January 2003
Steamboat Springs
Friends of the Routt Backcountry Update
As we go into the winter of 2002/2003, we would like to let you know what is happening on various parts of the Routt National Forest with regards to snowmobile/skier issues. The most important thing human-powered recreationists have as leverage when we talk about these issues to the Routt Powder Riders (snowmobile club), the Winter Task Force, or the Forest Service is the number of people who are concerned about the non-motorized experience in our area. Whether you have certain ideas about the areas in question or whether you have had conflicts with snowmobilers while skiing or snowshoeing, we need to know. If you feel inclined to write to the Forest Service directly, that has an even bigger impact, but please let us know you've written them so we can compile our information and coordinate our efforts.
Rabbit Ears Pass and Buffalo Pass
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Soda Mountain: We recently lost an appeal of the Forest Service decision to allow Blue Sky West (Powder Cats) to almost double their user days on Buffalo Pass and to build a snowcat road from the bottom of Dad's up onto Soda Mountain in order to shorten their cat time up onto Soda and to increase their use in that area. We feel strongly that this road will attract many snowmobiles up onto Soda and they will then be very tempted to return to Dry Lake by descending the west ridge of Soda which will take them into the main drainage of Soda Creek which is part of the new non-motorized area called Bear Tree Ridge. Interestingly enough, the snowmobile club agreed with us that this road would pose a serious threat to the non-motorized area. The Forest Service did not agree with our combined objections and approved the special use permit for 5 years (3 years for the road). We really aren't sure where to go from here with this issue. The idea of filing suit has been seriously discussed. If we do this, we will have to be very thorough in putting our case together.
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At our first Routt Winter Task Force meeting of the year last month, Kim Vogel, USFS District Ranger, announced that the Forest Service is planning to begin a study of winter uses that could ultimately change the designation of our non-motorized areas from "suggested use" to actual closures and regulated boundaries. Exactly how much of the Forest would be included in this study is under discussion. It might happen just on Rabbit Ears and Buff or it might include North Routt or even the entire Routt National Forest. This change to a stronger designation than "suggested use" is something we have been pushing for many years, so Kim's announcement could be taken as a good step in the right direction. That it has taken this long to get started is frustrating. She estimates that the study will take this winter and the next to complete, which seems like a long way off when you observe the continued increase in snowmobile traffic in the non-motorized areas of Rabbit Ears Pass. One problem with any change in designation is that the increased cost of monitoring and patrol that the Forest Service would need to budget for enforcement does not seem to be forthcoming from Congress. To pay the extra costs, The Forest Service is considering something called "Fee-Demo" which basically means they would try to charge all users, motorized and non-motorized alike, at the trailheads. We would rather see the money come from Congress and our taxes.
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The Forest Service, with help from Routt Powder Riders and Friends of the Routt Backcountry, has begun to put up the suggested use boundary signs on Rabbit Ears. The number of snowmobiles crossing those boundaries seems to increase each year. The snowmobile club recently made a trip to Denver to talk to the clubs down there, to explain the situation to them and to enlist their support in spreading the word to please observe the suggested use to front range riders. It will be interesting to see if there are any improvements from their efforts this winter.
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In December 2002 Kim Vogel announced that the Forest Service had decided to add a non-motorized buffer area near Mount Werner in the area called the Toutes. This is something that a lot of people have been yearning for in the last several years and which we have argued heatedly for in Task Force meetings for the past two years. This new buffer (which was actually on a couple of previous maps, but was taken off at the insistence of the snowmobile club) is shown on the map at all trailheads. The snowmobile club has already called us and asked for a meeting to change the boundary. Talk about needing support, this is a tough issue.
North Routt
In the past few months there has been quite a bit of controversy centered around Hahn's Peak, an historical village north of Steamboat, since the villagers learned that Steamboat Lake State Parks, located across the street from the village, purchased a strip of property running along side of the village for a snowmobile trail. This was done without informing the villagers or involving human-powered recreationists in this decision. Backcountry skiers are affected by this trail, because it will lead an increased amount of traffic along the base of Hahn's Peak to an area on Hahn's Peak which we would like to see as non-motorized in the near future. This would be the side of Hahn's Peak sloping down into Columbine and the Columbine Cabins. We will continue to update you on this issue as things happen up there.