If you haven’t already read it, sounds like you’d certainly enjoy Desert Solitaire by Edward Abbey.

I’m so sorry to hear about your terrible experience with both the State Patrol as well as the Rangers in Colorado. I was a permanent California Park Ranger, and currently work as a Code Enforcement Officer in Colorado.

I have just a few comments here. First, if you were pulled over by a State Trooper without probable cause, and it sounds like that was the case, that officer is guilty of violating your civil rights. He should have immediately let you go after he determined that he was in error looking at your registration and apologized. Legally he did not have authority to detain you for one minute further, and keeping you there longer to run your DL was ILLEGAL!

Secondly, let me next apologize for “ColoardoLE”. He is correct that park rangers do not “fail police exams”; in fact some are held to higher expectations and education requirements than many cops. When I was hired permanently as a ranger, Bachelor’s Degrees in Park Management or Forestry was required. I addition, I had spent years working seasonally for the National Park Service and as a Firefighter for the US Forest Service. I believe that most police agencies require a high school diploma; some require a two-year degree. Anyway, for ColoradoLE to insinuate that you did anything wrong is more a testament of a closed minded, biased, inwardly angry man. Clearly he has no idea of the cultural and artistic diversity that comes from California and other liberal-thinking western states. Also, I congratulate you on bringing your poor dog to CO for treatment. I would walk to the ends of the earth to help my dog, your dog or even officer JerkWad’s dog. Our animals are members of our family and deserve just as much respect and consideration as any other being. ColoradoLE can take comfort in his own, bitter little world.

The truth is, yes rangers, as well as cops, can have attitude problems. Perhaps your ranger was misinformed, or was just having a bad day. None the less, rangering is much different than policing. Rangers realize that park visitors are their customers, and they want them to return. They must deal with park visitors, and the public, with sensitivity and an open mind. You cannot walk into any situation with a chip on the shoulder or with a pre-conceived attitude before gathering the facts. THAT’S what separates rangers from cops. By the way, I would have contested that ticket if I were you, and filed a written complaint against the ranger with the attitude who threaten to arrest you.

I think it’s important to have sympathy and compassion for these folks (the ranger and ColoradoLE). They live in angry worlds and hate and disgust for non-Colorado natives is part of their existence. Be thankful that you live in a place where it’s acceptable to live and let live.

Best wishes to you and your puppy.

Bryan and I have never had problems with rangers, in fact, I found that they went out of their way to help in many situations….all around great to deal with….very personable, friendly and *PROFESSIONAL*. However this ONE TIME, wow….it was shocking. Two of them at once park in New Orleans. They have a name you know….’Power Rangers’. Yeah, that pretty much sums them up. There’s always one in a bunch, looks like you attracted a similar breed on your site….too bad.

Fighting crime on the internet….well I guess they’re more harmless that way!

OK, all joking aside… I say.. WTF!

Like any person with a job, some people are stricktly by the book. This morning I got a call from the sheriff’s department (i’m on call this weekend) because they were having a problem. Turns out, that on weekends, we are told NOT to deal with these specific issues because of security. Now I could have played it by the books and left this officer hanging, but instead I worked with her and got things working. I went outside of standard procedures to resolve a problem.

Not everyone does that. Not everyone is flexible.

We who know you and Rene know that you are two of the most mellow, non-trouble makers around. we know that you like to make friends and avoid conflict. It’s clear that the couple who complained didn’t quite understand why you were in the wrong site, and it’s clear that the ranger felt not only pressure from the campers, but she was one of the inflexible ones.

I’d ignore ColoradoLE’s post. I’m sure he deals with rude people all the time and just assumes that everyone is the same. His attitude seems very isolationist, and he clearly feels that removing tourists / drivers from other states would make his life much easier. What he fails to see is how without tourists / visitors, the economy of CO would tumble quite a bit, and those extra LE jobs wouldn’t be needed.

Good luck with your travels… and after hearing these stories… do you really want to move to CO?

Seriously you guys seem to be picking “Hard core conservative Republican states”… is there something you want to tell me?

You damned hippies! With your long hair and your rock and roll..

Sheesh, with so much to do in Colorado one would think you’d have better things to do.

Heads up, we are back in your beautiful state and are buying property. Hopefully the positive energy we are bringing to Colorado will displace all the anger you’re spreading around. Sad. Very sad.