Hey Karl,Sorry. I was not insinuating that stealth camping caused the fire. low-impact campers are probably the most considerate of all. but when there is a fire their first concern is PEOPLE and to get campers out of the woods. they need to know where they are. i wish we could camp anywhere, even if it just meant give a rough coordinate you would be at. it only takes a few to ruin thing for the rest. my hat goes off the our NJ Rangers, they have a hard, hard job (and short handed). i just follow the rules to make it easier on them.
it would be nice to have some spots we could camp on the Batona trail for people hiking end-end
Hike Safe
What about hunters? What if there is a fire during shotgun deer season? How will Mommy rescue all of them? If you go into a forest or anywhere else in the world for that matter you assume a certain risk. On your thru hike will you always be able to let someone know where you are every minute? What if you are on a Wharton day hike and you decide to take a detour? Life is a dangerous place.
I agree that remote camping is not for most folks. You have to know how to take care of yourself. As to rangers I am sure some of them are great folks, I mean they can't all be like the ones I have dealt with, because if they are and I find myself in a jam, they are they last people I would want to depend on. It would really rather just take care of myself and enjoy the pines the way we were meant to.
Bluemoonmuskrat also has a good point about the saftey aspect. Any AT thru hiker will tell that the shelters which are closest to the road are the most dangerous.