I am writing in support of Barry Brandow’s comments regarding range cattle.
Cows have no place in the backcountry; they are, in fact, a scourge and should be kept where they belong, in a barn or blissfully grazing a farm pasture.
Many years ago a friend and I hiked from Mt. Gladstone to Mt. Faith, a fulfilling experience…..that was, until our second camp at the basin in the Mt. Faith area.
We camped near a creek…..or what used to be a creek. There were cattle in the area and the waterway had become a barnyard mud and manure hole. The surrounding drier ground was trampled and uncharacteristically compacted…..and the entire area stunk.
Those who make the erroneous claim that the bovine hordes have no worse of an impact than elk do not know what they are talking about, are delusional, or are just plain lying. I have hiked where there are elk—in the Selkirks, Purcells and the Rockies—and signs of their presence are barely existent. Other than minimal indications, you pretty well have got to run into them before realizing you’re on their turf. The presence of cattle, on the other hand, is glaringly and depressingly obvious.
So…..echoing Brandow’s sentiment somewhat, why should I jump on the hoary alyssum destruction train while someone else’s sirloins, hamburgers,and rump roasts are permitted to make waste of the places in which I normally find peace, tranquillity and serenity?
Larry Hudema, Grand Forks
