Like many outdoors people, I’ve been dismayed at the blanket closure of all 1.9 million acres of the Los Padres National Forest, and I realize that there has been great damage from recent rainfall (see 4.1.1.).

I support the kind and hardworking people of the Forest Service toiling on repairs; I do not support the agency in making extensive and blanket closures on a more and more frequent basis.

While roads like the one back to Nira Camp and others need to be closed for a moderate period, I believe some of the forest should remain open to those willing to travel there by foot (or in appropriate places, by bike). 

I’ve been tramping around back there since 1971, and my experience is that USFS tends to close it down more often and in a more “total” fashion over the decades. 

Why is Lizard’s Mouth closed but the nearby gun club remains open, for example?

Honestly, I know the USFS wants to clear roads and make it safe for the public to get back there, and there are liability issues. Folks in remote communities much appreciate the work the Forest Service does in clearing out wrecked sections.

Nonetheless, ornery and individualistic American hikers are going back in there all the time, and officials are aware of this. 

While I recommend obedience to the 261.50 diktat from the Los Padres hierarchy in my columns — and I’ve noted that Tunnel Trail and coastal hikes are legally available — hardy Americans are going in there regardless.

Has the Forest Service wondered whether these blanket closures undermine their own authority with the hiking public?  

Since many have already hiked in and reported back by word of mouth that this place or that place is just fine, more and more humans disbelieve all of the Forest Service’s strictures. 

When one finds no extensive damage or blocked road while hiking the closed areas, then we have to ask, “Why the heck is this trail closed?”  

As the Forest Service surveys and learns more specific detail, I hope area-specific re-openings will be announced soon.

Instead of posting closure signs like those you find at the Rattlesnake Canyon Trailhead, the signs could read something like: “NOTICE: Trail conditions have drastically changed and could be dangerous — travel at your own risk. If you’d like to assist the Forest Service, please email us your photos and information on trail conditions to help us assess the current situation.”   

I empathize with how much work there is for the USFS, and specifically Los Padres National Forest staff, and I also appreciate the ongoing work to reopen. 

Making blanket and long-term (two months!) closures of the entire forest is counterproductive. With respect, please reopen some areas sooner and inform the public more efficiently.

4.1.1.

Forest closure order 261.50(a) — “Hiking, camping and backpacking are prohibited within the Los Padres National Forest. This Order is effective from January 13, 2023, through March 14, 2023. Going into or being upon any area of the following National Forest System administrative units will result in a violation.”

— Dan McCaslin is the author of Stone Anchors in Antiquity and has written extensively about the local backcountry. His latest book, Autobiography in the Anthropocene, is available at Lulu.com. He serves as an archaeological site steward for the U.S. Forest Service in Los Padres National Forest. He welcomes reader ideas for future Noozhawk columns, and can be reached at cazmania3@gmail.com. Click here to read previous columns. The opinions expressed are his own.