I think it's sad that our law enforcement officers have to be taken off of the task at hand to go 'babysit' an area because people don't use common sense and make foolish choices to go hiking in unfavorable weather conditions. But at least maybe life will be saved now.

I am glad something will finally be done about this trail. It's a beautiful hike and area, but too many unprepared people are heading out there. It's sad that so many tragedies have to happen for something to change, but I hope it will prevent more deaths and rescues.

They spent how much creating an all-access pathway down there, of course there's going to me more traffic, more issues, more trash, more rescues. What did they expect? It's just history repeating... So tragic!

I hope it reopens soon, though maybe they should post warnings on the trailhead sign. Last time I was up that way the sign just said dogs should be on leashes, no warnings about dangers to humans or animals. Wilderness areas always have their risks, but we shouldn't close off these beautiful lands to the public. All that can be done is to be sure users are fully informed of risks. This sounds like it was just a tragic accident- a kid out there with his family who lost his footing and fell (it wasn't a jump, according to witnesses). There have been deaths at the falls since at least the 1920s but they were rare; an easier trail means more visitors and more chance of accidents, so it's important for people to be fully informed about dangerous conditions such as shallow water and slipper rocks.

Reading the "Ramona" patch story, the kid was hiking w. his family. The last paragraph of this story talks about the kid falling and then goes on with the fire dept chief talking about the dangers of alcohol and partying. Honestly, these two statements in the same paragraph, with NO statement in the poway patch story about the kid being w. his family when it happened, "almost implies" that the kid was partying and drunk when he fell and died. That's the impression I got when I first read this.

I am sure the Forest Service was trying to prevent all the heat exhaustion cases that have occurred over the years when they made the recent trail "improvements". But...they made the trail SO easy and the Falls SO accessible that the traffic increased exponentially almost overnight. The odds of something really bad happening at the Falls simply followed suite. I am sure the added risk and additional problems at the Falls were unintended consequences of the trail improvements, but it would seem that just a little foresight should have recognized this! By lowering the risk of the hike in and out, the trail "improvements" simply transferred and magnified the risk at the Falls themselves. Now what? Permanent closure or figure out a way to make the "pain" of getting to and from the Falls closer to what it used to be?

That's it??? That is the solution? What about a Ranger? Come on "Enforcement" and "Government". I challenge you to come up with a better plan than to rob us of one of the few REALLY nice hike destinations in our County. Any type of hiking as a slight amount of risk and I like to believe that the people who go there ARE aware they aren't home sitting on their couches. Losing this young man was a terrible, sad, accident but when you leave your home to recreate there is always a chance something might happen. What do you want people to do? Sit home and play video games while you shut down anywhere they might get hurt. LAME!! SHAME!!

It should be clarified that this child, whose name was recently released, was HIKING WITH HIS FAMILY.

He was not some stupid du-mass drunk underage kid.

He was a 16-year old who probably got too close to the edge. At that age kids are too old to hold Daddy's hand, yet don't quite have the same sense of caution as an adult. My sympathy goes out to the family of this young man.

It is unfortunate that this area has to be closed. I hope some changes can be made to make it accessible to hikers again.

On Memorial Day weekend a few years back Dear Hubby & I hiked down there and had a beautiful time swimming in the pool at the foot of the cliffs. There was a young man at the top of the cliff who was preparing to jump into the water; measuring the distance with a very long measuring tape. We urged him to reconsider and he said that he had done this many times before. DH and I both got a VERY bad feeling and packed up & left. While hiking back up, a hiker jogged past us trying to get a signal on his cell phone. He told us that the guy had jumped and broken his back. I later read in the paper that he became a quadraplegic from the event. I nearly passed out from heat stroke on my way back up to the road as it was a very very hot day and I was very very out of shape.
I don't know if the government is really responsible for taking care of people who make bad choices, myself included. I do know that in these times health and safety resources are becoming more & more limited and we need to consider where these resources are most effective for the most people.

For what it is worth the UT reported it like this:
"He was hiking with family when he slipped and fell down a steep cliff, landing in the water, about 11:30 a.m., the county Medical Examiner’s Office said.

Other people at the popular swimming hole known as Devil’s Punchbowl placed the teen on a raft to get him out of the water. He was airlifted to a Ramona fire station and declared dead shortly after noon, officials said."

I don't think this was a drunk kid that feel but a horrible tragic accident. My prayers go out to his family.
http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/2011/jul/07/teen-fatal-cliff-fall-identified/

Yes, some articles were flat-out wrong. The problem with this trail is the combination of cliff diving, partiers, unprepared hikers (lack of water, sunscreen, proper clothing, experience, etc.), and social media getting the word out of a party spot. But the two key factors that I have seen are the dangerously loose terrain just to the north of the pool, and the blazing uphill afternoon heat on the way out, combined with all of the above.

My amateur recommended solutions?
1. Ban alcohol and enforce fines.
2. Make the loose gravelly terrain off limits, therefore making cliff diving off limits, preventing further erosion, and enforce fines.
3. Place warning signs at the trailheads and pool indicating how many people (and dogs) are airlifted and/or die and why, and how to prevent it.
4. Create a new trailhead on the west end, outside of the neighborhood, so that the locals aren't overwhelmed by the amount of parking and cars, *OR* start a fee-driven shuttle service to the trailhead (no parking) (might as well check for beer and sufficient water/clothing/sunscreen while they are boarding).
5. Require a CNF Adventure Pass at the new trailhead.
6. Require a permit, thus limiting the number of hikers per day. There were easily over 100 people there when I went last spring.

