12-21-17 Paradise telemetry

Don't worry soon Gazillionairs will be the only one allowed in the previously protected "National Parks".   

In fact... they will all want to buy a previously National Park of their own. They are unlikely to want to get their $1000 shoes wet with snow play, so keeping the meadow open is probably a waste of time. 

Rather than work to keep a meadow open, it would be a better investment of government money to install money machines all over the previous wilderness, so that rich people can freebase money where ever the mood strikes them.  They have rights, after all!

Don't worry we will all be very happy in the camps, they will educate us all about "GOD'S WILL". 

This is crazy if true. Is there any explanation for the drop on telemetry that doesn't involve the park not wanting to groom the snow play area? Equipment malfunction? Some tourists taking selfies with the telemetry station in the background? Russian operatives hacking NWAC's system to reduce the total snow amount?

In all seriousness, this is an automated sensor, right? So someone would have needed to shovel about 2.5 ft of snow away from the weather station. Seems that would still be visible now before the next big storm in a day or two, sounds like an investigation for one of the locals. I suspect the news media would be interested in convincing photographic evidence.

Has anyone inquired to NWAC?

IMHO, the park needs to remove some of this young trees before they lose lots of the meadows Paradise is famous for.

Unlikely to happen, I suspect.

By the time our grandchildren are grown I'm guessing the meadows near Paradise will be gone.

By the time our grandchildren are grown I'm guessing the meadows near Paradise will be gone.

So, perhaps, will the snow.

...As far as snowplay, looking at the photos, it appears that encroaching subalpine firs are growing tall enough to inhibit grooming of the area.  IMHO, the park needs to remove some of this young trees before they lose lots of the meadows Paradise is famous for.

Park management was aware of forest encroachment into meadows half a century ago.  Back in the 60's & into the 70's, there was an annual end-of season event at Paradise with the goal of pulling ten thousand conifer seedlings.  It was kind of like a work party / employee picnic with wives & kids & delegations from outlying Districts.  The de-veg was packed into burlap sacks and loaded into pickups and Cushman scooters at the nearest paved trail.  It ended up at the Kautz utility area, (ie dump/heliport; check it out out on Google Earth).

It seems to me that even with today's increased conifers, there is still room for a scaled-down kids-only sliding area with several short runs side-by side.  I'd bet it could be built by hand by volunteers and without the tree damage & hydraulic leaks caused by the Pisten-Bully.   

www.nps.gov/mora/learn/news/newsreleases.htm