A Moment’s Pause — Fallen Writers, Bloggers

Hey Lou,

You just shamed me into writing our French friends. Thanks.

“(A) line we should respect?” Definitely. Maybe I’m just getting old, but I have the troubling feeling that basic civility is going out of style. That said, any one who thinks dumb jokes should be punishable by death is an idiot. I think this has less to do with any particular religious doctrine (there’s some pretty wacky stuff in most religious texts, imo) than with aimless and angry people looking for meaning that somehow eludes them.

I often wonder how many murderous idiots could have gained a greater appreciation for life and chosen a better path had they been introduced to mountaineering or some other form of direct and intense interaction with their fellow humans and the glory of creation.

hi lou – maybe you can use your two websites and the megaphone to preach some wisdom about humans walking dogs in avalanche terrain in wilderness areas? i am hoping an education approach will win out over opinion and ego. The law for dogs in wilderness is simple: “on leash, on trail.” the reality of walking your dog in avi terrain -no matter what designation it is- is that if something happens to the owner, the dog has no way to communicate to anyone who may be able to help. last time i checked, no dog in avi terrain ever had a kit. so please, be human, be smart, leave your dog at the road and go walk her in a ski area where they are welcomed. see aspen ski area uphill dog policy below, (note; dogs are only allowed at snowmass on leash)
• Aspen Mountain: Uphillers must be at the gondola by 9 a.m. No dogs are allowed in the winter. The designated route is America’s Uphill course and it is marked. It starts on Little Nell run, goes up Bingo Slot, Spar Gulch, left into Deer Park and onto Silver Bell.

• Aspen Highlands: To go beyond the Merry Go Round, uphillers must have reached the mid-mountain restaurant by 9 a.m. The preferred route up the mountain is: Jerome Bowl to Park Ave to Memory Lane and up to the Merry Go Round. Uphillers are asked to travel along the edges of trails, and in single-file formation. Dogs are not allowed at Highlands.

• Buttermilk: Uphilling is allowed on Buttermilk all day long. The route is designated on Main and Tiehack by orange disks. The Tiehack route goes up Eagle Hill to Ptarmigan, for the most part on skier’s left. The route up Main follows the disks from the base, snakes back in the woods and then crosses Midway Avenue to Ridge Trail to the top. The Main route is closed during X build, games and tear down. No dogs allowed. Please hike single file and stay to the edge of the trail. The downhill skier or rider has the right of way. Do not stop under breakovers. Downloading is allowed on Summit Express chair and foot passengers must sign release before downloading. No downloading allowed on Tiehack Express. Straying off the designated route may take the uphill privilege away from everyone.

• Snowmass: Snowmass is the only place where dogs are allowed with uphillers throughout the day; however, they must be on a leash. While there is no designated route, uphillers are not permitted on Adams Avenue (please see a trail map for exact location). Remember to obey closed signs.

lou -remember when skiing up hill at a ski area was a sure sign of being a poacher? and now look at it!
i sincerely hope that others will follow jock jacober who set a wonderful example this year at the anthracite pass trail head when he asked me; “is this wilderness?” and when i acknowledged it was, he promptly put his dog back in the truck.