brian90620 wrote:Zé wrote:
anf employees are fail. maybe it's because they are understaffed, underpaid, underfunded, whatever, but I've gotten so many incorrect statements from them, it drives me crazy.
I agree 100% with this statement. They never know anything, they don't know when roads or campgrounds are going to reopen. They give inaccurate dates on things such as the Rincon Shortcut road which has been closed to vehicles for 2 years now, they said it was supposed to reopen last June, and still hasnt. The funny part is when you ask them about it they say it hasn't even been closed a year yet. Also theyve had a "temporary" closure in the Little rock creek area since 1999 to protect an endangered toad.
http://www.fs.fed.us/r5/angeles/news/19 ... tter.shtml. I fully understand protecting an endangered specie, but isn't there something else that can be done insted of just keeping an area closed forever..... NOW THAT IS FAIL!!!!!
FYI- Fish and Wildlife Service (Federal, not State) largely dictates endangered species closures and evaluations, and the USFS (and other agencies where and endangered species is found on their jurisdiction) basically have to adjust, and follow some often very strict "rules".
One big reason closures are often listed as "temporary", is so that they can re-evaluate every few years and make adjustments to a closure/restricted access area.
Example: Cabin Flat area, which used to be closed entirely to vehicle traffic from Guffy to Lupine Campground, is now open again to Lupine for vehicles, and walk-in to Cabin Flat (no longer an official campground). This was after a re-evaulative study determined that vehicle/human traffic was not significantly impacting the area of protected species around Lupine, but vehicle traffic and concentrated human use (but not dispersed use) was still a concern at Cabin Flat.
Williamson Rock area is another example. They are considering making a new stretch of the PCT to bypass the creek area where the main concern is for that closure. That in turn may shrink the area of the closure in the future. Also, If you remember correctly, that closure at first was including Hwy 2, and it was closed at Cedar Springs, just west of Eagles Roost... all the way to Islip, until further evaluation determined vehicle use on the highway above did not significantly impact the froggies 1000 ft down in the creek below.
Call the Angeles USFS Biologist and get some more information. They'd be happy to educate you on what is sometimes a confusing area of information to the public. 626-574-1613 and/or 661-296-9710 (push 0 and ask the operator for the forest/district biologist).
Unfortunately, I agree to some extent, that there are some very uneducated and misinformed employees working on the Angeles. However, there are also some great ones. The key is to find the right people to ask the right questions, but I understand that's not always clear on who that may be.
Someone cleaning bathrooms doesn't always know the details and/or make the decisions on many of the things that are of public concern. It's a shame, as they are the ones most of us come in contact with when we're out playing, (and they SHOULD be kept more informed) but don't always assume it's directly their fault. Some of the "higher ups" often have no clue how to (or don't want to) communicate alot of pertinent information to their employees. They sometimes don't even know themselves. I know, it's frustrating sometimes.
). Although I could have parked near the gate and hiked down to the trail head, I just bailed and did some sightseeing and a short hike near Mt. Wilson instead.
