Save Mt. Bailey's Skiing and Snowboarding from Snowmobiles

[Tap]

(passing this along from my email....)

Dear Skiers and Snowboarders,

I’m writing to ask for your help in protecting one of the true skiing and snowboarding treasures of the northwest—Mt. Bailey.

Mt. Bailey is located in the southern Oregon cascade range, tucked into the storm track between Crater Lake, Diamond Lake, and the Mount Thielsen wilderness. Many of you have experienced the epic snow and incredible terrain of Mt. Bailey as a guest of the cat skiing operation (currently Cat Ski Mt. Bailey) which has operated on the mountain since 1978. Others of you have have enjoyed the backcountry skiing and snowboarding that can be accessed by touring from the Hemlock Butte cabin located on Mt. Bailey’s southern flank. Or perhaps you’ve experienced the beauty of Mt. Bailey on a snowmobile ride to the mountain’s summit (8363’) via the highest groomed snowmobile trail in the state of Oregon.

Regardless of how you came to appreciate Mt. Bailey, your enjoyment of it is currently under attack.

Off-trail snowmobiling threatens to devastate the skiing and snowboarding experience that skiers and snowboarders (and trail riding snowmobilers) have always enjoyed on Mt. Bailey.

Currently the best solution to the snowmobile conflict issue on Mt. Bailey is a restriction of snowmobiles to on-trail riding only. Please join me in urging officials of the Umpqua National Forest to implement this restriction for the 2007-2008 season.

Please take some time to review the attached documents and become more informed about this issue, and then respond to the Diamond Lake Ranger district using the addresses provided below. Attached you’ll find a sheet of talking points and a form letter for your convenience, but your personal input with regard to this issue is of high value. Please consider forwarding this message to your skiing and riding friends.

Thanks in advance for taking the time to make a difference.


John Ouimet, DL DistrictRanger jouimet@fs.fed.us
Cliff Dils, Umpqua Forest Supervisor cdils@fs.fed.us
Lee Fox, SW Oregon Law Enforcement hfox@fs.fed.us
Javier Masiel, Umpqua NF Law Enforcement jmasiel@fs.fed.us
Steve Johnson, Rogue/Siskiyou Snow Ranger srjohnson@fs.fed.us
Sheri Cameron, DL Recreation srcameron@fs.fed.us


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Talking Points
Off-Trail Snowmobiling Problems on Mt. Bailey

1.) The ascent trail leading from the base of Mt. Bailey on its northwest flank to the summit at 8363’ was cleared in 1978 for the sake of snowcat skiing on the mountain in partnership between Mt. Bailey Snowcat Skiing and Diamond Lake Resort with the intention of it remaining a multiple use trail benefiting snowcat skiers (and later snowboarders), backcountry and Nordic skiers, and trail riding snowmobilers. The multiple use arrangement for this trail, from its inception, was that snowmobile access would remain restricted to trail-only riding.

2.) The ascent trail to the summit of Mt. Bailey is maintained exclusively by the snowcat skiing business operating under a special use permit issued by the Umpqua National Forest. The vast majority of all off-trail snowmobiling done on Mt. Bailey is accessed via this groomed ascent trail.

3.) Early on in the development of the snowcat skiing operation two trails were cleared, the Northwest Ridge Run and the North Wall Catchline. Both trails were cleared exclusively for the use of the snowcat skiing operation and were intended to be groomed for such use. Both trails were then wisely designated as closed to motorized vehicles to prevent potential collisions between downhill skiers and uphill snowmobile traffic. At the time (early 80’s), a groomed trail would have been the only thing that might lure snowmobilers into Mt. Bailey’s ski terrain.

4.) From the late 70’s until about 2000 the balance of use between skiers, snowboarders, backcountry and Nordic skiers, and snowmobilers remained in relative harmony. It has only been recently, with advances made in snowmobile technology that now allow for a snowmobile’s increased ability to travel off-trail in deep snow, that recreational multiple use on Mt. Bailey’s public land has become so grossly out-of-balance.

