Volunteers receive first-hand lesson in frustration
Hammering out a plan for regulating motorized travel on the St. Joe National Forest isn’t a job for the weak of heart.
It’s not even a job.
Since February, up to 30 volunteers have been donating their precious free time and putting costly mileage on their vehicles for a self-inflicted exercise in frustration.
ATVers and backpackers have been gathering around a table, along with dirt bikers and horsemen, forest property owners and conservationists to stand up for their interests on prized public land.
In an effort to curb the spread of expanding and destructive cross-country traffic, a Forest Service rule posted in 2005 requires each national forest to involve the public in designating roads and trails open for public motorized vehicle use.
Ultimately, routes and off-trail areas will be closed to motor vehicles unless they are expressly designated on official maps as open to motorized use.
Last month, the St. Joe focus group was on the verge of dissolving in disagreement. Representatives of motorized groups said they had seen too many roads and trails closed to their wheels and they weren’t going to negotiate on any more.
At the June 25 meeting in St. Maries – the public is invited to the sessions – some of those motorized representatives reiterated that sentiment, but all focus group members were persuaded to continue the process to find common ground.
Anyplace this group can find consensus would pack weight with St. Joe District Ranger Chuck Mark, who ultimately will have to make final decisions that balance recreational interests with protecting natural resources.
The 16 group members attending that meeting, some from as far away as Spokane and Sandpoint, agreed to disagree if that’s what it takes to move forward.
That required courage and commitment.
Unlike Internet user forums, which often are echo chambers for like-minded people to promote misinformation and propagate myths, sitting around a negotiating table with real people of diverse interests can be an opportunity for old-fashioned enlightenment.
“Getting a better feeling for how others feel about things, that’s a start,” said Wes Goodwin, who represents ATVers.
“I’m more interested in making sure motorized users have enough trails so they don’t cause problems on private land,” said Dale Dimico of the Idaho Forest Owners Association.
Western outdoorsmen were spoiled years ago with the freedom to roam almost anywhere they wish, even on private lands.
“We’ve had free access,” Dimico said, “but things are changing fast. Potlatch is charging access fees, the Forest Service is making rules — we’re feeling the pinch.
“But I hope we’re not naïve enough to think because we’re motorized users we’re going to get everything we want.”
The breaking point is arriving as off-road vehicles have become more efficient and capable of taking increasingly large numbers of people where no one 30 years ago expected motorized vehicles to reach.
A hiker might cover 10 miles in a day. A motorcyclist might need 80 miles to feel as though he’s been somewhere. An ATVer with a chain saw can easily hack out a route into areas where Jeeps never had a prayer.
Jeff Hildesheim of the Bush Bunch Motorcycle Club said the Forest Service ought to be opening all sorts of roads and trails for motorized users to reduce the damage by spreading out the growing number of motorized users.
“I don’t want to lose one more trail,” he said.
Bernie Lionberger of the Panhandle Backcountry Horsemen had a different perspective as he tried to negotiate for a non-motorized route into a popular CCC recreation area his group rolled up their sleeves to restore years ago.
“Motorized users say they’re losing trails,” the equestrian said. “But when I first started riding this area in 1961, I never met motorcycles or ATVs on these trails, just mule teams, horses, hikers and the occasional Tote Gote.
“With more and more motorized users out there, we’re the ones who are losing trails.”
Unmoved by that perspective, motorcyclist Donn Dennis said, “Everybody loses when a trail is (designated) non-motorized. … There shouldn’t be an exclusive trail for anyone.”
If this all sounds hopeless, have faith. This group of people will hash out some agreements that will serve the public and the forest.
Where they agree to disagree, the public has the safety net of some solid environmental laws and routes for appeal.
The June 25 focus group meeting involved nearly no discussion about increasing motorized use and the growing webs of unauthorized trails – and their impacts on fish, wildlife and water quality.
Chip Corsi, Idaho Fish and Game Department Panhandle regional manager, attends the meetings as one of the various agency representatives who provide valuable background for the citizen group. Doubtless he’s already explained the documented impacts of motorized vehicle traffic on various wild species.
But at this meeting, devoted mostly to the desires of the various trail user groups, Corsi made just one key comment offering a perspective that travel planning isn’t an exercise in heavy-handed government.
In a discussion about motorized routes in one drainage, a group member remarked, “Idaho Fish and Game will want a place for elk security.”
Said Corsi, “We were thinking that elk hunters would want that, too.”