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It is kind of scary that there are Park Service employees spreading this sort of nonsense.
Well, I’m not intending to contradict you because you’re right of course, but it’s not too hard a leap to imagine a visitor center ranger, who may know little about back country regulations, to have heard the newly enacted policy of “no fish stocking in high lakes” as “no fishing in high lakes”. He should be more careful, but it’s probably not scary 😉
told fishing is not allowed in the small high lakes
This is NOT true. When the park was created there was a specific provision negotiated with the State of Washington such that the state can sell fishing licenses to fish in the park (this is not true of any other nat’l park that I know of). You can fish where ever you like, but you must have a state freshwater fish license.
What the ranger may have been thinking about is that a relatively recent EIS has stopped all fish stocking in the park. This development might be reversed in the future, but that is uncertain.
I’ve been known to kick over many a rock cairn…..not all of them mind you, but most. Like Josh, it’s the “every 20 ft” ones that really bug me. If there is a single cairn, strategically placed to avoid an obvious confusion point, I usually leave it (even if there is no trail……old climber’s habit I guess).
I remove every flag I can get my hands on (except when they are placed by a survey crew — very rare).
To those (and there are some) who claim the placing of flags can be justified, I say fine if you must, but just be sure you personally remove every flag you place (of course, their retort is that they can’t be expected to do that).
(note this reply is 7 years later)
These days such sweeping recreational/environmental planning, much less implementation, takes huge amounts of time. The MidFork project has been underway for at least 7 years. Pubic meetings, Environmental Impact Statements, funding, court action by those who object, it goes on and on. Frankly, I’m surprised that something as major as road paving got started at all! If the paving will actually happen this year, then I’m very pleased. (I don’t mean that I necessary approve of the paving, although from what I know today I do approve, but I think it is important to actually implement the plans that so many have contributed to, and where so many competing interests have been resolved though perhaps not to everyone’s satisfaction. At some point action may be taken.)
P.S. I’m sure there is tons of detail on the MidFork plan available via a simple Google search.
Just wondering why it is not available to the public?
What is the “it” you are referring to?
Doesn’t our tax dollars pay for the fish to have stocked, so shouldn’t we have the right to know what lakes are getting stocked?
You have it ass-backwards. WDFW volunteers save the state lots of tax dollars. Frankly, the high lake fishery would likely not be possible without the time the volunteers give for free. There are costs involved such as hatchery costs, but they are miniscule compared to the cost of transporting the fish to these inaccessable places. Other states use helicopters and other means…..all of which can be quite expensive. Citizens in this state spend far less of their tax dollars than do citizens of most other mountain states for an equilvalent fishery due this extensive volunteer program. Beyond that, most or all of the costs aren’t even tax dollars, but instead primarily come from fishing license fees.
P.S. If you are not finding stocking information you expect to find, then you are looking in the wrong places, or perhaps an error has occurred. All fish stocking in this state is managed by the WDFW (even private ponds required fish transport permits). As you surmise, all stocking information is available to the public via the WDFW.
A quick aside……
Some Trail Blazers are more up to speed on how the various databases work, and how the relationship among the Trail Blazers, Hi Lakers, and the Dept of Fish and Wildlife works. Information on these interactions that you may get from a Trail Blazer will very much depend on who that Trail Blazer is.
As Brian points out, the only reliable source of information is the WDFW biologist for the region you are interested in.
Do these little rafts have multiple air compartments ?
ie. if you get a leak while crossing a lake with your pack are you kind of screwed…
No multiple air compartments. But that’s not as bad as it sounds. You can’t really use these rafts without putting a therarest in the bottom to insulate you from the cold water. You’d freeze your buns without it. On an overnight, you have the thermarest anyway; on a day trip the extra weight is not an issue. The therarest acts as a life presever if required. True, it won’t help your pack, but at least you won’t drown in cold water. OTOH, in my experience packs usually float for a long time anyway. I know of no one who has lost a pack using these rafts (the percentage of time your pack is with you isn’t typically very large).
Also does somebody make hike pole paddles for these ?
The small hand paddles are perfect for these rafts. They move thru the water with very little force required. A long-ish pole would just get in the way. The down side of how easy they move is that wind will blow you all over the lake (unlike a float tube), but there is no way around that……not at this weight.
They were very clear that The Sunday Creek Bridge is washed out though.
Is that the brand new one that just was completed like last year??
Do you have a link to the raft that is being designed which you spoke of?
No, but keep watching this forum. I’m pretty sure that he will post an announcement on this public forum when he is ready to offer the rafts commercially (my guess it will be within the year).
Many of us who frequent this forum have seen information on this light weight raft. A number (including me) have expressed concern that the seams are on the outside of the raft. As a result, there may be a strength issue (but perhaps not); in addition it’s hard to imagine there wouldn’t be chaffing issues (for example, on your arms). But I don’t know anyone yet who has actually tried one of these rafts.
P.S. There is a fellow in Seattle who is attempting to produce a raft almost identical to the famous “Curtis Raft”. I’ve seen a prototype, and it looks excellent. It is even lighter than the Fly Weight Design product. Cost will likely be in this same range. This new raft may be available commercially fairly soon (this year??).
