Newspaper Says Herger Travel Management Bill Offers a Fix to Access Issues

Popular OHV Trail Closed by Travel Management Plan - Should be Reopened!

Last Friday many of you read on this blog about Congressman Wally Herger’s bill that he introduced to address some of the flaws in travel management. In that blog you found a link to the legislation as well as other documents that Herger has authored to champion access to public lands.


Friday’s Blog with Herger Bill
http://thegeneralsrecreationden.blogspot.com/2011/01/112th-congress-introduces-bill-to.html

HQ supports the conclusion reached by the Redding Record Searchlight which states the bill makes sense because it addresses complaints about unwarranted closures filed against the Forest Service by users, county officials, and other interests.

Record Searchlight Editorial in Support of Herger Bill
http://www.redding.com/news/2011/jan/10/herger-bill-brings-sense-to-road-plan/

HQ has believed for a number of months that a solution can be found to restore a good working relationship between the agency, county government, and the recreation community. This legislative fix combined with outreach by the agency via a substantive stakeholder process where ideas can be shared in a cooperative manner could be just what the doctor (or General) ordered.

H.R. 689 - The FS/BLM OHV Land Exchange Bill a Success!

PHOTOS: Upper Left - BLM's Sky Zaffarano, the OHV Program Manager, pointing to FS land that is now in BLM authority. Upper Right - The General on one of the maintained dirt bike trails.

The Recreation HQ is proud to give riders an update on just how the passage of H.R 689 (the FS/BLM land exchange bill at Chappie-Shasta OHV Area) is doing.

BRC News Release on Success of H.R. 689 (includes quote from Cong. Herger)
http://www.sharetrails.org/releases/?story=707&filter=media

The General, on behalf of BRC, helped tech and support the Redding Dirt Rider’s Buckhorn Enduro this last weekend. Before the event, he had a chance to do a “post-passage of the bill” tour with the BLM OHV Manager on that unit, Sky Zaffarano.

Over the years, this unit had been co-managed (or not - depending on your point of view) by both the FS and BLM. It had mixed agency lands and the different land management regulations that exist between the FS and BLM often created conflicts and problems.

This is a great example of where local users got together with elected officials and found a legislative solution to a problem. Since I last visited the area, it appears this new management prescription has resulted in better trail maintenance and new opportunities for the motorized community.

The Chappie-Shasta OHV Area is a destination site in the HQ’s opinion. Besides challenging dirt-bike trails, it offers a great camping/staging area with a giant touring loop for 4wds and ROV/UTVs. Views include Lake Shasta, Mount Shasta, and the Trinity Alps.

HQ recommends this unit as a must place to visit for the OHV enthusiast. Keep in mind a lot of the higher elevation trails are closed due to snow in the winter time.

Congressman Herger Sends Letter to Sec. Harris Sherman Regarding TMR

The Recreation HQ wants to give riders an update regarding the fight for OHV access in Region 5. As you know, the Shasta Trinity National Forest and many other units under guidance from Region 5 (head office of the FS in CA) have closed thousands of miles of historic trails and logging roads to both street legal and green sticker vehicles.

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PHOTO: Jeep road (marked as open on current Forest Map) to a cool lookout was closed to all vehicles in Shasta Trinity ROD.

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A lot of OHV groups and county officials have protested these unfair closures and were joined by Congressman Wally Herger. Congressman Herger has again weighed into this battle with an August 11 letter to Harris Sherman, an Undersecretary of Agriculture.

Herger’s June 9 and11 Letters to Region 5
http://thegeneralsrecreationden.blogspot.com/2010/06/congress-weighs-into-shasta-county-v-fs.html

Aug. 11 Herger Letter to the Undersecretary
http://www.sharetrails.org/uploads/TMR_Herger_Sherman_Followup_Aug_11.pdf

The General has shared his frustration with Region 5 on many occasions about the unprecedented steps it took to misuse TMR to close roads, trails, and areas to legitimate OHV use.

With Subpart A waiting in the wings to be launched in September by Region 5, the question for them is if they will take a step back from hard deadlines and put some flexibility in Subpart A to allow for units to do important trail planning projects, etc.

See Blog on Recent Subpart A Focus Group Meeting
http://thegeneralsrecreationden.blogspot.com/2010/08/update-on-subpart-focus-group-meets-for.html

Stay tuned for more updates on the never ending TMR saga in Region 5.