High Sierra Topix

I know I posted a similar topic years ago, but I couldn't find it so maybe it got lost in the crash.

Anyway, this morning I went for a trail run/hike close to home to come back to find the passenger window of my truck was obliterated into a thousand pieces (for those familiar with the area, this happened at Arastradero Preserve). I was lucky and didn't have anything inside to be stolen, but three other cars parked alongside mine weren't so lucky. Right now, I'm just ticked off . I've parked at a lot of trailheads in my day, and this is the first time this has happened. It has also gotten me to think when I go to this particular location at least, I might just leave my doors unlocked and windows down to avoid having to repair another window.

So, anyone else have this happen? Perhaps on a multi-day trip? Remote or 'urban' trailheads?

Guess I have been lucky. I have heard of similar but never has happened to me.

I know the FS is concerned about it, and if a particular trailhead starts getting hit often the FS has set up stakeouts. I recall one writeup about such an operation several years ago in Oregon. The FS LEO's staked out a 'bait vehicle' with a digital camera in plain view. The LEO's, in shifts, hidden in nearby brush, waited about 10 days before they caught 2 guys responsible for a chain of trailhead breakins. I recall the 2 miscreants ended up behind bars.

I lost a container of night crawlers I had left in my old, Playmate ice chest, that I had set on the shady side of my pickup to keep it from getting too warm. This was at the west side th into the Thousand Lakes Wilderness. Where I stayed for the weekend, one guy showed up and was doing pretty good fishing with bait.

There used to be people who would do a huge loop of recreation areas -- Oregon, down through all of California, then back, hitting parked cars -- "car clouts." Then it eased off, though locals would still do it occasionally. Hadn't heard that it was getting bad again, but it's always a danger.

On the bright side, I routinely leave my vehicle parked at trailheads (Onion Valley, Horseshoe, Florence, South Lake, North Lake) for months at a time and have never had a break-in (knock-wood....) in the 30+ years I've been doing that. Did have a wood rat chew all my spark plug wires (Horseshoe) one summer.

No bears, neither.

g.

Some local youths here on the Plumas, got caught after a bit. They had broken into some vehicles that get parked everynight at a winter parking area on Bucks Summit, mostly used by snowmobilers. The resort owners and cabin owners have to park there when the road gets closed for the winter. Same summit, one winter, a friend and I were out snowmobiling late one night until after midnight and I had some gas siphoned out of my rent-a-wreck Luv. I thought my gas gauge wasn't working, until I topped my tank off the next weekend. I have had a candy bar wrapper or what not left in the back of my truck too. Lazy people.