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Please Wear Your Headphones
No, this isn't yet another post regarding the great "Listening to Your iPod While Running" debate. This post is to address a trend I've been noticing out on the trail. I've seen this most commonly on Barr Trail though I've come across it elsewhere as well. I've been noticing a lot of people playing music on their phones with no headphones at all. This results in their music blaring from their phones' internal speakers for all to hear. This is not OK.
Last weekend I set out on a hike up Barr Trail to Barr Camp. I had just returned from a 10 day vacation in Mexico and was looking forward to reconnecting with the mountains. As such, I left my iPod at home so I could fully experience nature. You can imagine my disdain when, after a few minutes on the trail, the chirping birds are interrupted by music blaring from somewhere ahead of me. I realize that the source is coming towards me as the music gets louder and louder. The culprit finally passes me and heads down the trail (their music getting slowly more quiet as the distance between me and them increases).
This happened at least half a dozen times before I passed the cutoff to the Incline, and zero times after I passed the Incline cutoff, which leads me to believe that the offenders are all Incliners. Don't get me wrong, I have nothing against the Incline or those that hike it. I hike the incline myself frequently and have no problem sharing Barr Trail with people running down after reaching the top of the Incline.
I simply wish to request that, if you're going to listen to music during your hike, please respect everyone else on the trails and wear your headphones. If I don't want to listen to my music, I absolutely don't want to listen to yours.
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Comment
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Comment by Keith B. Ives on May 22, 2012 at 7:18pm
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I agree with you on this one, and it is up to the community to police it. I was on the incline on Sunday and watched a group of boys cutting up from Barr Parking lot through the newly repaired social trail. Later, one of them started carving his name on a board near the bail out point. I stopped the boys and talked to them. Tried to explain the work that has been put into the area so that it can be opened for everyone to enjoy. They got defensive & made excuses, but that's not the point.
We all want to enjoy our time and not deal with the people around us. However, I think it is also up to us to continue to stop people, explain the ethics of use, and preserve the experiences for everyone. Sometimes you have to interrupt your outing to help create some community standards - it will help preserve your experiences in the future.
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Comment by Katie Benzel on May 22, 2012 at 5:44pm
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Listening to headphones too loud to be aware of your surroundings isn't OK either on such a busy trail! :)
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Comment by Michael Everson on May 22, 2012 at 5:43pm
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I was running down Barr Trail last year with a buddy of mine. As we approached a young lady I yelled out "on your left! Nothing happened. 25 feet behind her I yell "on your left!" Again, nothing. I am right on top of her and yell out "ON YOUR LEFT!"--no recognition at all. As I pass her she is terrified that I came up on her without warning. I said to my buddy "If I was a bear, she'd be dead." She had the headphones on at full blast. I could hear the song as I ran by.
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It's really not OK. I even got caught behind someone who was doing that during the Ascent in 2010 between Barr Camp and A-Frame.
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Comment by Tim Bergsten on May 22, 2012 at 2:41pm
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Good blog, Nicholas. I'm with you. I much prefer the subtle - and sometimes, wild - sounds of Mother Nature when I hit the trail.
© 2024 Created by Tim Bergsten.
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