Isle Royale Named to Best of the World List

[Vandy]

https://www.mlive.com/news/2020/11/isle ... -list.html

[backwoods doc]

Clearly a great choice.

I guess it's a little selfish of me to cringe a bit at the added publicity though...

[Vandy]

"I guess it's a little selfish of me to cringe a bit at the added publicity though..."

My first thought as well.

[Base654]

Backwoods, take some solace in knowing the island is difficult to get to as you know. I have a number of coworkers who want to go, but the logistics are daunting. and we live in Michigan.

[backwoods doc]

So true. Actually, I'm happy to see those groups of excited teenagers and young families headed over to the island with their brand new gear for the first time. Or older folks having an adventure by staying in Rock Harbor for a few days.

There's still plenty of solitude for a paddler on the inland lakes, where days can pass without seeing another human soul.

Uh-oh -- did I just reveal another Isle Royale secret?

[kolo]

I am always careful about who I tell about the Isle. I guess I am selfish that way. I know our national parks are here for everyone, but I only tell those I know who care about our wild places and respect “leave no trace” ethics.

In fact, I dislike how people use technology to promote themselves and their status on social media or otherwise online. I believe it prompts too many people, who do not respect our national treasures and wild places, to tread too heavily and disrespectfully on those places/spaces.

I remember being on Trail Ridge Road in Rocky Mountain National Park and telling some “tourists” to get back on the paved trail. We were way above the tree line and in an alpine environment where the ecosystem takes many years to recover, if ever, when some ignorant or disrespectful tourists go tramping across the tundra, in spite of all the signs that say to stay on the asphalt trail.

This year I remember reading about a group of motorcycle enthusiasts visiting Yellowstone National Park. Many of them approached the wildlife (Bison) much too closely. While some people were videotaping, one of the spectators, who was much too close and taking pictures/video with her smartphone, was attacked and thrown around like a rag doll.

In Colorado, there are 55 mountains over 14,000 feet in elevation. Many people set out to climb them all. I started hiking/climbing them before it became popular or “the cool thing to do.” When I started, I did not set out to climb them all. With the population explosion in Colorado came the explosion in the numbers of people hiking/climbing 14ers. On the weekends now, the trailheads to these 14ers look like a Walmart parking lot on a Saturday. The mountains in Colorado are being “loved to death.” I do not blame people for wanting to be physically active and in the mountains. I just wish they were more educated (leave no trace ethics) and more respectful of the environment. Many of the trails leading to the summits are braided, meaning there are several trails instead of one main trail.

I am a fan of Edward Abbey. If you read “Desert Solitaire,” Abbey wrote about what he called “Industrial Tourism.” I believe that Edward Abbey was ahead of his time in his writing. I believe some of our national parks have reached that level and fear more of them will end up like that. I certainly hope that Isle Royale National Park does not ever end up falling under the term “Industrial Tourism.” I do not mean to sound like a curmudgeon or elitist, I just hate to see our special places disrespected, misused, spoiled, or ruined beyond repair.

[jerry]

I'm old! Guess what's in the Oct/Nov2020 AARP magazine on page 60? ISRO NP 2019 visitors=26410! I was one of those visitors. (Some time I'll tell you about the Rangers and yours truly.) Topic: Off the Beaten Path. I'm not in the magazine.

[johnhens]

I'm old! Guess what's in the Oct/Nov2020 AARP magazine on page 60? ISRO NP 2019 visitors=26410! I was one of those visitors. (Some time I'll tell you about the Rangers and yours truly.) Topic: Off the Beaten Path. I'm not in the magazine.

I wonder if that includes people who stopped at the VC in Houghton?

[jerry]

VC?

[jerry]

Ah, is that the visitor center? (One too many today!)

[johnhens]

Only one?
Yes!!

[jerry]

I guess I was thinking back 53 years ago, when the drill instructors were training us, to be infantry at Ft. Dix, NJ. November/December in the field was pretty chilly/cold.