Ok I have had it. Enough is enough ... Randy King has handed over road opening decisions to law enforcement. The word in Ashford is that the law enforcement is not getting along with the road crew. ... They are not even following the laid out matrix of last year…which is bullshit anyway…and today is a perfect example of the abuse…. Enough! We are not idiots...
I think all TAYers know I have my problems with the park access policy. However, I do not disagree with today's closure for the following
set of reasons:
(1) According to NWAC avy danger is High ("very dangerous") at and above treeline; according to the rec forecast very windy with 9-15 inches of snow (they apparently use WSDOT tho). This makes for very sketchy conditions abover Ricksecker Point.
(2) I have been told by sources in the park that I trust that they are low on funding and worried about even keeping campgrounds open in the Spring. I've been warned to expect more frequent closures this winter.
I suggested to the Park that i
f they are that short on funds and if having to plow overtime to keep the road open for a few skiers would cause closures on good days that they use the following rule: Close the road to Paradise when avy danger is high to extreme, winds are high, and there is a winter storm warning (12 inches of snow or more ) in effect; and give as early a notice as possible. This closure and notification is in accord with my suggestion.
(3) I would rather have the road closed on potentially dangerous days and open on better days--and ideally open til dark on good days (and yes, I have skied at Paradise during Extreme avy danger, during heavy snows, with high winds and had fun and was more or less safe).
(4) I encourage TAYers and other bc users to support the park in conserving scarce resources by closing according to the criteria above
as long as they open on iffy days and open full days on sunny days.
Now, I know many don't believe they are scarce on funds. I do not have hard evidence of that. I and many others may differ with the priorities given funding within the park--some of that has to be due to the appropriation process but some must be within the purview of park managemen and NPS management. I and many others may believe that if we are to kow-tow to the red state rednecks with respect to reducing the federal (and NPS budget) then the closures should be on things like the battlefield parks and little historic momuments that cost so much to serve so few. Put the funds in the parks that the NPS was created for (NC, Olympic, MRNP, Redwoods, Yosemite, Sequoia, Arches, Zion, Grand Canyon, Glacier, Yellowstone, Grand Teton, Rocky Mountain, Shenandoah, Great Smoky, etc. There's a bunch of them and some low cost ones like Escalante.
