March, 2004
Backcountry Snowsports Alliance Calls Nova Guides' Proposal Inappropriate
Nova Guides, a permitted snowmobile outfitter guide operating from Camp Hale, proposed an increase from 1,000 to 10,000 permitted snowmobile user days per season on the White River National Forest. The Backcountry Snowsports Alliance told the Forest Service that this increase was inappropriate due to safety concerns, an overtaxing of the already crowded Vail Pass Winter Recreation Area, degradation to non-motorized winter recreation, lynx issues, and conflict with the Forest Plan.
Safety problems include an increased probability of collisions due to a 10-fold increase in an area heavily used by motorized users currently. Vail Pass is already crowded, and the addition of 9,000 additional snowmobile days will require additional grooming and enforcement of use patterns. In addition, this may discourage private use of the area due to the poor condition of the roads and the large numbers of snowmobiles on the trails.
The proposed increase would also adversely affect non-motorized users including backcountry skiers, snowshoers, and snowboarders. For example, people skiing near the Jackal and Fowler-Hilliard Huts would encounter more snowmobiles, which would decrease the quality of the recreation experience. In less than good visibility here (white-out conditions from snow and wind, or flat light) there may be safety problems also. The same problems could plague the Camp Hale area (since there are few trees there), making it undesirable for non-motorized use.
For example, if the increase in guided tours was increased even to 2000 trips per season, the increase in snowmobiles on trails averages to about 10 snowmobiles per day (if one assumes the majority of the season occurs between Christmas and March 31, that's approximately 100 days). However, it is unlikely that this will be evenly spread among the 7 days of the week. There will be weekend spikes as well as seasonal spikes (holidays and spring break). A more realistic picture suggests that most of those guided trips would occur during the 14 weekends during that period. If 75 percent of the guided trips occurred during the weekends, and 1000 additional days were granted, that adds up to 27 more snowmobiles on the trails each weekend day. If approximately 3 groups of 8-10 snowmobiles pass by a snowshoer or skier, this degrades the experience immensely. The Forest Service must consider the consequences of this before allowing any increase in the number of permitted outfitter days.
The proposed increase in snowmobile use would violate the forest plan. Routes that the snowmobiles would be allowed on are in management prescription 5.5 which according to the Forest Plan, "provide safe travel connections between large blocks of forested landscapes across the forest. They provide security from intensive recreational and other human disturbances. There is light or minimal impact from human use in these areas." (White River Revised Forest Plan (Forest Plan) at 3-70, 3-71)
The increased snowmobile use of routes near or leading to Camp Hale would likely lead to an increase use of these machines off-route. That would further disrupt non-motorized recreation and compact more snow, which would be detrimental to lynx. Over-snow vehicles are restricted to designated routes in prescription 5.5 area (Forest Plan at 3-71), but the Forest Service is unable to fully enforce this, as it does not have the personnel or money to effectively address violations over a large area. Thus violations occur regularly. Permitting a large increase in winter motorized use would likely result in an increase in these violations. This increase in off-route use would reduce the quality of the recreational experience for non-motorized users.
The proposed increase could harm lynx. Any increased off-route use would also degrade lynx habitat, as stated in the Canada Lynx Conservation Assessment and Strategy (CLCAS; Ruedigger et al, 2000):
Widespread human activity (snowshoeing, cross-country skiing, snowmobiling, snow cats) may lead to patterns of snow compaction that make it possible for competing predators such as coyotes and bobcats to occupy lynx habitat through the winter, reducing its value to and even possibly excluding lynx. In order to maintain a competitive advantage for lynx, it may be necessary to minimize or even preclude snow compacting activities in and around quality snowshoe hare habitat. To not do so may lead to the elimination of lynx, or preclude the ability to re-establish them, in these landscapes.
The existing heavy recreational use of this area arguably violates the intent of prescription 5.5, which is to provide habitat security for wide-ranging wildlife, especially lynx and wolverine. But with the proposed increase in snowmobiling, the prescription would surely be violated. Note that the National Forest Management Act requires that all activities comply with the relevant forest plan.
Therefore, the proposal to increase snowmobiling, snowcat and dogsled tours in the Camp Hale area by a factor of ten cannot legally be implemented. The Backcountry Snowsports Alliance recommended that the NOVA Guides Permit not be approved. The Forest Service response will be posted as it becomes available.
1. Both species are mentioned in the Desired Conditions section of prescription 5.5. See Forest Plan at 3-70.