You said:Quote:
Originally Posted by rangieman
RonQuote:
Originally Posted by rangieman
You said:Quote:
Originally Posted by rangieman
RonQuote:
Originally Posted by rangieman
This was bound to happen one day and it has unfortunatley. What's the point of having these wilderness areas if they're burnt to a sinder because the firefighters can't get in and combat bushfires.
As a taxpayer, I should be entitled to go wherever, do whatever and see whatever I choose without confronting locked gates, fees, idiot greenies, etc.. So much for a democracy :(
Like Justin said, the only wilderness is between a greenies ears, that and bong resin :D
Trav
Wasn't Ray (Hiline) locked inside the Alpine National Park a few years ago?
Yes he was.Quote:
Originally Posted by 84RR
It happened in the Blue Mountains to myself and a few others a few years back.
We'd gone into a really nice place, found an open area with a cattlemen's hut. It poured during the night but we were snug with a fire going.
The next day when we left, someone had dragged a bloody great log across the access track blocking our egress. The would have needed more than a 4Wd to do it so we suspect it was the NPWS. We had to winch it out of the way to get out. There was no other way, even if we had back tracked to the campsite. When we checked around, we found that there had been a locked gate at that location but that someone had oxy cut the gate off and dragged it into the bush (not us!).
When we had gone in the previous day we had seen the motorbike tracks.
Ron
Greenies dont lock gates. Lack of funds do. If parks cant maintain a track usually it is closed. As is the case with some tracks in Vic they get to the point of being a public liability claim waiting to happen.Quote:
Originally Posted by aquarangie
Easier for parks to just lock the gate and throw away the key so to speak.
Bugger the national parks, the pollies need to spend there money on there pay rise, goverment cars, expensive dinners, overseas holidays while you and I pay for it with taxes and that lovely thing called the GST :mad: :mad: :mad:
Pollies are the scum of the earth full stop. I feel better now.
Trav
Sorted! Thanks Chris. I misread your intent. :)Quote:
Originally Posted by rangieman
Ron
Some people are missing the point. Getting 4wd clubs involved isnt to restrict access, christ it cant be more restricted than it is.
If people dont want to join a club thats their choice, but as phoenix said utilising 4wd clubs as an existing network is an excellent way to keep tracks open and maintained, for free! There are literally hundreds of 4wd clubs accross the country, all of these 4wd clubs would be more than willing to organise working bee days to help maintian tracks and keep them clear. Simply using the tracks keeps them clear. The locked gates should be removed and then 4wd clubs should be able to put their hand up to help look after that section of track.
More thought needs to be put into it and the NPWS resourced need to be better used. A locked gate at the begining of every track isnt the answer. Matt
Ok, someone correct me if i'm wrong...
But the NPWS is a government department and all the land marked as national parks is owned by the government, therefore is owned by the people (the government simply being our representatives, of sorts).
So why is it that our own land can be locked up and none of us be allowed to use it, see it and enjoy it?
NPWS rangers spend most of their time holed up in offices in the middle of Sydney applying for funding because the NPWS is underfunded. And because of this lack of funding, tracks can't be maintained. But would the tracks be opened if NPWS could afford to maintain them? I'm guessing probably not, because as soon as the tracks are opened it leaves the NPWS wide open to public liability law suits (and lots of them!)
As for the fire trails being opened, not only would they provide better access for fire crews, it would provide more options for missing persons searches (like the recent episode in the Blue mountains)
I don't disagree with getting 4wd clubs involved with maintenance and the like and I would happily join in with the maintenance myself (being a non-club member), but there needs to be a simpler way to manage the key to these tracks (eventhough I totally disagree with the tracks being locked in the first place!) for people like myself, and quite a few others on this forum, who don't want to go through all the club politics etc. (as michael2 posted earlier)
anyway, that's my 2 bob worth...
cheers,
bryce