Watch now (28 min) | Popular hiking destinations are looking more like theme park attractions than trails. Here's how we both conserve and preserve access to the outdoors, without putting up turnstiles:
Thank you for taking the time to watch. I'm actually in the middle of working on a new story about the way other states are handling this. Should be done once I finish combing through all these hearings!
Very well done. Thank you. I'll probably never climb a 14er, but I really appreciate your balanced approach to the issue of these popular mountains. I think I'll stick to Bergen Peak. Gonna tweet this out now.
Thank you so much for watching, and for all the work your organization does. I learned so much from you that afternoon. Thanks again for having me along
Bravo on your reporting Cole! I will be sure to share this in my next newsletter and tweet it. You cover so many important topics here, from trail building and infrastructure to economic impact and individual responsibilities. I'm interested in this in part because I'm about to travel to Machu Picchu, an extreme example of an "alpine/architectural amusement park." There is so much gatekeeping to access the Inca Trail and then the ruins themselves, but I don't think it has backfired there--it's necessary to limit access and protect the site. But the tourism mob certainly degrades the experience. I also watched this with Southern California in mind, where my daughter hikes in the Santa Monica Mountains, and those trails are almost always like a superhighway in terms of crowding. People who live in LA seem to have adapted to it and think that level of elbow-rubbing foot traffic on the trail is normal. I hope that is not how popular CO trails will become—but then again, I support everyone getting outdoors, not only for the health benefits but because appreciating the trails and surrounding environment is a prerequisite to wanting to protect it. In any case, thank you for spotlighting this trend of swarming to and mainstreaming of peak-bagging 14ers and ideas to manage the impact.
Thank you for watching, I appreciate your feedback. I agree with your point about California crowding. I wonder if the share of Colorado hikers who are pushing for the same measures are just California transplants who grew up hiking this way and don't see anything odd about it. Also, enjoy your upcoming trip!
Thank you! My hope was to create something that could be applied more broadly outside Colorado, in the mission of conservation. Appreciate you dropping by!
Great work, Cole! Very informative - I don't live in Colorado, and I've not visited these peaks, but I really enjoyed the photography and vicariously hiking it with you. Lots of good information and great reporting!
Congrats…..excellent presentation. There must be a way to bring this video to a larger audience besides just sharing amongst your followers. Mother Nature deserves to remain free, literally and figuratively, for those who love and respect hiking in these areas. Educating and encouraging novice hikers is a must.
Thank you! I'm working to share wherever I can to spread the word. If you know anyone who you think would enjoy it and you'd consider passing it along, I'd be most appreciative!
Stunning from start to finish! Your hard work, journalism chops and creativity really shine through, and you've opened up important angles to the conversation about conservation of Colorado's wild spaces. Congrats!
Thank you so much for taking the time to watch. I hope this information can become a part of the conversation on balancing access, with preservation in beautiful outdoor spaces across the country!
Just finished watching this, Cole — excellent!
Thank you for taking the time to watch. I'm actually in the middle of working on a new story about the way other states are handling this. Should be done once I finish combing through all these hearings!
Very well done. Thank you. I'll probably never climb a 14er, but I really appreciate your balanced approach to the issue of these popular mountains. I think I'll stick to Bergen Peak. Gonna tweet this out now.
Thank you for watching! I appreciate your feedback
Glad to see the project come to fruition, Cole. Very well done. Thanks for sharing the day with me on Grays/Torreys and including me in it.
Thank you so much for watching, and for all the work your organization does. I learned so much from you that afternoon. Thanks again for having me along
Bravo on your reporting Cole! I will be sure to share this in my next newsletter and tweet it. You cover so many important topics here, from trail building and infrastructure to economic impact and individual responsibilities. I'm interested in this in part because I'm about to travel to Machu Picchu, an extreme example of an "alpine/architectural amusement park." There is so much gatekeeping to access the Inca Trail and then the ruins themselves, but I don't think it has backfired there--it's necessary to limit access and protect the site. But the tourism mob certainly degrades the experience. I also watched this with Southern California in mind, where my daughter hikes in the Santa Monica Mountains, and those trails are almost always like a superhighway in terms of crowding. People who live in LA seem to have adapted to it and think that level of elbow-rubbing foot traffic on the trail is normal. I hope that is not how popular CO trails will become—but then again, I support everyone getting outdoors, not only for the health benefits but because appreciating the trails and surrounding environment is a prerequisite to wanting to protect it. In any case, thank you for spotlighting this trend of swarming to and mainstreaming of peak-bagging 14ers and ideas to manage the impact.
Thank you for watching, I appreciate your feedback. I agree with your point about California crowding. I wonder if the share of Colorado hikers who are pushing for the same measures are just California transplants who grew up hiking this way and don't see anything odd about it. Also, enjoy your upcoming trip!
Congratulations Cole on your documentary project. I learned a lot from a region I don’t know at all.
Well done !
Thank you! My hope was to create something that could be applied more broadly outside Colorado, in the mission of conservation. Appreciate you dropping by!
Great work, Cole! Very informative - I don't live in Colorado, and I've not visited these peaks, but I really enjoyed the photography and vicariously hiking it with you. Lots of good information and great reporting!
Thank you! I'm glad it was still an enjoyable experience!
Hey, this is really great. Nice work. Already shared it with my brother, who drags his kids up to these summits with their cardboard signs ...
Thank you! I appreciate you sharing!
Congrats…..excellent presentation. There must be a way to bring this video to a larger audience besides just sharing amongst your followers. Mother Nature deserves to remain free, literally and figuratively, for those who love and respect hiking in these areas. Educating and encouraging novice hikers is a must.
Thank you! I'm working to share wherever I can to spread the word. If you know anyone who you think would enjoy it and you'd consider passing it along, I'd be most appreciative!
Stunning from start to finish! Your hard work, journalism chops and creativity really shine through, and you've opened up important angles to the conversation about conservation of Colorado's wild spaces. Congrats!
Thank you so much for taking the time to watch. I hope this information can become a part of the conversation on balancing access, with preservation in beautiful outdoor spaces across the country!