Tellico Trails closed - permanently

[writeforus]

Conservation groups dedicated to active and sustainable management of the Upper Tellico OHV Area expressed deep disappointment with the U.S. Forest Service decision to permanently close the Tellico trails. The decision, which follows an earlier "temporary" closure, was announced in documents published by the USFS yesterday morning.

Gary Parsons, President of the Southern Four Wheel Drive Association, reacted by saying, "The Forest Service is simply wrong in this decision. This public agency has ignored an independent study by Caliber Engineering and the recommendations of its own Trails Unlimited Team, which demonstrated effective management is attainable and offered specific suggestions to achieve that goal."

The agency announcement by Forest Supervisor Marisue Hilliard again parroted the water quality issues long favored by preservationist special interests as the excuse for closure. Jay Bird, Chairman of the Rescue Tellico Committee, noted, "The Tellico River is in excellent shape and complies with all legal requirements. Only through blatant modification of proper methodology, such as measuring turbidity levels during peak runoff, can the Forest Service claim there is legal basis to take any action, let alone closure."

"Sadly, we are not surprised. It now appears the Forest Service knew it would close the Area years ago, and undertook the intervening 'public process' to justify a decision already made," said Greg Mumm, Executive Director of the BlueRibbon Coalition. "We are sorely disappointed that the Forest Service has determined it cannot effectively manage the Upper Tellico OHV Area that users have supported with millions of dollars in fees and thousands of hours of volunteer labor. With our recreational partners, we will evaluate all options that may change that determination."

[Gnarly4X]

Originally Posted by writeforus

Conservation groups dedicated to active and sustainable management of the Upper Tellico OHV Area expressed deep disappointment with the U.S. Forest Service decision to permanently close the Tellico trails. The decision, which follows an earlier "temporary" closure, was announced in documents published by the USFS yesterday morning.

Gary Parsons, President of the Southern Four Wheel Drive Association, reacted by saying, "The Forest Service is simply wrong in this decision. This public agency has ignored an independent study by Caliber Engineering and the recommendations of its own Trails Unlimited Team, which demonstrated effective management is attainable and offered specific suggestions to achieve that goal."

The agency announcement by Forest Supervisor Marisue Hilliard again parroted the water quality issues long favored by preservationist special interests as the excuse for closure. Jay Bird, Chairman of the Rescue Tellico Committee, noted, "The Tellico River is in excellent shape and complies with all legal requirements. Only through blatant modification of proper methodology, such as measuring turbidity levels during peak runoff, can the Forest Service claim there is legal basis to take any action, let alone closure."

"Sadly, we are not surprised. It now appears the Forest Service knew it would close the Area years ago, and undertook the intervening 'public process' to justify a decision already made," said Greg Mumm, Executive Director of the BlueRibbon Coalition. "We are sorely disappointed that the Forest Service has determined it cannot effectively manage the Upper Tellico OHV Area that users have supported with millions of dollars in fees and thousands of hours of volunteer labor. With our recreational partners, we will evaluate all options that may change that determination."

I've said it since I started off-roading in 1977. The Off-Road community should have kept their big mouths shut about our trails. You don't have to have a degree from Harvard to figure out that the "conservationists, environmentalists, and all the other radical left liberal psycho-fringe groups want to control and close everything!!

I've seen it here in Arizona. We had self appointed 4-wheel drive club members, who thought they were doing a good thing, who set themselves up as the official spokesperson to meet with and discuss the interests of the off-roaders and demonstrate their ignorance by providing and promotinig the ill-conceived concept of .... "let's talk to the BLM and all the other land control "agencies" and convince them that we want to be part of the "green weenies". It didn't do anything but help to locate and disclose our best 4-wheel drive trails so the "authorities" could then plan their closures.

Has big government ever helped the off-road community??

Of course, the "off-road magazines" really made their contributions... they published where all the best trails are!!!!!

Anza Borrego in Southern California is perfect example.... within 12 months after one of the big name "off-road" magazines published a big article about Anza-Borrego... the trails, sites, and geology that had been there for decades were simply and utterly destroyed!!!!!!!!!

The best thing for the off-road community to do is keep your mouths shut and keep a low-profile....

Naturally, that's just my worthless opinion.