Backpacker magazine originally commissioned me to write 800 words about this trip to Organ Pipe NM, and then reneged. The editor claimed that what I saw was not possible, the government would not declare the backcountry safe when it is not. Also, they only want to publish upbeat articles.
TrailGroove had much the same reaction and wanted me to cut some of the darker scenes in this story. I wouldn’t do that, and so they took a pass also.
BackpackingLight, to their credit, published it without trying to sugarcoat anything. They did turn off the comments section though. You can read the article here.