Implementing some of these will hopefully prevent tragedies and keep the tax-payers from paying the cost for regular airlifts out of the canyon. Don't close it.

Derek (100peaks.com)

The Forest Service is in the process of completing the paperwork to allow for the issuance of citations to people who enter the closed area.

This is a case of Darwinism at its finest. I am pretty heartless when it comes to stupidity, there are a bunch of idiots out there that need there gene pool cards removed.

@Joe St.Lucas.. He was 16 and with his family our friend Joe Meram did not die of any alcohol relations.. The santee patch writer of this story better re-phrase it or else there will be problems ... But our friend was a good boy and had very high hopes amd dreams and was a great person..

Hey you know what? maybe the government shouldn't have come out on Earth day with some big equipment and shovels, widening the paths and making it a hundred times easier for every nonathletic person drunk or not to access the pools! It's not the fault of everyone else there to coddle the boy and make sure he's being responsible. The Devil's Punchbowl has always been a enter at your own risk location, and it should stay that way. Not only did they ruin the whole trail for experienced hikers who come well prepared for it, they also removed much of the natural beauty the original trail entailed.

I feel bad for the loss of this young kid, but that one could have been avoided if they just let old dogs lie, and stop interfering with every possible outdoor activity we Californians have left.

While the Puchbowl is closed, send the U.S. Forest Service hierarchy down the trail and to the falls to clean up all the trash that has been left behind.

Now they have money to keep people from entering the falls from both sides. If they had just had someone down there during the summer. Maybe things wouldn't have gotten out of hand.

I'll get an update today on whether Cedar Creek Falls is in fact closed and when citations might start being issued. I do know that people are continuing to hike there and the Sheriff's Dept. reports no closure. However, Forest Service specifically told us it would be closed the day after the hiker's death.

To clarify, at the time of the hiker's death there were conflicting reports about whether he fell or jumped. I took the cautious route and used "fell" in all the early stories. There were so many people out there that day and eye witness reports can sometimes be mistaken, especially when viewing from so far below (80 feet). The medical examiner's report states that he fell and that is usually what reporters go by. The examination has been performed. His death has been determined accidental and the cause is "craniocervical blunt force injuries," which in laymen's terms means head and neck injuries, per the medical examiner's office.

I also want to clarify that there has never been any suggestion by authorities or on our part that the young hiker who fell to his death was drinking or partying. In the video interview with Saul Villagomez, battalion chief, Villagomez was referring generally to the situations that often exist at the falls and that seriously concern emergency responders in general. This was after a weekend of responses. He was trying to warn people not to do this, in general up there, because authorities continue to be so concerned.

Wait, When everything is said and done. The US Forest Service will require you to watch a video before you start down the roped off trail that leads to a waterfall that can be viewed behind a glass partition. At that time your tour group will required to pay $20 to board a bus driven by overweight park ranger.You will be returned to the parking lot were you paid $10 to park, plus the cost of your adventure pass. Do not forget to stop by the gift shop!!

Sheriff Gore speaks out on the tragedy--and proposes a potential solution for the future: deputize Sheriff's personnel to patrol the falls on federal lands, since the Forest Service isn't doing this. It would probably cost less than what the Sheriff is now spending on so many helicopter rescues while protecting public safety; details here: http://www.eastcountymagazine.org/node/6623

There's a lot of room between the extremes you describe and doing nothing. Yosemite is a place where people are allowed to hike to the base or top of waterfalls. There is no glass and no fee (other than a basic park entry fee), nor anything commercial other than a trail that's relatively safe and maintained. There are signs warning people about dangers at the top and rails in the most deadly places. I'm bothered by those who think it's wrong to make these beautiful places accessible to more people. San Diego has multiple falls. Why not have one accessible to folks who may be older or don't want to slip and slide down a trail like Three Sisters, while having others remain wilderness experiences for the rugged types? It's elitist to suggest that only the most physically fit and experienced hikers should have a chance to visit falls. As for the kid-bashing, not all teens go there to drink or be daredevils I hiked to the top of my first waterfall (in Yosemite) at 19; what a thrill and feeling of accomplishment. Our young people need more opportunities like that, not less. But we as adults also have a responsibility to make sure teens who go there are informed about the risks and rules, to help keep them safe without taking away the wonderful experience. Having a ranger to enforce rules against those who engage in dangerous activities should be done; a wise idea anyway to be sure no careless cigarette starts another Cedar Fire.

I like Mirianm's post. I've hiked many of the trails in Yosemite and enjoyed them all. But then Yosemite doesn't normally have the yahoo's that sometimes go down to the punch bowl. I would rather pay a few bucks to hike it and have a ranger just keeping things from getting out of hand than close it. ther was a ranger there two weeks ago for about 10 minutes. I asked her for a trash bag so I could pick up cans and she just walked away. Good thing one of the other hikers had a trash bag and with in 5 minutes I had about 95% of the trash picked up.

No one knows if alcohol was involved yet. when it says he was with his family he was with cousins not mom and pops so drinking could have been involved or not. Either way it's bs they are shutting down the hike long term because of this tragedy.