Remember the Soup Nazi in the TV series, Seinfeld? Well, we have a new soup Nazi today. It is the Water Nazis and their chant is “No water for you today.”
Unless you are an ostrich with your head in the ground, you probably know that California is in the midst of a severe long-term drought.
In Palms Springs, California and other cities you can now be a water-Nazi, or now the politically correct term, Water Watchdog.
An ordinance went into effect on Jan 1, 2015 in Palm Springs that makes it illegal for stores to provide “single use” plastic bags to customers. Instead they must sell customers a plastic or paper bag at a minimum cost of 10 cents, or the customer must supply their own bag, which can be purchased at much higher price point. I can purchase large paper grocery bags with handles in bulk for a little over 3 cents each. A large grocery chain can get an even cheaper price. So where is all the extra money going?
Continue reading Palm Springs Leaves Citizens ‘Holding the Bag’
Backpacker Magazine says the Cactus to Clouds Trail is the 5th most difficult day hike in America.
Renowned long distance hiker Andrew Skurka lists Cactus to Clouds as one of his top ten favorite hikes.
Here are a couple of my trip reports that included the Cactus to Clouds Trail:
The public may soon lose access to this trail in a land deal between the BLM and the Agua Caliente Band of Indians.
Continue reading Please Help Save the Cactus to Clouds Trail (and other trails)
Let me state up front: I like Patagonia products. I have lots of Patagonia items and have been doing business with them since the early 1980’s, when they were Chouinard Equipment. The gear is good, and Patagonia gets top dollar for it.
This may surprise you, but I am not going to talk about gear; I am going to talk about advertising.
There is a somewhat lengthy thread over at Backpackinglight.com debating whether mountain bikes should be allowed on back country trails. This is a complicated issue. For the few folks who have hiked with me, they know my preferred routes are cross-country, ancient Native American Trails, and unmaintained trails. These areas get very little traffic, and there is almost nil human impact from hiking. I avoid trails that see a lot of use.
Instead of posting this rather long essay on BPL, I decided to gather my thoughts here. In my opinion, folks should review their philosophy about public lands to make sure it aligns with their opinion on mountain bikes. That is; are you an environmentalist, a conservationist, or something else?