How many people can you see on the edge of the cliffs in this picture of Devil’s Doorway on the East Bluff?

Recently a woman fell while hiking up the Angels Landing trail in Zion National Park, Utah. There is an article here. As you often do on the web, I found myself reading a related post suggesting the park should post better signs and fill in gaps in the chains folks use to work their way up the trail. In addition the writer suggested hiking permits as a way to limit use as well. All interesting ideas. But would they help?

Each year it seems at least one hiker falls from the cliffs at Devil’s Lake State Park. The East Bluff & West Bluff trails rise some 400-500 feet above the lake. Most actual drops are much less than that however, many under 50ft. A 50 foot cliff is still more than enough to kill, and yet a short enough distance as to give some folks a false sense of security. The overviews, cliffs and rock ledges are open. The drops are shear. There are no rails. There are areas where one errant step could send a hiker to their death. I can’t help but feel a bit queasy some days when I see young children running and playing unattended near the cliffs. Still, from my experience and knowledge of the park over the years I would guess posting more signs or putting up railings would do nothing to prevent those occasional tragic falls at Devil’s Lake or any park for that matter.

First we have to simply realize that the number of falls compared to the number of users is so small that we can already assume 99.9% of park users get the message and use caution. Occasionally a couple falls happen quite close together and can make it seem as if there is a sudden real problem when there really isn’t one. Sometimes accidents are simply unavoidable by any action other than simply not hiking the bluffs. Those who do fall are often victims of tragic accidents or situations that no sign or railing would have stopped. On the rare cases when someone was actually pushing their limits, it’s doubtful any sign or railing would have stopped them either. From a practical stand point, railings and chains can’t cover every foot of dangerous cliff. We can’t prevent every accident.  We will never stop falls from high places. Try as we might, and with all the good intentions in the world we simply can’t protect everyone from risk and personal responsibility. What we can do is keep educating our children, encouraging folks to get outdoors and certainly, remind them to be careful out there. After all no matter who you wish to hold responsible, in the end you’re still hiking at your own risk.

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