Judgement, Technology, and Wild Places

The Thought Kitchen has an interesting post on the Oregon Legislature considering a bill that would require parties on Mt. Hood to carry electronic signaling devices during parts of the year.

Bad idea. Having worked in the Presidential Range of NH and the North Woods of Maine for several years, I have lugged injured hikers off the mountain, patch up injured canoeists and had friends that almost paid, or did pay, the ultimate price while in the wild. Forcing a load of people to carry electronic communication devices (yes, I know a lot probably use them now) makes it more likely that someone without the necessary judgment or experience will rely on that phone or GPS transmitter rather than their own wits. That ends up with a lot more rescue trips, many unnecessary, and that puts everyone at a greater risk.

So, do we need to compel folks to use technology to be safe in wild places?

Not unless you want to use it.

Good judgment, experience, a compatible group, and a willingness to turn back will always trump carrying an electronic device. In this age of 24 hour news cycles, where shrill stories of stranger danger, lyme disease, and hour by hour coverage of lost mountaineers, it's easy for dumb, reactive responses like compulsory carrying of GPS tracking units, to come into focus. These news stories are usually written by folks who haven't stepped foot out of their backyards in years.

All the more reason for people to reconnect with nature.

Those who wish to rely on this type of technology should be able to carry them (but not use them as a crutch for real judgment). But for the government to compel folks to bring a transmitter into the woods or up on the mountain simply negates the reasons that many of us go to wild places.

Addendum:

When I looked at The Thought Kitchen post the other day, I noticed the May 23, but not the 2007 date...anyways, even though this is really an outdated issue, it still is worth considering. I don't know what happened with the Oregon bill. It should be noted to that the
Thought Kitchen is part of Nau, who have regretfully for all of us, announced that they are shutting down their business. Check out their website quick, and buy some of their remaining stock, it's great stuff. Hopefully their fine blog will remain viable.

Mulch is Very Bad

Interesting story today on a study that found reasons why some day care centers don't give their kids much time outdoors. Here's an example:

"Then there was the mulch factor. "The staff members who participated in the groups were really concerned about mulch in the play area,' said lead author Dr. Kristen Copeland. 'Many said that the kids eat the mulch, or use it as weapons, or it gets caught in their shoes. It also requires constant upkeep. It’s certainly not something that we had anticipated as an issue, but judging by the amount of and intensity of the discussions among child care teachers, it really is.'"

It should be noted that the day care center located on the campus I work at has the kids outdoors all the time, and yes, they get dirty.

Stuff and How it has Defined Us

Orion has a good piece out called The Gospel of Consumption.

FROM THE EARLIEST DAYS of the Age of Consumerism there were critics. One of the most influential was Arthur Dahlberg, whose 1932 book Jobs, Machines, and Capitalism was well known to policymakers and elected officials in Washington. Dahlberg declared that “failure to shorten the length of the working day . . . is the primary cause of our rationing of opportunity, our excess industrial plant, our enormous wastes of competition, our high pressure advertising, [and] our economic imperialism.” Since much of what industry produced was no longer aimed at satisfying human physical needs, a four-hour workday, he claimed, was necessary to prevent society from becoming disastrously materialistic. “By not shortening the working day when all the wood is in,” he suggested, the profit motive becomes “both the creator and satisfier of spiritual needs.” For when the profit motive can turn nowhere else, “it wraps our soap in pretty boxes and tries to convince us that that is solace to our souls.”

Read it here.

Certainly malls are icons of our consumer culture. For some alternative fun with mall culture, check out deadmalls.com and the Malls of America blog , and if that weren't enough, the Mall Hall of Fame blog. Enough.

A Little Hike

Not really. Check out this Wildebeat podcast that tells the story of a hike Mary Chambers, a ten year old, took with her parents. Actually a big hike, walking the 2,650 mile length of the Pacific Crest Trail.

When you're out hiking in the wilderness, it's definitely necessary to know some things. I think the most important thing, is how to find and purify your water, with a water filter. And another thing is definitely how to set up a tent and pitch a tent so you're safe from the rain and snow and mosquitos. But really, food is a really big issue, you know, what kind of foods are good for backpacking. What kind of foods won't spoil or be far too heavy. I guess food, water, and shelter are definitely the most important things when you're backpacking in the wilderness.

Read more in Mary's Mom's book on their journey, info here.

Wildflowers

The bluebells are blooming here on Terrapin Neck, as are wildflowers of every shape, color and form, in places all across the country.

Remember next week is National Wildflower Week. There are events being held across the country, so get out there and enjoy them.

The national forests, national parks, national wildlife refuges, grasslands, and millions of acres of public lands are truly America's wildflower gardens. Celebrating Wildflowers' National Wildflower Week in late spring is an annual event. It launches a year long campaign that promotes the many programs featuring the important role that the Nation's public lands, over 630 million acres, play in providing diverse habitats for much of America's flora.

Celebrating Wildflowers, a collaborative commemoration between the Forest Service, Bureau of Land Management, Fish and Wildlife Service, and the National Park Service, emphasizes the importance of conservation and management of native plants and plant habitats and highlights the aesthetic, recreational, biological, medicinal, and economic values of wildflowers.

Here's more info on wildflowers and their role in our lives from our land management agencies.

Tree Living

Ever want to live in the trees? Here's a way you can do it.

The Mountain Culture blog has more.

Lots cooking up on Mt. Everest the past few days, related in part to the Olympic torch. Not our usual fare, but check out these reports:

Jim Curtin's blog here.

Wired Magazine summary of who's blogging from the mountain.

More recent news and a bunch of links to climber blogs at mteverest.net.

And even more at Peakfreaks.

It is amazing how much technology has permeated the world of high altitude mountaineering.