LA mts becoming dangerous to hike in due to pot farm

Mexican Drug Gangs Taking Over U.S. Public Lands
Monday, March 01, 2010
By Alicia A. Caldwell and Manuel Valdes, Associated Press

http://www.alipac.us//ftopic-189891-0-days0-orderasc-.html

http://www.alipac.us/article-4972--0-0.html

I have a personal interest in these stories of pot growing in the Ca mountains as i have hiked and backpacked in a lot of those mts, though much of my trips in the local LA/Scal ranges was way back in the 70s' ,and most of my sierra jaunts were done in the 90's.

Back in the 70's i hiked all over the San Gabriels and San Berdoo mt ranges and often in remote areas deep in those mts. back then then there were no large scale pot farms anywhere or i would have stumbled upon them, and likely would have been nabbed and shot.

Back then the local mts were safe and free of Mex/cartel pot farms, LA/Scal was a mostly clean region with few immigrants and few slums, no frwy graffiti, a land of clean tidy suburbs, and CA schools and Gov't were still top notch. U could hike in safety all over the local mts and only had to worry about ticks,, sunburn, tree snags, blisters and not worry about stumbling upon a trip wired pot farm guarded by armed Michocan gangsta/thugs who could cut u down deep in the mts and make u dissappear without a trace.

That was LA back then, now it is much more dangerous to hike into the hills unless u stick to a few popular crowded trails and don't stray off the beaten path.