High Sierra Topix

It was a struggle over WC to pay for a hip replacement but that was just the tip of the iceberg of what followed over the past 6 months or so. Also, think you're confusing Channel Islands/Santa Rosa Island with Santa Cruz.

Well, Russ sent me a note on this thread and here I am -- Yay. The rotten luck health worm may be turning. Among some assorted hassles, I've been in atrial fibrillation for over a month but, going in today to get zapped in attempt to convert it, I'd gone back to normal rhythm. Hip is replaced (also Yay) and I'm walking like a primate again.

But, anyway, certainly a thread that brings back memories. A quick correction: the riot was in 1970, not 1969, but time flies when you're having fun. It was a classic clash of cultures. I wasn't there (fire crew in Modoc National Forest that year) but was hired the next year 'cause they wanted young people to 'relate to youth.' I was your average Berkeley hippie. Most all the rangers then were, as you'd expect, conservative and with little tolerance for the hippies coming up in large numbers. Remember that this was the leading edge of the Baby Boom just reaching their late teens, with driver's licenses and fueled by getting away from their parents. They were lighting out for the territory in good Huck Finn fashion. The clash came about because many of them (too many) just wanted to hang out, smoke dope, camp in the meadows and, generally, create a mess. Too many were not yet clued in on a wilderness -- or park -- ethic.

The rangers were not only a bit rigid, but totally untrained in crowd control or trying to calm the situation. And it was not just the July 4th spontaneous gathering, it had been building for weeks -- even the previous year. The Berkeley Barb had been encouraging people to go to Yosemite and party. Rangers would meet vehicles at the entrance and use whatever excuse (vehicle safety - no tail light etc) to turn them around. A bit of tension developed. Also, a number of the seasonal rangers were teachers and took a pretty paternalistic approach to people who had no use whatsoever to being talked down to.

Quick story?? Oh, OK. in '71, I was often partnered with just such a guy. A gym teacher I believe. Nice guy and long time seasonal but had absolutely no sense of how his attitude could take the mellowest doped up hippie to raging psychopath in only a few minutes. I lived in fear when answering a call with him and would try my entertaining tap dance routine so we wouldn't have to start wrestling with someone. Good training for a future in LE, but nerve wracking at the time.

In the days before the actual riot, there were a couple of rangers who did go out in the meadow and talk to people, trying to convince them that their motorcycles, camping, beer bottles etc. were affecting the ecology of the meadow and the peace of the park. It was a good try but too much energy in the opposite direction. So, as Lincoln said, "and the war came." Again, rangers -- like police of that era -- had no training or experience with crowd control. Things went badly for the first attempt to herd everyone. I don't think there was a general plan other than disperse people. Where would they go?? So rangers, fire crew etc. were driven from the meadow. Score one for hippies.

That night and next day, reinforcement came from surrounding LE agencies and CHP. Lots of arrests and bad vibes. On the bright side, it was a turning point for both how parks viewed all visitors and, very soon, for how rangers were trained in law enforcement and who would have LE responsibility and authority (another longer story, but kinda fascinating).

And, as mentioned, I was hired to ride herd on hippies. A bunch of younger rangers were brought in and all sorts of programs were developed to entertain and educate them to a park ethic. Also at the end of '70 and all of '71 summer season, Washington sent the US Park Police, a relatively humoerless group of officers. But the good news is they were afraid of bears and wouldn't get out of their patrol cars after dark...

But the programs and new rangers were reasonably successful -- combined with a equally aggressive program to arrest drunks and get folks under control. The film clip is actually part of a longer movie filmed by Dave Vassar. I know the park has a copy -- it's actually pretty good.

Long range, the new generation of rangers (if I may so call ourselves) effected a slow but, ultimately, successful effort to change hearts and minds of how people viewed their parks and wilderness. I think it's fair to say that spinoffs were minimum impact for backcountry; naturalist programs more in tune to their audience; acceptance of other cultures and age groups & etc. Eventually (within 5 years) LE rangers started attending more formal and more intense LE academies.

And then ol' ranger George fell silent, staring into the embers of the campfire and slowly rocking back and forth, humming to himself, a small line of drool running down his chin.

HI George,
Nice to hear from you and nice to hear you have a hip again.

ERIC wrote:It was a struggle over WC to pay for a hip replacement but that was just the tip of the iceberg of what followed over the past 6 months or so. Also, think you're confusing Channel Islands/Santa Rosa Island with Santa Cruz.

You're probably right. I spent more time diving Santa Cruz in an attempt to get to Santa Rosa, but weather rarely cooperated.

Hi all: further sidenote. I was on Santa Rosa Island at Channel Islands NP. Very different but very cool. Tiny foxes, about the size of cats. They like Purina Fox Chow, but don't tell anyone... .

George, I think it must have been one of those younger rangers you mention being brought in who first turned me on to Desert Solitaire. He was a seasonal named Chuck Brown who worked at Sonoma State the rest of the year. He was doing campfire programs at Happy Isles and the highlights were always rants from Abbey about Industrial Tourism and the need for old ladies to commune with nature by throwing off their clothes and getting some sun on their wrinkled dugs. Definitely not the usual Ranger Rick stuff. This would have been the summer of either 71 or 72. By the time I started working in Yosemite myself in 74 he was out of the picture and there was more of an LEO vibe in general.

I've always been grateful for that early dose of Abbey. I would have found him on my own but it would have taken a couple more years.

Finally had a chance to sit down and watch this...I thought it was a great documentary on the history of climbing in Yosemite. Some of the things towards the end - especially free solo climbing faces like El Cap and Half Dome - are pretty nuts

Available free "On Demand".