I agree with you, Bob. I thought their 24-hour rule of past years was reasonable. It's pretty clear that the rule-breakers have brought all of this on.

WanderingJim: not so great news, as I don't see that they have actually rescinded the rule. ...edit: I guess the wording DOES allow JMT hikers to exit for a resupply.

There are a few ways they could better enforce the rule. Rangers stamping a permit with date and location each time it's checked might help ensure people stay ON their trip rather than taking several days off. A high-tech solution: put a date/time stamp at each trail head -- like an old-fashioned job time-clock -- for hikers to "check-out" and "check-in". ...Or maybe require hikers to log their own locations on their hike -- no log when ranger-checked would invalidate a permit. The point here is that there are various ways to stop the rule-breakers.

Last edited by Steve C; 02/01/20 10:06 PM.