A California Monument Makes a 'Do Not Visit' List
Plus, how to avoid being indoorsy and lonely, the return of the pika, another hiker gets lost on their phone, Ojai hiking adventures, and more!
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Each year, Fodor’s magazine selects ten places throughout the world to compile on their “No List”—destinations the magazine genuinely loves but are under the gun from crowding, overtourism, and other issues. Generally, it seems to be geared toward places that are having a bit of a moment and are in danger of being loved to death. This year, alongside places like Venice, Mount Fuji, and Athens sits … the San Gabriel Mountains National Monument.
The issue with the San Gabriels? Trash. And funding. As they write:
The area makes up about 70% of available open green space for Angelenos. It was intended to be the “crown to the Valley of Angels.” Not even a decade later, the crown is covered in trash, tagged with graffiti, and posing an increasing threat to nature.
While the land earned a National Monument title, the National Forest Service wasn’t given additional funds for the new portfolio addition in 2014. So in the absence of employees, volunteers have stepped up to try to tackle the trash.
It’s … not quite the list you want to be on, exactly.
In all likelihood, this stems from the Los Angeles Times story I talked about back in August, which highlighted the perennially over-used East Fork area. Back then, I noted these issues weren’t exactly new, and I thought the article didn’t give enough space to the groups who have stepped in to assist with the many, many shortcomings the Forest Service exhibited in the almost-decade since the monument was named.
Fodor’s does talk to some of the volunteer groups in their much shorter piece, and it’s telling that the Forest Service’s PR office wouldn’t even respond with a comment.
You know I love these mountains and I understand the many complexities at play here—but I also know if I were given a decade to work on problems that were a surprise to absolutely no one and this was the kind of result I showed up with, I probably wouldn’t be employed in this position much longer.
Those volunteers quoted in the piece also highlight the unfortunate catch-22 in terms of public opinion: it’s tough to get funding and resources to maintain and improve the monument unless the public cares enough about the area to demand and vote for it … and it’s also tough to get people to care about the area if they don’t see it as being cared for or maintained.
Although it’s difficult to read all this bad news about my former backyard mountain range, I’m hoping a side effect of this negative attention will be something actually changing there—because although I’m not entirely sure what the solution is, it’s painfully clear that the status quo is not working.
The Big Story
Something to talk about
We Are Getting Lonelier and More Indoorsy
Perhaps you have heard or read about America’s so-called Loneliness Epidemic. The U.S. Surgeon General raised an alarm about it earlier this year, and NPR notes feelings of loneliness or isolation can increase your risk of heart disease, stroke, and the likelihood of developing dementia as you age. Not great! Techbros in L.A. are planning on monetizing this crisis with a $200 a month social friendship club. Also not great! (Side note: Angelenos looking for a much better version of this idea should check out the nearly century-old Los Angeles Breakfast Club instead).
A very interesting read in The Atlantic connects loneliness to something scientists call “the vicious cycle of biophobia,” and it goes like this. As we’ve become more urbanized, more of us view natural settings and phenomena as disgusting. And I’m not talking about picturesque vistas here, but maybe finding mold in your fridge, seeing a rat or cockroach in your apartment, or even just feeling uncomfortable when trying to sleep in a tent.
Studies have found that these sort of adverse reactions and disgust responses form self-reinforcing feedback loops, making people less likely to support the care for and protection of biodiversity and wild areas. They can also make people actually antagonistic toward nature.
The Atlantic piece links this loop to another negative psychological loop where people who feel lonely have a more negative view of other people, which in turn makes them feel more lonely.
On the flipside, social scientists have also found that spending time in communal green spaces increased a sense of belonging, people who enjoy spending time in nature or gardens have a strong sense of social cohesion, preschool children who engaged with nature showed more kindness and helpfulness with their peers, and even an experiment that showed people who had just spent time in a park were more likely to help strangers.
So … perhaps this is another reason we need to get more parks out there for people?
RELATED
How America Got Mean – David Brooks.
Modern Hiking
Good stuff from the Modern Hiker site
Who doesn’t love spending time in Ojai? The old architecture, the farmer’s markets, the local art … and of course, the hiking.
Andrew Shults takes us into the Los Padres National Forest just outside of town for an iconic and beautiful trek that ends up at one of the loveliest backcountry campsites we’ve ever seen. Pack your bag and spend the night or just enjoy the views as a day hike. Your call!
Tech Talk
Gadgets, Technology, and Hype
Online Maps Do It Again
Last week, a hiker became trapped on the slopes of Mount Fromme, north of Vancouver, British Coumbia, after allegedly following a non-existent trail that was displayed on their Google Maps app. This is the second hiker in two months to become trapped on the route, but they were rescued via helicopter without incident.
And as is par for the course for these stories, it ends with a plea for hikers to pack paper maps … while also acknowledging that the vast majority of hikers (and probably especially those who use online maps to hike), actually don’t know how to use those paper maps. Instead, the piece offers up another tactic: use common sense. So, for example, if that dotted line you’re staring at on your phone looks like it heads straight up a barren cliffside or disappears into the woods … maybe don’t follow it?
Wildlife Crossing
Wildlife and the Outdoors
Return of the Pikas
Pikas—the pocket-sized relatives of rabbits that delight high-altitude hikers with their certifiably adorable faces and distinctive (and surprisingly loud squeaks) are making a big comeback in a surprising place: the Columbia River Gorge.
Most species of pika are found in high alpine altitudes above 6,000 feet, but a population has found a way to make a comfortable home in the low-altitude, humid terrain of the Columbia River Gorge between Oregon and Washington. Pikas there burrow into openings hidden deep beneath rockslides, where temperatures mimic the high-altitude cold even in hot summers and wildfires.
Volunteers with the group Cascades Pika Watch happily reported pikas appearing at 61 of the 71 survey sites in the burn scar of the 2017 Eagle Creek Fire, which burned 50,000 acres of forest over three months.
I didn’t know I had pikas so close to my backyard! I’ll definitely be keeping an ear out on my next Gorge hikes …
One More Thing
Oh yeah, before I go …
Next week is Thanksgiving so I won’t be sending out a newsletter, because let’s face it—you’re going to be cooking or eating or getting outside for a nice long hike because you’ve been cooking and eating all day. I hope you have a great holiday and restful weekend, no matter how you celebrate.
Also, this means we are OFFICIALLY in on the holiday season, and if you were looking for a gift for your outdoorsy friends, might I suggest picking up one of my books?
I have signed copies of both Day Hiking Los Angeles and Discovering Griffith Park available and I can make them out to whomever you’d like. You can also pick up copies of Cloud Spotting from Amazon. (You can also search Bookshop.org to find local bookstores that carry these titles!)
And also, if you have read any of my books, leaving a review on Amazon or Goodreads is a SUPER helpful way to boost their rankings and help other readers find them. So do me a solid!
Until then, Happy Thanksgiving and Happy Trails,