5.) While most snowmobiling enthusiasts continue to observe the unwritten “trail only” rule on Mt. Bailey, a handful of snowmobilers routinely ride off-trail and into longtime ski and snowboard terrain. This causes 6 specific problems:

A.) The collision risk posed by climbing snowmobilers to descending skiers and snowboarders is very real due to the varied terrain on the mountain which can obstruct both vision and hearing of both parties.

B.) The risk of injury to skiers and snowboarders who must now ride over snowmobile tracks is high, especially when visibility is poor.

C.) The weight of a snowmobile “high-marking” into an avalanche starting zone could trigger a slide that could harm skiers and snowboarders below.

D.) The snowmobile tracks left by a handful of off-trail riders will lure other less aware snowmobilers into areas of extreme avalanche danger and dangerous terrain.

E.) For skiers, snowboarders, and many trail-riding snowmobile enthusiasts seeing the bowls and glades of Mt. Bailey covered in snowmobile tracks is an aesthetic affront—this serves as a degradation of their recreation experience on public land.

F.) Allowing off-trail snowmobile access on Mt. Bailey is, in effect, an out-of-balance distribution of the area’s public recreation benefits. A few individuals on modern snowmobiles can “track out” a vast amount of terrain in only hours. These tracks can render as much as 70% of Mt. Bailey’s terrain virtually unusable to skiers and snowboarders for weeks at a time.



SOME QUESTIONS:

What’s been done to protect Mt. Bailey so far?
This year some initial strides have been taken to bring the patterns of recreational use on Mt. Bailey back into balance. The Diamond Lake Ranger District (John Ouimet, D.L. district ranger), in partnership with cat skiing operation special use permitee Diamond Lake Resort (Steve Koch, general manager) have secured a closure to motorized vehicles on terrain to the left of the groomed Mt. Bailey ascent trail. Violators of this closure can receive up to a $5000.00 fine. Please extend your gratitude to both Ouimet and Koch for taking this positive first step and urge them to continue the enforcement of this new closure.

Diamond Lake Resort is a snowmobiling destination. . . doesn’t a restriction of snowmobile access on Mt. Bailey hurt the resort?
Absolutely not. The vast majority of Diamond Lake Resort’s snowmobiling revenues come from snowmobiling enthusiasts who stay at the resort and ride on the over-300 miles of groomed trails in the area. There are many snowmobiling play and hill-climbing areas outside of those found on Mt. Bailey. In fact, the few riders who currently do the most damage to the skiing and snowboarding experience on Mt. Bailey do not spend a dime at Diamond Lake Resort. This is one reason why the resort was a partner in the recent first phase closure.

But restricting off-trail riding entirely isn’t really fair to snowmobilers, is it?
An official restriction to on-trail riding only would simply be an enforceable return to the way multiple use access has worked on the mountain for over 25 years. This problem is a new one that demands action now. Mt. Bailey is an area of extreme avalanche terrain, and a failure to regulate access to this type of terrain in a highly traveled, resort area will someday claim lives—possibly those of a visiting snowmobiler who happens to follow the tracks of a few extreme riders.

Isn’t there a chance for some middle-ground management plan that serves all parties?
Perhaps, yes. Do what many other areas of historic ski and snowboard use have done to mitigate the conflict with snowmobilers and promote a safer experience for all parties—maintain a policy of trail-only snowmobiling until a certain date in the spring when the entire mountain opens to off-trail snowmobile use. This grants all parties much of what each wants, but within the compromise of specific time-frames. Snowmobilers get access to the entire mountain, but in a time of year of minimized avalanche hazard. Diamond Lake Resort could extend its snowmobile revenue season by capitalizing on this “Opening date.” Skiers, snowboarders, and trail-riding snowmobile enthusiasts are able to preserve the mountain experience they have come to expect on Mt. Bailey for almost thirty years. Currently, the date most parties agree upon for such an opening is May 1st.

