Still Gravity

Hiking around the man-made lakes - License our images  here .         This is protected land with stormwater lakes and canals located a few miles west of the Highway 27 in South Florida. The pavement ends at the public use area and a dirt road gets deep into the wildlife management area. We only crossed two other vehicles in this wet and muddy expanse.  Why is this place named Holey Land?  There are two ideas. One says that the area was a bombing range during WW2 and the explosive practices left many craters. The other one blamed nature for the many depressions in this region.  What is true is that there is plenty of water in this place. 

Inflation is hitting hard from every side, even from "our" national parks. The epidemy of fees keeps growing. And sure, this will affect the rich.    Did some government officer forgot about the families that make $10 an hour? What about those who need two jobs to survive? Will our national parks become a natural version of the expensive parks of Disney? $30 for a single night of primitive camping is a lot for too many - and you need to add the entrance fee. Such prices can jeopardize the milk supply of their following month. And don't we already pay for the national parks through our income tax?  An article published in National Park Traveler questions the avalanche of fees.  Critics of these fees refer to them as a "Recreation Access Tax," or RAT taxes. Like frogs in that pot of cool water, is the park-going public being lulled into a more and more costly national park experience by the growth of what the National Park Service calls "amenity fees"? H

One of our pics from Alaska - License our images  here . Hiking and climbing on ice are dangerous activities. Today, I read in the news that an ice column broke and crushed a lady climbing in Utah. The brave climber saved a companion pushing her aside from the falling ice - the story  here . But how many folks die ice climbing?  This activity is seen as more dangerous than rock climbing. Makes sense: slippery stuff, breaking ice, and snow avalanches. The stats point that the fatality risk is higher compared to mountaineering - check the paper from 2010,  Evaluation of injury and fatality risk in rock and ice climbing .  Slippery slope in Alaska.  Anyway, if you like it, do it. Like I always say, city streets and cars are more dangerous. Life is risk. Just be smart, learn, and train.