MountainJeep
July 27th, 2004, 08:59 AM
Hey all!
I was able to attend the kick off meeting for the Process of deciding what to do about the Left Hand Canyon OHV Area last night at the Boulder Ranger Station.
The "Stakeholder" meeting was well attended by most interested parties including:
Homeowners
Southern Rockies Conservation Alliance
Trailridge Runners 4x4
Law Enforcement
Mountain Bikers
Motorcyclists
James Creek Watershed Board members
The meeting was called to outline the NEPA process for those interested parties, and to form a list of Issues for the area.
I will try to give you a quick summary of issues and MY TAKE on the way things are going and the direction the process may be taking:
#1 Homeowners are sick and tired of people being disrespectful, damage to their immediate property, noise, and the danger of shooting. While they are very vocal about these issues, they are also very much open to the public using this area for recreation. They are not advocating closing the forest or restricting access. They are interested in striking a balance. I think we have allies in the homeowners.
#2 The watershed in general has been affected by an increase in sedimentation. This has been caused by the incrteased erosion as a result of devegetation through the action of off road travel, fire, and planned roads. There may be some data out there, and I will try to get my hands on it and interpret it for everyone. The upshot is that the amount of sediment being contributed by the Left Hand Area is minor in comparison to the fires and runoff from mining operations.
#3 The area is and Urban Forest, and as such recieves the 2nd highest usage in the nation. Unfortunately it is #25 on the list for annual funding. It doesnt take a mathmatician to figure out there is a gap between impact by users, and the ability for the forest service to manage. They acknowledge this, and boy do I feel for them.
What can happen to the area?
1) it can be shut down entirely (not likely)
2) it can be left as is (not likely)
3) a balance can be found by which the homeowners have their peace, and the users get a great, safe, place to recreate (This will happen, but we need to help drive the process)
What I see as a likely solution...
Given the input of the interested parties, and the apparent similarities of hoped for outcome amoung the interested parties i think if we all work hard to help the process through our comments and participation we can keep Carnage Canyon, and the Left Hand Area not only open for use, but improved.
I think that the way things are headed that the USFS is interested in better defining the OHV Area which currently consists of a series of numbered trails with outlets and entrances which affect the homeowners, and many user made trails which are not recognized by the USFS. When I say better defining I =mean setting an offical boundary for the area, and establishing better routes for users within that area. It will mean closing and rerouting existing roads that have the potential to impact both the environment and the homeowners. But, it will also mean making some user made routes offical routes, and potentially creating NEW routes to better serve users.
The end result will limit access to the area so that users will not be as likely to unintentionally harass private land owners. The USFS has talked about providing an improved staging area for parking and gathering. They have also talked about improving reoutes for ATV's, motocross, hikers, and 4wheelers.
Think of the area as a series of marked trails which users MUST stay on. Different trails for different activities, and some for mixed use. The motocross guys have jumps and berms on their trails. the 4x4's have sweet rock crawling trials, hikers and mountain bikers have singletracks. Again everything is well marked for each use type, and trail maps describe the inteded use and provide acurate routes.
Access is resrticed to a few points of entry/egress, and the trails are routed in a such a manner as to keep the noisy (high impact) recreation activity away from homeowners.
Thats MY TAKE in a nutshell
I would encourage all of you to submitt your feelings for the potential use of this area to the Boulder Ranger district. if you want a rock crawling park, then you damned well better ask for it! You might just get it.
As always remember that a balance must be struck between our wanting to use an area, the protection of the environment, user safety, and the sanity of private landowners.
yo!:beer:
I was able to attend the kick off meeting for the Process of deciding what to do about the Left Hand Canyon OHV Area last night at the Boulder Ranger Station.
The "Stakeholder" meeting was well attended by most interested parties including:
Homeowners
Southern Rockies Conservation Alliance
Trailridge Runners 4x4
Law Enforcement
Mountain Bikers
Motorcyclists
James Creek Watershed Board members
The meeting was called to outline the NEPA process for those interested parties, and to form a list of Issues for the area.
I will try to give you a quick summary of issues and MY TAKE on the way things are going and the direction the process may be taking:
#1 Homeowners are sick and tired of people being disrespectful, damage to their immediate property, noise, and the danger of shooting. While they are very vocal about these issues, they are also very much open to the public using this area for recreation. They are not advocating closing the forest or restricting access. They are interested in striking a balance. I think we have allies in the homeowners.
#2 The watershed in general has been affected by an increase in sedimentation. This has been caused by the incrteased erosion as a result of devegetation through the action of off road travel, fire, and planned roads. There may be some data out there, and I will try to get my hands on it and interpret it for everyone. The upshot is that the amount of sediment being contributed by the Left Hand Area is minor in comparison to the fires and runoff from mining operations.
#3 The area is and Urban Forest, and as such recieves the 2nd highest usage in the nation. Unfortunately it is #25 on the list for annual funding. It doesnt take a mathmatician to figure out there is a gap between impact by users, and the ability for the forest service to manage. They acknowledge this, and boy do I feel for them.
What can happen to the area?
1) it can be shut down entirely (not likely)
2) it can be left as is (not likely)
3) a balance can be found by which the homeowners have their peace, and the users get a great, safe, place to recreate (This will happen, but we need to help drive the process)
What I see as a likely solution...
Given the input of the interested parties, and the apparent similarities of hoped for outcome amoung the interested parties i think if we all work hard to help the process through our comments and participation we can keep Carnage Canyon, and the Left Hand Area not only open for use, but improved.
I think that the way things are headed that the USFS is interested in better defining the OHV Area which currently consists of a series of numbered trails with outlets and entrances which affect the homeowners, and many user made trails which are not recognized by the USFS. When I say better defining I =mean setting an offical boundary for the area, and establishing better routes for users within that area. It will mean closing and rerouting existing roads that have the potential to impact both the environment and the homeowners. But, it will also mean making some user made routes offical routes, and potentially creating NEW routes to better serve users.
The end result will limit access to the area so that users will not be as likely to unintentionally harass private land owners. The USFS has talked about providing an improved staging area for parking and gathering. They have also talked about improving reoutes for ATV's, motocross, hikers, and 4wheelers.
Think of the area as a series of marked trails which users MUST stay on. Different trails for different activities, and some for mixed use. The motocross guys have jumps and berms on their trails. the 4x4's have sweet rock crawling trials, hikers and mountain bikers have singletracks. Again everything is well marked for each use type, and trail maps describe the inteded use and provide acurate routes.
Access is resrticed to a few points of entry/egress, and the trails are routed in a such a manner as to keep the noisy (high impact) recreation activity away from homeowners.
Thats MY TAKE in a nutshell
I would encourage all of you to submitt your feelings for the potential use of this area to the Boulder Ranger district. if you want a rock crawling park, then you damned well better ask for it! You might just get it.
As always remember that a balance must be struck between our wanting to use an area, the protection of the environment, user safety, and the sanity of private landowners.
yo!:beer: