Run DMZ

I haven't been able to get the tragic tale of a young woman and her father out of my mind. In case you missed it, the pair of experienced hikers summited Half Dome in Yosemite just as a rogue storm approached. They immediately began the descent, which is nerve-wracking on its own, when the skies opened and turned the "trail" of slate from dangerous to deadly.  The young woman, who was studying to become a teacher at Arizona State, was wearing new boots that lost traction. She slipped beyond the cables and plunged 200 to 300 feet, dying of a head fracture. These types of incidents, still uncommon, are unfortunately appearing in news feeds more frequently as hiking enjoys a moment. Last year a group of Half Dome hikers were trapped during a lightning storm that struck one of the hikers sheltering in a rock cave. Others barely made it down during the deluge. The thing that struck me with the most recent fatality is the role of trail congestion. The Arizona woman's father...

The Vista Fire on Mount Baldy last week, just hours after it erupted. As of today, it's about 50% contained and all nearby trails remain closed. The West is having quite a hard time with wildfires this summer.   

 

  Since 1919, one of southern California's most-posh-yet-most-primitive vacation spots has belonged to the Wrigley family (of chewing gum and baseball fame). The land today is dominated by the Catalina Island Conservancy , which controls 88% of the island to ensure it's never overrun by developers. This past weekend, I got to explore a portion of the primitive part with an REI-sponsored group backpacking trip from Two Harbors to Parsons Landing and back.  Training versus the actual trip My friend Mary and I began to train in earnest in early spring, when temperatures on trails were ideal in San Diego. Even into May and June, we typically had thick clouds to shield us from the enervating effects of full sun. This made it difficult to prepare for what the weather actually was over last weekend: hot and sunny. We knew we'd be carrying heavy packs, and in the last two months we weighed down our packs to 32 (me) and 38 (Mary) pounds of water and gear for our 5- to 6-mile treks....