Fluorescent travesty

Climbing aficionados are perpetuating an environmental and aesthetic travesty. Besides trash, debris and tire tracks, they leave rock formations permanently scarred, chalked and riddled with holes. Those of us who enjoy Joshua Tree National Park for its spectacular scenery are forced to view boulder piles covered with shouting people in fluorescent-colored clothes. Public lands administrators must set aside specifically demarcated areas for these activities, so the rest of us can appreciate nature unadorned.

Marcus Deleon

New York