The Wave and stuff

[Carcass]

Made three trips to the Wave now as Safety Patrol. Only 1 person didn't have a permit in those three trips and was kindly asked to leave. Good people out there, with only two groups having to be "guided" back to the trail after getting lost. They have now pit in between the Twin Buttes and the "Exit Saddle" as that area is the one where most people get lost. Yea it takes away from the "wilderness" experience but stopping some deaths is the reward.

Most people I've come across are using GPS or the Alltrails app. Very few are using only the brochure given out. To me, I don't see how people get lost(excluding dehydration/heat exhaustion), but it happens.

There is sooo much more out there besides the Wave. Most people just don't look.

 

[OldBill]

Great photos! What were they taken with? These days, the phones and HDR s/w do an amazing job. I just have a cheap phone and used a Canon G9 with polarizer.

Posted a summary from our experience this May in the policy thread so won't repeat that. We had to hire a guide just to certain we got to the trailhead due to road conditions. Fantastic experience, totally unplanned and it was great to see more than just The Wave. We did see a hiker on our way out with no permit attached to his pack. The guide said he should have it displayed, so who knows....

With regard to getting lost, it would have been fun to try without a guide using just the brochure. But I had a GPS-enabled map loaded on my phone just in case.

 

[Stephanie B]

Made three trips to the Wave now as Safety Patrol. Only 1 person didn't have a permit in those three trips and was kindly asked to leave. Good people out there, with only two groups having to be "guided" back to the trail after getting lost. They have now pit in between the Twin Buttes and the "Exit Saddle" as that area is the one where most people get lost. Yea it takes away from the "wilderness" experience but stopping some deaths is the reward.

Most people I've come across are using GPS or the Alltrails app. Very few are using only the brochure given out. To me, I don't see how people get lost(excluding dehydration/heat exhaustion), but it happens.

There is sooo much more out there besides the Wave. Most people just don't look.

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Love your third photo!

 

[Titans]

Good for you @Carcass - finally you got that one clicked off your bucket list! Yes, there is so much more to see.
Is that the volunteer job which Rick found on-line (I forwarded you the link early in the season)?

 

[Carcass]

Great photos! What were they taken with? These days, the phones and HDR s/w do an amazing job. I just have a cheap phone and used a Canon G9 with polarizer.

Posted a summary from our experience this May in the policy thread so won't repeat that. We had to hire a guide just to certain we got to the trailhead due to road conditions. Fantastic experience, totally unplanned and it was great to see more than just The Wave. We did see a hiker on our way out with no permit attached to his pack. The guide said he should have it displayed, so who knows....

With regard to getting lost, it would have been fun to try without a guide using just the brochure. But I had a GPS-enabled map loaded on my phone just in case.
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LG G5. Droid

 

[Carcass]

Good for you @Carcass - finally you got that one clicked off your bucket list! Yes, there is so much more to see.
Is that the volunteer job which Rick found on-line (I forwarded you the link early in the season)?

Yes, it was. I applied back in February. Due to the usual govt efficiency it wasn't until July that I got an interview. Two weeks later the OJT, and now i'm a crusty veteran. They need more volunteers if anyone is interested. You have to go a minimum of 5 times a year and 3 have to be in the summer.
Been to the Boneyard, Dino tracks, Sevond Wave, Sand Cove but there is more out there.

 

[Reef&Ruins]

I just got back from our usual Colorado Plateau and environs hiking trip. Part of it was 4 days of safety patrol as well (Dad has done 6 total days; 2 back in the spring). It's a long trip and time commitment from home base in Washington state, but we did it.
Our summer experience was that many people were prepared, but a sizable percentage of people who won the online lottery thought they could blow in, blow through, and blow out. In other words, they had not much of an idea about hiking either at all or in the context of being in the desert, at elevation, and with slick rock temps that get close to 140 degrees F at ground level. Of 4 days in late summer, for 3 of them people had to be "walked out" by us or in one case, another group of hikers (we were just about to head back in to find out how both groups were doing). In most cases of people being walked out by us or others, it was a pair of hikers. Larger groups typically were able to help each other out to make sure all got back in time and in one piece, though we did check on them. So the danger is real out there. Be prepared and know what you are doing. That instagram picture someone posted/shared was harder to get than to drive in from Vegas, get there at noon, hike in/out, and return to Vegas for a night of celebration.
We also had a few people who tried to bluster their way in without permits, but those who had them were always quick to show them upon request (and tattle on others who they believed didn't have one). Overall it was a fun experience and I think we're interested in helping again.