Colorado Pot Growers Potential Danger to Hikers

In the Denver Post, Kirk Mitchell writes about the infiltration of national forests by international drug cartels, noting not only that hikers risk stumbling across the operations, but that grower chemicals may be polluting wilderness streams. “People hiking in national forests need to be aware of several red flags, including trails formed where there shouldn’t be any, as well as tortilla wrappers and beer, Spam and tuna cans left on them. Also, people should not take the time to take pictures or record GPS positions. They should quickly hike away and call authorities,’ [U.S. Forest Service Agent Michael] Skinner said.”