Is Wilderness Safe?

I was browsing the 'net today and came across this article and thought it pertained to my current situation. I can say that you can see some of the things the author is discussing in the article. Trail signage here in Yellowstone is very limited. The heavy trafficked trails here in the park have decent signage, as well as being easy to navigate. In the trail book that many of my co-workers and I use they have each trail rated by difficulty, as well as by the amount of hikers classified by "seldom, moderate, or heavy". I have noticed once the traffic level is below heavy the signs and blazes on the trails are few and far between. Trail maintenance varies depending on the trail and the condition of the trail. If there was a massive tree that had fallen down and was blocking the trail, it would likely be cut to clear the path for hikers. However, a couple of weeks ago while I was hiking the Bechler River Trail we came to a situation where we needed to cross a stream and there had been a log that was set up to assist in the crossing for hikers, but it had been broken and was laying in the water.

Why wouldn't that be fixed? Wouldn't it much more logical to have people crawl over a tree trunk rather than wading through flowing water that may or may not be very cool temperatures? At least, I think it seems safer for people to jump the fallen trunk...

I know I haven't really organized this post too well, so I apologize for that. Basically, as you can see from the article (in hopes that you've actually read it), the Park Service wants to collect your money as visitors to all of the parks across the country, yet they don't necessarily want us using their trails and taking advantage of the beauty that is offered. This doesn't make sense to me if they want people to continue to donate money towards parks and be supportive of wilderness protection.

I can see where the Park Service is coming from in hopes of keeping wilderness as pristine as possible, but that can be achieved by helping people be safe. Hikers, for the most part, prepare adequately for their adventures by scoping out maps, preparing for the weather and packing proper gear but it is inevitable that occasionally there are mishaps on the trail such as following a game trail rather than the trail that was designated.

I guess my stance on the article/situation is this: I like the idea of keeping wilderness preserved and pristine, but in order to guarantee safety which ensures more support and visitors trail safety needs to be on the front burner for the Park Service.