CNN Story about Marijuana in Sierras . . .

Is this an issue for back country backpackers out West? Ever run into something like this? Could one of the "sources" that lead enforcement to the locations be backpackers?

I haven't read the story but it is really old news. I worked in forestry for over 30 years in the western states and for most of that time, we needed to be careful when working in good MJ growing country. A number of my colleagues were shot at and stories were circulating about people being killed. Meth labs in the woods were another issue we needed to deal with. The people who grow weed or cook meth are really not very nice people.

I'd speculate that a good place for growing mj on federal property would be as far as possible from places that are popular with backpackers or anybody else. Perhaps clear-cuts might be good, especially given desirability of sunlight.

I spent a few days with a guy who claimed to have previously worked as a guard for an mj grower in northern Calif in the late 1980s. My impression is, that the site was at a relatively low elevation. I don't know who owned the property.

According to him, he was hired in part due to his ability and willingness to use a firearm in the line of duty. He claimed there was a conflict with local indians & had various other stories that were perhaps unbelievable and somewhat entertaining.

In arid areas, everyone knows the perenial streams. The growers tend to just be further uphill in the rougher, brushier parts from the popular visitor sites. If you come to a obviously closed place on a typical creekside, fisherman's trail, there may be a reason for that unprofessional, overbuilt closure.

If you start seeing plants in a creek bottom, don't stop and look. Ignore them and keep moving.

I don't see a link to the story but it's nothing new. Heed all advice and avoid pot growers. It ain't like it was in the late 60's or 70's when a few plants were grown by people that would kill you. Now it's big biz and ties to organized crime etc. A lot of them have automatic weapons and will leave you to rot and fertilize their crop.

Not that some people in the 60's or 70's wouldn't kill you. But they would hit you with a flower.

I live in the Santa Cruz Mountains above the SF Bay Area. Raids by federal agents are conducted all the time. We have one famous trail here, the Skyline to The Sea Trail. Alot of pot farms are located along or near this trail. Most are from Mexican Nationals and most likely tied to gangs. Raids usually have gunfire and deaths. One was shot and killed whilst the other two escaped into the mountains near Castle Rock State Park. Most rangers in National Parks pack heat due to the threat of crime and most of them have basically turned into Peace Officers in the front country. Sad.

Any of the other Canadian hikers here have the first thought of "hey, this could reduce my pack weight..."?

I was backpacking in the Kalalou(spelling?) valley on the coast of Kawaii a number of years ago. I walked right into the middle of a grow operation and found myself surrounded by hundreds of small Marijuana plants.

Really spooked me. I immediately retraced my steps and got out of there.