=?iso-8859-15?Q?Tekkie=AE?= writes:

I have seen pictures of cable rail balusters that seem to be spaced quite
far apart. I thought horizontal balusters were forbidden because kids could
climb on them. Then I saw this this pix with the cables and I thought I
could fit my leg through so a kid could certainly get through and fall. This
house was built on a CA mountainside.

Canadian or Californian?

What am I missing?

Some reference (e.g URL) that provides enough information from which one
can draw a useful inference.

FYI - A baluster is vertical, by definition. In a cable rail, the vertical
elements are known as posts or pickets.

Typically, the horizontal cables are no more than 3" apart, but this
depends on the applicable building codes (often not enforced in rural
settings).