What else can be done in the meantime?
Encourage the Diamond Lake Ranger District to maintain its vigilance in enforcing the new “left side” terrain closure. Regulations that lack assertive enforcement can be easily ignored. So far, the Forest Service Law Enforcement presence on Mt. Bailey has been robust and extremely helpful. Please ask that this standard be maintained while more progress is made to reach a multiple use solution that benefits all parties on Mt. Bailey.
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[Tap]

COPY THE MESSAGE BELOW, PASTE INTO A NEW E-MAIL, SIGN IT, AND SEND IT TO:

John Ouimet DL District Ranger
Cliff Dils Umpqua Forest Supervisor
Lee Fox SW Oregon Law Enforcement
Javier Masiel Umpqua NF Law Enforcement
Steve Johnson Rogue/Siskiyou Snow Ranger
Sheri Cameron DL Recreation

E-MAIL ADDRESSES: jouimet@fs.fed.us, cdils@fs.fed.us, lhfox@fs.fed.us, jmasiel@fs.fed.us, srjohnson@fs.fed.us, srcameron@fs.fed.us


Dear Forest Service Managers and Law Enforcement,

I’m writing to ask for your help in protecting something that’s important to me: skiing and snowboarding on Mt. Bailey.

Skiing and riding on untracked snow in the glades, bowls, chutes, and treed terrain of Mt. Bailey is an amazing experience that is rarely matched. Mt. Bailey is especially well-suited for backcountry skiing, as it offers both a traditional backcountry experience via the Hemlock Butte cabin and a more convenient mode of access via the snowcat skiing/snowboarding operation that has long operated on the mountain.

I am concerned that the skiing and snowboarding experience on Mt. Bailey that I value so highly may be in jeopardy because of off-trail snowmobiling.

Snowmobile traffic in longtime ski and snowboard terrain is dangerous to skiers and snowboarders, both due to the real risk of collision and the hazard of hardened snowmobile tracks.

Unrestricted off-trail snowmobiling poses a risk to other snowmobilers who may follow such tracks into Mt. Bailey’s serious avalanche terrain.

Allowing off-trail snowmobiling on Mt. Bailey is an out-of-balance distribution of the area’s recreation resource: the snowmobile tracks left by only a few riders in a matter of hours can ruin the skiing and snowboarding experience for many of us for weeks at a time--on public land.

Please do something to protect the rare skiing and snowboarding resource found on Mt. Bailey.

Please restrict snowmobile use on Mt. Bailey to the ascent trail only as soon as possible.


Sincerest Thanks

[bdog]

You beat me to it Tapper. I have known Mark Elling for many years. He has a long history of skiing Mt. Bailey. Mark has put a considerable amount of thought and work into this project. Anyone who has been to Mt Bailey should understand how important this is. Encroachment by sleds is an increasing problem in the area. Mark owns a sled as do many of us here. This is not about sleds v skiers and snowboarders. It is about regulating conflicting user groups. The Forest Service does a reasonably good job of managing varied groups. They listen to reason but largely listen to numbers. I urge everyone here to respond to this issue and use the points listed by Mark and the letter to write the Forest Service.

[JR]

We're having the same issues here. Close by, in terrain that Valhalla Powdercats pushed an excavator built climbing road into an area they never used. Snowmobilers now use it to access the top end of the drainage and sled through and in what has traditionally been ski terrain.

Add to that an explosion of recreational tours of all types, including sleds has meant that we have commercial operators bringing paying clients into this terrain. It is all on the hush of course and they are all friends. Nobody is paying anyone if anyone else asks. Nudge, nudge, wink, wink.

There is no monitoring or enforcement and I would hope that would be a key element in the proposal. Rules don't mean shit if they don't have teeth.

I'm not sure what will happen here but I am not optimistic as some of the "offenders" are actually ski tourers and I have a bit of a hard time with that.

