The Hidden Gems Wilderness Proposal has been a hot topic for those in Western Colorado for the last few months. I highly recommend that readers check out the Hidden Gems website to get up to speed, but the short story is this: more Wilderness areas in Gunnison County, Summit County, the Roaring Fork Valley, and the Vail/Eagle valley. some of these are entirely new areas, while others are additions to existing Wilderness. Some of these areas may indeed have merit, although given the backlash by local residents, it seems most do not. Most of these areas don’t affect those of us in Crested Butte, but it appears a new “Gem” has been discovered. More on that in a moment…
Let me start by saying that I am a fan of Wilderness. It’s an amazing thing to have pristine and untrammeled land right outside my back door. In the winter and spring, I recreate in Wilderness areas on nearly a daily basis. The majority of Colorado’s Fourteeners are within Wilderness boundaries. Getting deep into one of Colorado’s larger Wilderness areas, such as the Weminuche or the Maroon Bells/Snowmass can be a life-changing event.
Despite this, I am against the Hidden Gems proposal. There are problems with designating lands as Wilderness, here are a few of them:
- Mountain bikes are not allowed
- Hang gliding, BASE jumping, etc is not allowed
- Horses are allowed
- Cows and ranching equipment are grandfathered in
- Events like running races are not allowed
- Climbing bolts are not allowed unless done by hand
- No backcountry skiing huts can be built (recently pointed out by Lou D)
- At what point is there enough Wilderness in a given area?
Of course, I’ve neglected to mention that Wilderness areas also ban motorcycles, ATV’s, and snowmobiles, among other things. I’m OK with that, because even as a snowmobiler I can recognize that I don’t need to be allowed everywhere. I also don’t have a problem having my bike banned from these existing areas, even though studies show time and time again that mountain bikes do no more damage than hikers on most soil types. A bike certainly has less impact than a horse or herd of cows, and yet they are allowed in Wilderness areas. I have a problem with that kind of hypocrisy. Either ban horses as well, or let the bikes in. Finally, there is the question of: How much is enough? Here in Crested Butte, I can reach trailheads to the following Wilderness areas in the following amount of time:
- Maroon Bells/Snowmass: 5 minutes
- Raggeds: 20 minutes
- West Elk: 20 minutes
- Fossil Ridge: 45 minutes
- Powderhorn: 1 hour
- Collegiate: 1 hour
This is a tremendous amount of acreage where people can really only hike, ski, or ride a horse. What this means for me is that we currently have a nice balance of protected areas and areas that allow other forms of recreation. Of course, even in non-Wilderness areas, some activities are still banned, like dirtbikes on some trails or snowmobiles up certain valleys (i.e. Gothic). This also means that we have no need for more Wilderness in this area.
Several groups have lined up to oppose the Hidden Gems campaign. I encourage readers to take a look at these sites and follow through on the recommended actions such as writing your local politicians. The Roaring Fork Mountain Bike Association opposes Hidden Gems due to the number of trails which will be shut down on the North side of the Elks. The White River Forest Alliance
is an umbrella group representing all of the user groups affected by this proposal.
CLOSER TO HOME…
Meanwhile, it appears that another “Hidden Gem” has recently been discovered much closer to home here in Crested Butte. It is being called the Whetstone Wilderness and lies just south of town. The Crested Butte town council recently voted to support the measure, and more information on that aspect can be viewed here. What this newspaper article only hints at is this: The Whetstone Wilderness is proposed for one reason, and that is to thwart the Mt. Emmons Molybdenum Mine Project. Like the Climax mine outside of Leadville, this proposed mine will need a place to put all the tailings and toxic water. The proposed Whetstone Wilderness *may* be problematic for the mining company.
