourage access by making everything needlessly difficult.
It's already tough enough as it is. I for one do not relish an outdoor
program that is oriented only around "Jellystone" parks and similar
Winnebago ghettoes, or on an increasingly shrinking number of Scout
camps. True wilderness areas, and semi-wilderness areas (like
Philmont), are one of the very few hooks we have to keep older Scouts in
the program. Beware those who would take them away under the guise of
protecting the environment!

- Dr. Bob

BSA wrote:
> The results were back to carrying it out. I know, not fun, but get ready
> for the idea. The National Parks are going to require it first.
>
> James H. Moss
> PO Box 2656
> Silverthorne, CO 80498
> 303-807-2275
> JHMoss@Earthlink.net

> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "Diane Mikulis" <DBMikulis@comcast.net>
> To: "Multiple recipients of list philmont" <philmont@troop47.com>
> Sent: Friday, May 30, 2003 3:09 PM
> Subject: RE: [Philmont]: Hand washing
>
>>Jim,
>>In How to ..., they call that "frosting a rock" as opposed to "salting a
>>rock". The trick is in finding a good stick or stone with which to
>>spread. I've read about it in AT publications as well. Think I'll stick
>>with a cathole.
>>Diane
>>

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Received on Fri May 30 20:54:28 2003