YellowSub1962
04-10-2002, 09:43 AM
http://redding.com/news/stories/20020410lo029.shtml
Off-roaders win board's support for reopening trail
County will urge federal agencies to change rules for old rail route Tim Hearden
Record Searchlight
April 10, 2002 — 1:52 a.m.
Shasta County supervisors will urge two federal agencies to temporarily reopen a portion of the Sacramento River Rail Trail to motorized off-road vehicles, but with a 10 mph speed limit.Supervisors unanimously agreed Tuesday to send letters to the bureaus of Reclamation and Land Management after hearing a wide range of views from 14 speakers.Off-road vehicle enthusiasts have requested reopening the access route to their 44,000-acre riding park, which was cut off for most users when the road across Shasta Dam was closed in the aftermath of Sept. 11.Bicyclists and hikers who use the nine-mile Rail Trail from Keswick to the base of Shasta Dam argue that allowing motorcycles and all-terrain vehicles (ATVs) on the trail would jeopardize their safety."Unfortunately, there's no simple answer," said Supervisor Irwin Fust, whose western Shasta County district includes the off-road park northwest of Redding. "But we need to move forward (with the opening)."There is no way to get into that area, generally speaking," Fust said.The issue of motorized vehicles using the Rail Trail was thought to be put to rest last summer when the Board of Supervisors agreed to have the Sheriff's Department enforce the BLM's ban.But the post-Sept. 11 closure of the dam, and the road spanning it, has rekindled a debate among many of the same outdoor recreation buffs who filled supervisors' chambers for two public hearings last year.While the BLM and Bureau of Reclamation are considering temporarily reopening the trail, supervisors Tuesday pondered whether to support such a move."Temporary could mean four or five years," Supervisor Molly Wilson said. "We don't know with the conditions that we're facing in this country. . . . What are we going to tell (nonmotorized users), that they can't walk the trail? It wouldn't be safe with all these motorbikes."Chuck Schultz, the BLM's field office manager in Redding, responded that two new alternative entries have been mapped out, but the government has yet to obtain easements from several private property owners.In the meantime, officials will seek permission from Washington, D.C., to allow off-roaders and other users special access to the road across the dam until the road is reopened to everyone, said Mike Ryan, the Bureau of Reclamation's Northern California area manager.Off-roaders said the Rail Trail, which was built two years ago on an old railroad bed with money from the McConnell Foundation, would be a much safer access route for beginners than would either of two other access roads, one of which begins in French Gulch."I don't think French Gulch is an option," said Ohl Olson, an off-road enthusiast from Redding. "It's not safe for inexperienced users, and by the time you get there (to the park) you're out of gas."But some hikers and bicyclists, fearing for their safety, said if motorized vehicles are allowed in they would stop using the Rail Trail.Egon Harrasser of Redding said the two uses would be incompatible."I do realize that the Sept. 11 incidents . . . caused a lot of inconvenience and changed habits," he said. "I do agree that off-road vehicle users should be allowed to use their park. . . . However, to allow only one or the other use of the trail (by scaring away hikers) is unacceptable."Schultz said the BLM is concerned about the number of vehicles that would use the trail if it were the only way in. The trail is only wide enough for one vehicle at a time, there's a sheer drop-off on one side and there's a blind tunnel, he said.Fust suggested the speed limit to ensure hikers' and bicyclists' safety, adding that "I would encourage that to be enforced."The board will ask the BLM to involve Fust and Wilson in planning future routes into the park. Reporter Tim Hearden can be reached at 225-8224 or at thearden@redding.com.
Wednesday, April 10, 2002
:usa:
Off-roaders win board's support for reopening trail
County will urge federal agencies to change rules for old rail route Tim Hearden
Record Searchlight
April 10, 2002 — 1:52 a.m.
Shasta County supervisors will urge two federal agencies to temporarily reopen a portion of the Sacramento River Rail Trail to motorized off-road vehicles, but with a 10 mph speed limit.Supervisors unanimously agreed Tuesday to send letters to the bureaus of Reclamation and Land Management after hearing a wide range of views from 14 speakers.Off-road vehicle enthusiasts have requested reopening the access route to their 44,000-acre riding park, which was cut off for most users when the road across Shasta Dam was closed in the aftermath of Sept. 11.Bicyclists and hikers who use the nine-mile Rail Trail from Keswick to the base of Shasta Dam argue that allowing motorcycles and all-terrain vehicles (ATVs) on the trail would jeopardize their safety."Unfortunately, there's no simple answer," said Supervisor Irwin Fust, whose western Shasta County district includes the off-road park northwest of Redding. "But we need to move forward (with the opening)."There is no way to get into that area, generally speaking," Fust said.The issue of motorized vehicles using the Rail Trail was thought to be put to rest last summer when the Board of Supervisors agreed to have the Sheriff's Department enforce the BLM's ban.But the post-Sept. 11 closure of the dam, and the road spanning it, has rekindled a debate among many of the same outdoor recreation buffs who filled supervisors' chambers for two public hearings last year.While the BLM and Bureau of Reclamation are considering temporarily reopening the trail, supervisors Tuesday pondered whether to support such a move."Temporary could mean four or five years," Supervisor Molly Wilson said. "We don't know with the conditions that we're facing in this country. . . . What are we going to tell (nonmotorized users), that they can't walk the trail? It wouldn't be safe with all these motorbikes."Chuck Schultz, the BLM's field office manager in Redding, responded that two new alternative entries have been mapped out, but the government has yet to obtain easements from several private property owners.In the meantime, officials will seek permission from Washington, D.C., to allow off-roaders and other users special access to the road across the dam until the road is reopened to everyone, said Mike Ryan, the Bureau of Reclamation's Northern California area manager.Off-roaders said the Rail Trail, which was built two years ago on an old railroad bed with money from the McConnell Foundation, would be a much safer access route for beginners than would either of two other access roads, one of which begins in French Gulch."I don't think French Gulch is an option," said Ohl Olson, an off-road enthusiast from Redding. "It's not safe for inexperienced users, and by the time you get there (to the park) you're out of gas."But some hikers and bicyclists, fearing for their safety, said if motorized vehicles are allowed in they would stop using the Rail Trail.Egon Harrasser of Redding said the two uses would be incompatible."I do realize that the Sept. 11 incidents . . . caused a lot of inconvenience and changed habits," he said. "I do agree that off-road vehicle users should be allowed to use their park. . . . However, to allow only one or the other use of the trail (by scaring away hikers) is unacceptable."Schultz said the BLM is concerned about the number of vehicles that would use the trail if it were the only way in. The trail is only wide enough for one vehicle at a time, there's a sheer drop-off on one side and there's a blind tunnel, he said.Fust suggested the speed limit to ensure hikers' and bicyclists' safety, adding that "I would encourage that to be enforced."The board will ask the BLM to involve Fust and Wilson in planning future routes into the park. Reporter Tim Hearden can be reached at 225-8224 or at thearden@redding.com.
Wednesday, April 10, 2002
:usa: