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Posted by Ballpark Frank (66.58.238.35) on 13:43:32 09/02/12
In Reply to: Using the White Creek area as a "case study" (Part 1) posted by Ballpark Frank
Let's fast forward to a few years ago. Suddenly, without any advance notice that I am aware of, the NPS piles all sorts of logs and brush in close proximity to the parking lot, where people leave to walk the White Creek Group. Signs are posted, effectively closing the area to foot travel. After over 30 years of being able to use this area as an outdoor classroom, I found myself shut out.
In the aftermath, there was outcry from those familiar with the area, who felt strongly about being denied access. The prevailing response from the NPS was that the area was deemed too dangerous, due to thin crusts and other hazards. Here is where we enter the realm of "grey", as opposed to "black" and "white". Long before I trod the backcountry thermal basins of Yellowstone, the National Park Service, in the person of Resource and Visitor Protection rangers had an informal (won't find it in writing) policy of allowing those familiar with safely traveling backcountry thermal areas to wander those areas, providing they did so without making their presence real obvious to the masses of visitors along the roadways and developed areas of Yellowstone. That policy still existed during most of my tenure in and around the park, but steadily, over the years, pressure mounted to exert more control over visitors exposing themselves to the dangers presented by backcountry thermal features. A number of highly publicized thermal feature fatalities, and the subsequent lawsuits, only served to increase that pressure. We know that the park geologists are under intense pressure to protect humans from injuring or killing themselves in the thermal features.
In the midst of the pressure wrought by thermal feature fatalities and lawsuits, one particular book was published, that publicized the nature and location of all sorts of features in Yellowstone. Sure, Scott Bryan's book had already made public much of this info, but (1) very few first time visitors knew of his book, and (2) his book did not make it exceedingly easy to find the backcountry thermal features. The new book did. In the same era, two other significant sources of info on off-road features in Yellowstone also made their presence felt. One was the proliferation of Yellowstone-oriented web sites, and the chat pages therein. The other was outdoor magazines, particularly BACKPACKER, which started publishing detailed articles, WITH GPS coordinates, on "special places".
Many of us who are well familiar with the Yellowstone backcountry have watched a disturbing trend in recent years. More and more, we see first time visitors or visitors with sparse familiarity with the park and the safety exposures, unintentionally hazarding themselves in backcountry thermal areas. It is only a matter of time before someone accidentally gets killed or seriously injured, setting off a new round of closures.
(Concluded in Part 3)
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