It’s a silly Wilderness area otherwise, popular with mountain bikers, dirtbikes, and snowmobilers. A fit person could easily walk the whole thing in a day. My friend Jarrett pointed out that none of these summits feel remote in any way- from the top of Whetstone the steady drone of human activity can be seen and heard. On the north, it would be bordered by the Splain’s Gulch 4×4 roads (or would those be in it?) as well as the Trapper’s Crossing McMansion/Ranchette subdivision. Those homes tend to be abandoned except 4th of July weekend and Christmas, so I guess it already has a Wilderness feel to it any way. On the west side is Ohio Pass, and the south and west sides are private property, mostly ranches. Here it is, roughly:
This is one “Gem” I guess I’ll have to support, assuming it throws a wrench in the mining plans. The Green Lake trail may be one of my favorite rides, and I’ll miss the easy snowmobile access, but if the payoff is sending the mine packing, it would be a small price to pay. I wish this area wasn’t included with the rest of the Hidden Gems, the vast majority of which I do not support. The mine is such a looming problem for those of us here in Crested Butte that I will even have to support the whole proposal if I truly feel it will hurt the mine. What a mess…
More on this subject in Part 2
Good post, Frank. I agree with most of what you stated, but the issue of mountain bikes has its ins and outs. Mountain bikes require a much more mantained trail to travel on than a hiker does. In the wilderness I’ve been in, it seems that the trails are always too rough, steep, or loose for a bike to travel on. I’m not sure if there even is any trail maintenance done at all in Wilderness areas, much less the amount that would be required to get trails to the level where bikers could use them.
Just my .02
True in some cases, Adam. There are also some trails in our area that used to be popular bike loops, such as Daisy Pass to Oh-Be-Joyful that were legal as recently as 1993. One of the best rides I’ve ever done is Pollock Bench in Fruita. I rode it the last year it was legal to do so (about 2000?), prior to the creation of the Black Ridge Canyons Wilderness area. Those are just some rides that I’ve either ridden or know people who have, and are now lost to bikers forever.
Wilderness proposals also destroy any potential of developing new trails for bikes or other banned forms of recreation. Wiens’ dream of a Gunnsion to Crested Butte singletrack will be severely hampered by this proposal, for instance. One of the “Hidden Gems” outside of Carbondale currently has a system of illegal trails on it. These trails can either become a legal and terrific amenity for the people of Carbondale with cooperation between interested parties, or it can be closed forever to everyone but hikers and horses.
Thanks for the thoughts, but..
Crested Butte & Gunnison need to quit pussy-footing around.
If they want to kill the mine… do just that. Nothing more, nothing less.
If they don’t have the guts or resources to do it, then quit whining and taking pot shots at the knee level and squandering our diverse recreation asset base as ammunition.
I’ve about had it with the half-hearted cheap shots at our expense.
There is NO way that this area qualifies as Wilderness, and NO way that it will STOP the mine.
Enough is enough.
This proposal is bad, hurts Crested Butte, it hurts Gunnison County and does NOT accomplish the goals of its proponents.
Thanks for listening.
Update: The Hidden Gems proposals related to Gunnison & Pitkin Counties including the Whetstone Wilderness were removed from the proposal that was sent to potential sponsor Jarid Polis (D-Boulder).
They’re not gone, nor are their thinly veiled goals of exclusion from public lands.
Next John Salazar (D-Manassa) will have a chance at rubber-stamping them if he has the stomach for the fight.
Thanks for update, Corey. The fight is just starting locally, and we’ve all got to keep fighting against this proposal in the areas that Representative Polis may support. Please email him by going here.
Frank,
Looks like HG hit the skids w/ Polis for the moment. If there’s one thing that freshman congressmen avoid is hot-potato’s !! While they may be down, there all but out. If you enjoy any outdoor activities up and above just simple hiking, you’re watching these Environ-elitists attack your rights to use and access public lands responsibly.
There is a time and place for reasonable protection measures – this is way too broad of a brush stroke.
In other News: Rep. John Salazar’s SanJuan Wilderness proposal is actually progressing. Grr! Guess that’s going to make for an awkward moment at the family Christmas dinner when brother Ken shows up wearing all of his green & yellow BP regalia.
CB.
That’s awesome, Corey! Where did you hear about Polis skipping Hidden Gems?
http://www.aspentimes.com/article/20100616/NEWS/100619865/1077&ParentProfile=1058