Dale Matson
Boundary Between Kings Canyon And Sequoia Parks
[Angel Moreno in the Thursday (July 24, 2014) Fresno Bee.]
“Officials at Sequoia
and Kings Canyon National Parks have picked their choice for the parks' future
over the next 25 to 30 years, but the public can still ask questions and submit
comments on the draft Wilderness Stewardship Plan and Environmental Impact
Statement. On Monday, park officials will hold an open house and public meeting
to discuss the draft at the Visalia Marriott Hotel. The meeting is from 6 to 9
p.m., with the formal public discussion starting at 7 p.m. A webinar is set for
Aug. 14.”
“The one goal:
"to preserve wilderness character, provide opportunities for and encourage
public use and enjoyment of the wilderness, and improve conditions in areas
where there may be unacceptable levels of impacts on wilderness character.’” [My Italics]
"It's a tough balancing act for Gregg Fauth, wilderness
coordinator at Sequoia and Kings Canyon. The parks have a combined area of
865,964 acres, or 1,353 square miles, 97% of which is designated and managed as
wilderness."
I also offer the following comment from William Tweed (retired chief park
naturalist) in his book Uncertain Path: A
Search For The Future Of The National Parks (2010). “After I left the
agency, I set out to search for a new future for the national parks. I knew
that on such a quest I would also have to consider the concept of designated
wilderness, a mid twentieth century offshoot of the national parks idea.” (Page
4).
While park naturalists believe that global warming is changing the park ecosystems, they also see human use as a threat and are making changes in the parks to bring them more in line with the wilderness idea and less in line with the national park idea. Are national parks set aside for humans or have they become nature preserves? SeKi already has a second layer of protection with 97% of the land also designated "Wilderness" (Act of 1964). Thus it is a national park and a wilderness area. The Merced River in Yosemite is now under the Wild Rivers Act of 2004 leaving Yosemite with three layers of protection. Death Valley National Park banned the annual Badwater Ultramarathon event this year. There is a pattern of less not more access.
There
are various issues in every park but I have to ask this question of the SeKi
administrators. "Is the density of the hikers and backpackers in the park really
a problem?" There are less visitors to an area larger than Yosemite. Unlike
Yosemite with most of the 4 million visitors seeing it by car, most of SeKi is
only accessible by trail. I have spent
considerable time in SeKi over the years as a hiker, backpacker and with the
Fresno County Search and Rescue. I have also written a book on backpacking in
Kings Canyon. In my experiences, I did not find trails to have anywhere near
the density as the trail to Half Dome, which is already a trail that requires
permits even for day hikers. This is however true of the Mt. Whitney trail
which also requires permits for day hikers. Most of this trail is not actually in Sequoia Park.
Obviously,
I would prefer for SeKi to keep things as they are according to the previous
plan. The park does not really define what it means by providing opportunities
and encouraging public use. Does this amount to more slide shows; less asphalt
parking and even less trail permits issued? Does this mean more ‘front country’
activities? What does unacceptable levels of impacts on wilderness character
mean? To me, it means simply this, less
access.
Here is my proposal that may address both the concerns about
human impact in the backcountry and providing access. There are a limited
number of main trails in Kings Canyon like the Bubb’s Creek, Woods Creek, John
Muir Trails. However, there are “use” trails (60 Lakes Basin), unmaintained
trails, (Taboose Pass and Sawmill Pass) and abandoned trails (JMT into Lake
Basin and Center Basin). Why not spend the money to reestablish and maintain these
trails. It would provide incentives to backpackers who are timid or lack
navigational skills to access some of these less visited areas. This would also
reduce the amount of backpackers/hikers per trail mile. Those who backpack in
SeKi not only benefit from the experience, they are the strongest and most
vocal advocates for the parks. I would not mind one bit even being charged a
trail maintenance fee IF those were dedicated funds only used for trail
construction and maintenance.
Note: Sorry I can't make the meeting. I will be backpacking on that date.
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