Good luck with that.

[tenB]

Mt. Bailey is as good as it gets! Please take two minutes to respond to this. I can tell your from experience that Mark, Oz and the boys have no problem sharing Mt. Bailey with sledders who stay to the trails. This is an accident waiting to happen!

[bdog]

The situation on Mt Bailey is different really. Snow cat skiing has been run under a permit by the USFS since 1978. The cat skiing operation is not the problem. Unregulated encroachment by sleds into terrain that Cat Ski Mt Bailey has permit to is the issue. No one wants to ban sleds from Mt Bailey, just regulate the terrain accessed. When people are paying for a powder experience they are less than thrilled when prime bowls are cut up with sled tracks.

[bdog]

Responce to this issue apparently has huge. It sounds as though managers in the FS are listening. The following email came this evening: (the italics are mine)

THANK YOU!

Thanks for a rapid and overwhelming response to my call for help in
showing a unified front from the ski and snowboard community with regard
to the issues of balanced multiple use on Mt. Bailey.

Word has already reached me that Forest Service managers and law
enforcement officials have received your message loud and clear.

What has transpired already in the past couple days:

1.) A beefed-up enforcement team is developing a strategy to "bust" the
few individuals who have been causing the most problems on Mt. Bailey's
ski and snowboard terrain, and will hopefully accomplish this in the next
week or so.

2.) A new planning meeting is scheduled after the close of this ski and
snowboard season to review current closures and discuss changes to the
snowmobile closure policies on Mt. Bailey for next season and the future.

Sources I trust tell me that there may be a time in the future when we may
again need to rally as a group, but that now we should let these two
positive steps run their course. In other words, "Call off the dogs for
now!" Please forward this message on to your skiing and riding friends
whom you asked for help.
I'm sorry to stop a snowball from rolling but the goal is to improve the
management of user group conflict on Mt. Bailey, and if calling off the
ski/snowboard e-mail horde for the time being is our best move, then I'm
for it.

Thanks again for your quick response. I'll be in touch.

Sincerely,
Mark Elling

[TyeStick]

Email sent!

[bdog]

Email sent!

Your support is appreciated and I know you can not call back your email. Everyone please read the included email I received from Mark. Please, no more emails to the FS etc. for now. It looks as if positive action will be taken from this point forward.

[ULTRALORD]

I think it would be best if the back country was used by all not just a skier,a hiker, snowboarder ext we all pay our equal share in takes we are all intilted to use it yes there are some people that abuse I have seen plenty of back country skiers and hikers leave garbage all over the hill but they act like they are the only ones who are entilted to be there. The reason the country is so polorized is do to people with views like this one we all have one planet and we have to share the more that you push to close the back country the more we will push back and all the money that we waste in the fight we could spend in maintaining the back country for all to use.

[Jer]

No. It'd be best if recreational snowmobiling were banned outright.

[extreeski]

What's a hicker?

[bdog]

I think it would be best if the back country was used by all not just a skier,a hicker, snowboarder ext we all pay our equal share in takes we are all intilted to use it yes there are some people that abuse I have seen plenty of back country skiers and hickers leave garbage all over the hill but they act like they are the only ones who are entilted to be there. The reason the country is so polorized is do to people with views like this one we all have one planet and we have to share the more that you push to close the back country the more we will push back and all the money that we waste in the fight we could spend in maintaining the back country for all to use.

You have totally missed the point, JONG! Perhaps I have missed your point do to your pathetic spelling and punctuation. AKPM is a genius compared to you Maybe we are all "intilted" because we all pay our equal share of "takes", but in the case of Mt Bailey recreational sledders are encroaching into terrain allowed to Cat Ski Mt Bailey under a use permit from the USFS. This terrain is NOT available legally to sleds and THAT is how it should be as Cat Ski Mt Bailey pays more than the "takes" you think you pay!

