Re[4]: [at-l] What do you do...

[Bob Cummings <ellen@clinic.net> (Bob Cummings)]

"...The more the government and the NPS get there fingers into the AT  the more
it is at risk. "

The simple fact is the trail wouldn't exist today had the government not gotten its fingers in. The
government stepped in after years of agitation by trail lovers when scores of miles of the trail
were being posted with new off limit signs every year.

Anyone who thinks otherwise simply hasn't been paying attention. I really don't know what Clifford
is saying in his Maine example. One the area is not directly connected to the AT except as part of the view
shed.

Two, he's talking about a quarter century old land swap that protected much of the shoreline of twin
lakes in western Maine. The Bureau of Public
Lands, which is managed by a former International Paper Co. woodlands manager, chooses to lease this frontage
to a private landowner. But we have a reasonable chance of changing that sweet heart deal. Before
the state took over it was all private. By now the frontage would have been clogged with condo
colonies. None of which would have rented for $14 a day, though perhaps the waiting time would have
been less. The price would have matched the demand. Think $500 a day.

Weary