The Wilderness Sportsman

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WASHINGTON — U.S. Forest Service officials and experts agreed Monday that forest managers must take into account the complex relationship between global climate change and increased wildfires when setting policy.

Ann Bartuska, Forest Service deputy chief for research and development, said Earth’s climate is changing and will continue to do so for many decades, and that decisions made today by resource managers will have implications through the next century.

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BANFF, ALTA. — A well-beaten trail leads to an overpass eight metres above the Trans-Canada Highway in Banff, where vehicles whiz beneath at a rate of 24,000 a day in the busy summer tourist season.

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A proposal to charge visitors $25 to soak in the view from Olympic National Park’s Hurricane Ridge or drive to the giant trees of the park’s Hoh Rain Forest is triggering protests from neighboring communities.

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To many in attendance, telling people where they can drive their all-terrain vehicles is the same as telling them where they can hunt.

“Every time I’ve run into a Forest Service person, whether I was out hunting or just riding my ATV, I get hassled,” said Mike Yelinek of Clovis. “More and more, I feel like it’s us against them.”

I wonder why?

More:

“He said, ‘I heard there was a meeting last night and they’re going to shut down all the roads,’ ” Lockwood said. “I had to tell him, ‘No, that’s not true.’ “

We see alot of this sort of thing all over the outdoor map. It plagues certain forums on the internet and fosters even more misinformation.

The truth is, most off-road riders don’t want roadless areas or area without motors. Groups like the Blue Ribbon Coalition even want rules for protected wilderness removed.

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As expected there have been numerous changes including closing some trails to motorized vehicle use, while opening others. Over 800 miles of trails are open year round in the Jefferson Division while in the Rocky Mountain Ranger District there are 88 miles of road and 16 miles of trail open to motorized vehicles.

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The settlement came in a lawsuit brought by conservation groups opposing plans to log 190 acres of the Deschutes National Forest outside Sisters, Ore., that burned in the Black Crater fire.