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Some people seem to need babysitters just about everywhere. I don't think the wilderness is any different. But I do find the people I meet when I am volunteering in the wilderness are friendly, basically cooperative and appreciative of what I'm doing. That's a good thing.

Or in this case, Zone 39. I spend quite a bit of time in Desolation Wildernessd doing volunteer work. And last year, I "adopted" Zone 39 of the Wilderness. I patrol it, answer questions, clean up after people and generally try to be a "presence" in the back country. And I had 39 all to...

Unless I am mistaken, that's the shop that rents huge numbers of wetsuits and boots and hiking poles to people walking the narrows. It's a massive operation.

I still manage to get in trips with my younger daughter, but she is a grown woman now, and outhikes me easily. There are advantages--she carries more of the weight, too!

If you ever wondered how good these guys are: https://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/article/california-hiker-rescued-cliff-pacific-crest-trail-20277396.php

Happy to share this nice review of my latest mystery novel set in the High Sierra. https://napavalleyfocus.substack.com/p/sunday-e-dition-grave-concerns

Beautiful! thanks

Wonderful report. Man, you make me want to saddle up the van and get started! Do you have prices for the various tours you took: whale watching, kayaking, rock art? And if you think those potholes are bad...have you been to Mineral King or Florence Lake?

And you can add in the concern that the budget cuts have prevented the USFS from hiring the contractors who work with both rangers and volunteers to get such work done. That applies to fire reduction activities, trail work, etc. I've signed up to volunteer for a couple of week-long trail...

Yeah, most of the Sierra High Country passes will be under snow in May--in fact, some of the highway passes won't be open then. This year looks like a lower snowpack year, but these last storms certainly added to the snowpack. It all depend on how warm it gets between now and then. River and...

Given the way things are being managed in DC, waiting to see what happens may be a death sentence for anything you care about. Making a lot of noise and letting them know you care seems to have at least some mitigating effects.

If you want to get involved more directly, now that the weather is getting better, it's time to get back to work on the trails. I spent Saturday working on the Soscol Headwaters trail system--fourteen miles of new trails in a wonderful area in the hills above southern Napa. Terrific views, great...

I don't think so. But bear i mind that the DOGE cuts also prohibit signing any new government contracts, even if they have been pre-approved. Combine that with a $! limit of employee credit card purchases, and you can see how things have come to a screeching halt.

More rumors of bad news to come. Apparently, the USFS fears it won't have enough staff to properly maintain campgrounds this summer: https://ktla.com/news/california/thousands-of-california-forest-campsites-may-close-this-summer-amid-federal-budget-freeze-report-says/amp/

Let me know if you ever need a fluent Spanish speaker to come along! :lol:

Love these reports! Thank you.

I did hear from a few people that I work with as a volunteer. Their seasonal wilderness rangers are not getting hired this year, and they lost their only intern. That leaves one wilderness ranger for the entire forest. Meanwhile, all funds have been frozen, so the contracts to clear and burn...

Nice! We didn't find his gold mine, either. Sigh.

Right. But we very clearly told her we'd done extensive hiking and backpacking in Death Valley. The other ranger and volunteers we spoke to weren't nearly so negative.

More on Anna,the discouraging ranger: When we first stopped in at the visitors center in Borrego Springs, a young ranger named Anna offered to help us plan out our visit. We were delighted. We shared with her that we had camped, hiked and backpacked extensively in Death Valley, and done some...