[ULTRALORD]

Thanks for the shot you little pile of crap. I broke my hand and my six year old typed that for me. I think if the if the sleds are baned then all you stoned tree huggers should be baned.

[ULTRALORD]

thanks for making my point. we will fight and waist lots of money and nothing will get done.

[Jer]

Trees like it when nothing gets done.

[~mikey b]

No. It'd be best if recreational snowmobiling were banned outright.

c'mon Dave - get real.

One thing to remember about the the snomobile crowd is that w/o snowmobiles, some of these people would never get outside. Believe it or not, some of these people care about public lands just as much as you do. They just use it differently than you and I do. It is not my choice of recreational activities, but I can't support banning it outright.

[Jer]

Shhhhh! Things were proceeding so smoothly!

UL would make a great spokesperson for USA-ALL!

[Trackhead]

Good luck. I guess nobody gives a shit until it affects them personally.

But I like how everyone jumps on the bandwagon to protect cat skiing, but we Utards are a bunch of pricks when we try to protect our skiing from motorized use such as heli's and sleds in already designated non-motorized areas.

Bailey is already designated motorized use. Good luck with that fight.

4.) From the late 70’s until about 2000 the balance of use between skiers, snowboarders, backcountry and Nordic skiers, and snowmobilers remained in relative harmony.

Yeah, just like the Wasatch used to be. Welcome to the club.

[bdog]

Thanks for the shot you little pile of crap. I broke my hand and my six year old typed that for me. I think if the if the sleds are baned then all you stoned tree huggers should be baned.

Yeah, right. Congrats. Three posts and you made my ignore list. BTW, my six year old keyboards and spells better than your's.

Trees really have nothing to do with this.

[bdog]

Good luck. I guess nobody gives a shit until it affects them personally.

But I like how everyone jumps on the bandwagon to protect cat skiing, but we Utards are a bunch of pricks when we try to protect our skiing from motorized use such as heli's and sleds in already designated non-motorized areas.

Bailey is already designated motorized use. Good luck with that fight.



Yeah, just like the Wasatch used to be. Welcome to the club.

I'm not against sleds. No one in the Bailey issue is. As I said many of us own them and use them. It goes more to managing public lands that in part have been leased to operators like Cat Ski Mt Bailey. They have been in operation since 1978, nearly three decades. It's about how best to meet the needs of varied user groups. Currently there is plenty of terrain in the Bailey area to satisfy recreational sledding and we support their continued use of the trail to the top. BTW not everyone thinks you are a bunch of pricks in regards to the Wasatch conflict. I, and many others are on your side.

[ULTRALORD]

I am not agaist the skiers or hikers I dont live in Oregon I am just tired of PUBLIC lands being closed to sleds I understand the dirt bikes they do damage.

[ULTRALORD]

Thanks Mike, Its nice to know that there are some reasonable people out there.

[doughboyshredder]

I was at Bailey on Wednesday. Conditions weren't great, but with the excellent guiding we still had a great time. As we were about to drop into Avalanche bowl on one of our first runs a group of snowmobilers came out of our exit track and started rooping around the bowl. The bowl is open to snowmobilers, if they access from the top. They proceeded to cut out of there directly into the cat ski operations permit area. They have been dealing with this consistently, and know who the offenders are. Unfortunately the enforcement is pretty much a joke. Bailey is an incredible operation ran by some great guys.

[bdog]

I was at Bailey on Wednesday. Conditions weren't great, but with the excellent guiding we still had a great time. As we were about to drop into Avalanche bowl on one of our first runs a group of snowmobilers came out of our exit track and started rooping around the bowl. The bowl is open to snowmobilers, if they access from the top. They proceeded to cut out of there directly into the cat ski operations permit area. They have been dealing with this consistently, and know who the offenders are. Unfortunately the enforcement is pretty much a joke. Bailey is an incredible operation ran by some great guys.

Actually the bowl is not supposed to be open to sledding until April. Thanks for the post as it highlights the exact nature of the issue there.