All Deserve Chance to Enjoy Park

* Re “Caspers Park a Ghost of Its Former Self” (April 8): I read (your) article concerning the state of Caspers Wilderness Park with great interest.

As an Orange County resident, I often use the county park system for recreational activities. On each occasion that I visit Caspers Wilderness Park, I am delighted that such an open expanse of public land still exists; on the other hand, the absence of fellow hikers always makes it painfully clear that in a county increasingly motivated by a bottom-line contribution to the public good, Caspers does not pay its way.

The ban on persons under 18 from the park effectively restricts usage to all but a small percentage of residents in an overwhelmingly family-oriented county. As development across virgin tracts of land continues at an astonishing rate, wilderness areas like Caspers become all the more important as places for revitalization with nature. In fact, Caspers is the only true wilderness park in the county where one can hike to a rise and not be looking over a sea of terra-cotta roofs or into the back garden of a homeowner whose property backs onto the “park.”

True, the potential for mountain lion attacks does exist in all wilderness areas. Yet wildlife sightings are becoming more common in developments that border rural areas. If I am accosted by a bear (e.g., Samson) in my swimming pool, whom do I sue: the county, my homeowners association or the developer? Obviously, not all decisions are based solely on the possibility of financial repercussions resulting from wildlife encounters.

Perhaps the time has come to throw open the gates of Caspers so the next generation of Orange County residents can enjoy this spectacular park.

With Orange County in severe financial crisis, the temptation to sell Caspers always exists. To do so on the grounds of public disinterest would be a shameful tragedy.

VINCENT BAILEY

Orange