[at-l] The "Right" to Solitude (was: ATC ad policy)

[artduck@yahoo.com (Carol Benel)]

Being a mountain biker who belongs to organizations
and contributing my sweat to put in those expensive
new trails for the purpose of mountain biking, then
finding hikers using them...I and most bikers usually
call out, 'passing on the left!'
Yet I agree that certain trails and areas should be
foot access only.  Not just for the reasons listed,
but also because it perserves a part of our heritage. 
I like the idea of my grandchildren being able to at
least visit a part of this nation that reflects what
it was like before we 'civilized' it.  I also like the
idea of there being a bit of wilderness somewhere
where wildlife can still be just that, not dodging
cars and construction crews.
I am more enamored of the thought of a bit of
wilderness that is allowed to exist untouched by our
improvements than just my right to solitude.  I like
the idea there is some place to find solace where I
feel a part of nature because I adapt to my
surroundings rather than change it to suit my desires.
 My sojourns into the wild teach me that many of my
needs are really just that...desires.  It helps me
define my own inner journey without the distractions
of the discordant noise people tend to make, but that
is not my motivating drive to support keeping the
wilderness wild..so to speak.  I think there should be
some part of this land that we share the trail with
more than ourselves.  Where we don't expect the
wildlife to adapt to our presence but respect the fact
we are in their living room. A very wondrous,
beautiful living room it is!
Perhaps I share with Weary a hope of occasionally
finding a kindred spirit.
artduck
 
--- Jim Mayer <jmayer@rochester.rr.com> wrote:
> Weary,
> 
> Oh, I do understand, and you're right... most people
> don't.  Our culture has
> a well developed sense of the "right" of individuals
> to DO things, but very
> little feeling for the "right" to be left alone. 
> Lots and lots of people
> feel they have a right to drive ATVs through state
> and national forests, but
> there is little recognition of my right not to be
> assulted by buzz of
> internal combustion engines.  Think Jet Skis.
> 
> The funny part is that the idea is out there... just
> suppressed.  One of the
> basic ideas of "freedom" is that you have the right
> to do whatever you want,
> but only to the point where your actions affect me. 
> You don't have the
> right to dam the stream going through your property
> because that will cut
> off my water, and you don't have the right to play
> your stereo at full blast
> out of your window at 3am in the morning (college
> campuses excepted).
> Unfortunately, while you and I may want to go into
> the woods to find
> solitude, lots of other people go into the woods to
> escape from the confines
> of society.  For them, the woods are a place they
> can go have a wild party
> and not bother "anyone".  In the woods, they, too,
> can leave civilization
> behind.
> 
> It's the same thing over and over again...
> equestrian riders want to use the
> trails, but what about my "right" to smell the woods
> instead of horse shit.
> Mountain bikers want the freedom to ride, but what
> about my "right" to not
> have people wizzing by me.
> 
> Unfortunately, the answer to all of this is both
> simple and nearly
> impossible:
> 
> (1) Motors don't belong in the wild.
> (2) Neither do boom boxes.
> (2) Equestrians, mountain bikers, and hikers should
> have their own trails.
> 
> The reason for (1) is that motors make too much
> noise.  They destroy every
> other user's sense of solitude.
> 
> Ditto for (2).
> 
> The reason for (3) is that while there is nothing
> wrong with any of the
> three uses (they all look like fun to me), they just
> aren't compatible with
> each other.  Horse trails need to be built like
> roads in order to hold up, I
> can't imagine that horses like mountain bikes
> wizzing by, and mountain bikes
> are just too fast and jarring to share the trail
> with hikers.
> 
> One reason this is impossible is that there is no
> way to separate Americans
> from their toys.  Another reason is that there just
> aren't enough good
> places to put trail.  The AT may be an exception
> because of the huge
> investment that people put into it.  Almost
> everywhere else, however, trails
> mostly run on abandoned roads, or old rail beds, or
> along natural ridges.
> It's just too much effort to cut new trail.  But
> there are only so many old
> railroad grades, and who's going to get to use them?
> 
> The result is the push towards "multiple use"
> trails, which just don't work
> well for hikers.
> 
> What does this mean for the AT (a trail I've barely
> been on)?  I hear a lot
> of talk about the AT and wilderness, but, oddly, I
> think of the AT at a
> wonderful achievement of civilization.  The AT
> exists because thousands of
> people work together on it.  It is a shared idea,
> and every much a product
> of civilization as a symphony or a skyscraper or the
> Brooklyn bridge.  So
> for me, the idea of an ad book in shelters, or named
> road crossings, is ok,
> even fitting.  On the other hand, my skin literally
> crawls at the idea of
> having to listen to someone call his stockbroker on
> a cell phone.
> 
> This is getting depressing.  On the bright side,
> though, there are still
> trails where you can walk for a week and only see
> one or two other people.
> There are certainly quite a few in Pennsylvania. 
> Some of the are very
> lovely (though many are threatened).
> 
> -- Jim
> 
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "Bob Cummings" <ellen@clinic.net>
> To: <at-l@mailman.backcountry.net>
> Sent: Tuesday, August 07, 2001 8:21 PM
> Subject: Re[2]: [at-l] ATC ad policy
> 
> 
> > "... If you don't want to be
> > bothered by all that civilization junk, just keep
> walking. "
> >
> > Unfortunately, it is not that simple. Some seek
> the trail to gain a sense
> of wildness. The knowledge
> > that directions to civilization, pizzas, a ride,
> whatever ... is available
> by simply opening a book, or asking your shelter
> mates
> > mate to borrow their cell phone, destroys that
> sense of wildness. I don't
> expect many to understand this.
> > But it is a fact. Let's expand the concept of
> "leave no trace" to not
> leaving psychic intrusions
> > either.
> >
> > Will this happen? No. Almost no one has any idea
> what I'm talking about.
> But I'll probably keep
> > talking anyway in hopes of finding an occasional
> kindred soul to
> commiserate with.
> >
> > Weary
> >
> 
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