Be there or be quiet!
Skipole
I will not be there nor be quiet. The NPS should realize that there is a large contingent of backcountry skiers who love the park but not the Park Service or their policies on access.
Many consider the current Superintendent and his chosen few as virtually running a taxpayer paid winter fun camp in the White River area during the winter months and that many of the policies adopted are to exclude the public and keep the area to themselves . Personally my view is not so extreme but I do think there's a glimmer of truth to it.
Backcountry skiers and boarders are one of the major users of the park in the winter and are what many in the wilderness movement consider major "stakeholders" in the success and preservation of the park and the Park Service.
Rather than offering us the marvellous opportunity to remove snow from toilet entrances for a glimpse at the promised land they could do something meaningful for the backcountry community who consider Sunrise with snow a very special place by offering access on a chaperoned basis as soon as the road is navigable. Now that would be a gesture.
By the time the road and services do open by July 4th, the usual Ranger versus Skier battle will commence once again as we are shouted at and ticketed for meadow stomping due to low snow conditions.
