Another Day, another fire ring

I'm back from another two days as a Desolation Wildnerness volunteer, this time a solo overnight trip into my "adopted Zone" 39. This zone is a trailless section of the wilderness south of Lake Aloha, and I am the only volunteer to have adopted it, two years running.

Zone 39, looking good. But hard to navigate.

It certainly has charm and beauty--and the lack of trails means that a lot of people don't feel comfortable selecting it as their destination. Others have come to love it. At the same time, we are continually fighting the battle against those who pay no attention to the regulations they signed off on their permit.

Campsite 100 feet from water? Check.(I restored ten sites that were all within 25 feet of the water.) No fires? I demolished one fire ring and buried the ashes from two other fires that had been made without rings.

Pack it in, pack it out? Check. I not only collected a fine bunch of microtrash, I also hauled out a heavy tent,complete with stuff bag, that someone had abandoned in the back country. Maybe he or she thought that bears would use it for hibernation this winter.

Campsite on the water, before.

Campsite on the water, after,

But I also had some fun. I found one group of six hikers, including two younger girls, who were struggling to find a way back to the main trail through the maze of granite ridges and tarns that cover Zone 39. I pointed them in the right direction, and led them part of the way. And I found a family of three with a young boy who were definitely short of water. My camp was nearby, so I was able to boost their supply by a liter.

And on the way out I met a young woman who had sprained her ankle at Lake Aloha. I took a shot at wrapping it for her, using my first aid kit, and was relieved when a passing ER physician gave my work a passing grade. She was able to hike out, slowly, to live and hike again another day.

All that, and talking to nearly 200 people on the trail about the weather, the trail, their destination, and all of the above!