History:
Due to the increase in public land use surrounding the Gateway Canyon Resort, the BLM Grand Junction field office is creating a new Travel Management Plan for the area. Within one year, access to the area is going to be changed from Open to Designated Routes Only. All user groups have the opportunity to give input to BLM to help decide what routes are going to be included in the Travel Management Plan.
The project has a very aggressive timeline with a completion date at the end of 2008. The first milestone for input is to have comment forms filled out and returned to the BLM office by the end of February. The purpose of this document is to assist the motorized users in filling out their forms. Overview:
The area surrounding the Gateway corridor has been split into 10 zones and this document will provide a copy of the zone descriptions provided by the BLM office and some points of interest that this committee has outlined.
The BLM is using the terms “User Experience” and “User Benefits” that basically mean they want a detailed description of what you are expecting to gain from the experience of your type of recreation in this area. For instance, don’t just state that you like to drive your rig on hard core trails and they better keep the roads open; but also include how the driving experience would allow you to explore the rich mining history, visit scenic overlooks, or maybe just describe how the area allows your family to explore and camp in the outdoors. Please reference the BLM document, “Outcomes Checklist”, to assist in describing your “User Experience”. Try to apply as many items from the “Outcomes Checklist” as you can to your personal user experiences.
It is important to include all of the other activities that coincide with your backcountry experiences while recreating such as:
• Viewing wildlife, flowers, and vistas
• Rock collecting
• Photography
• Strengthening relationships with family and friends
• Learning about history of the area
• Teach others good trail etiquette, protection of natural landscapes, using the principles of Stay the Trail, Tread lightly, and how to be good trail stewards Each personalized response is extremely important. Please make sure your response is received by February 25. All other user groups are doing this same step, and if the voices of your user groups are not heard, they could be left out. Grand Junction Field Office
Attn: Gateway Plan
2815 H Road
Grand Junction, CO 81506 It is not reasonable to say that we want every road or trail to remain open in the following zones because some of the old mining roads were cut in without the requirement for long-term sustainability. We do have the following goal:
Keep all existing roads and trails open that can be maintained and meet the sustainability requirement for the given classification of that road. The description of each area is from BLM, the bullets after the description is our comments and what we would like to see in each area. Area #1 Gateway
This zone includes lands adjacent to the town of Gateway and Gateway Canyons Resort. It represents lands that will be most immediately impacted by the development of the resort. The zone is valued off its scenic red rock landscape and accessibility.
• River canyon
• Similar to driving highway 128 from Cisco to Moab.
• Have public access on established and newly created routes that provide access to the routes in Utah and Cottonwood Creek. (Existing road crosses private, provide access to public lands) Area #2 Dolores River
This zone is two discontinuous units containing the Dolores River and West Creek, separated by the Gateway Zone #1. It includes the Unaweep-Tabeguache Scenic Byway. The zone is valued for its scenic red rock canyons, river boating, and canyon hiking.
• River canyon
• Similar to driving highway 128 to Cisco to Moab
• Provide access to the creeks for fishing Area #3 Palisade
This zone includes the western portion of the Palisade WSA. The large island mesa known as the Palisade is its dominant feature. The zone has values for its scenic qualities, mining history, dispersed motorized and non-motorized recreation, and big-game hunting.
• Leave the Wilderness Study area the size that it is, and maintain access to the existing roads (The WSA is a small portion of area three. There are some roads but very few) Area #4 Calamity
This zone includes the upper canyons and mesa tops east of the Dolores River, including Tenderfoot, Calamity, Outlaw and Blue Mesas. The imprint of historic uranium mining activity characterizes it. The zone is valued for its mining history, accessibility, wildlife habitat, remote location, and dispersed motorized recreation.
• Ability to explore the mining history and equipment
• Kiosk or pamphlet describing the mining history
• Dispersed camping
• The ability for overnight trips
• Develop extreme 4+ rated double track that intersects with existing moderate trails. (Similar to Billings)
• Lots of deep canyons with numerous mining roads.
• Keep existing roads, develop loops where possible, and develop specific user trails. Area #5 Sewemup Mesa
This zone includes the eastern portion of the Sewemup WSA. It is characterized by its difficult access, multiple canyons, and remote nature. The zone is valued for its undeveloped character, non-motorized recreation, and views of the collapsed salt dome in Sinbad Valley.
• Wilderness Study Area (Majority of area is WSA, very little access.) Area #6 Sinbad Valley
This zone includes the valley west of Sewemup Mesa and Salt Creek. It is characterized by the cliffs on the west side of Sewemup Mesa and on the north end of Sinbad Valley. The zone is valued for its scenic character, dispersed motorized and non-motorized recreation, geologic interest of the collapsed salt dome, and big-game hunting.
• Ability to explore the mining history and equipment
• Kiosk or pamphlet describing the mining history
• Dispersed camping
• The ability for overnight trips
• Good Hunting
• Provide public access through private land. Area #7 Cone Mountain/Dolores Point
This zone is two discontinuous units separated by the John Brown Canyon Zone (#8). It is characterized by historic and modern uranium mining activity. The zone is valued for its big-game hunting and dispersed motorized and non-motorized recreation.
• Ability to explore the mining history and equipment
• Kiosk or pamphlet describing the mining history
• Dispersed camping
• The ability for overnight trips
• Lots of deep canyons with numerous mining roads.
• Excellent view of the Dolores River canyon. (Mineral Point) Area #8 John Brown Canyon
This zone includes the John Brown Road, the primary access route west of Gateway. It connects the Gateway area with the La Sal Mountains, BLM lands to the west, and Moab, Utah. The zone is valued as a transportation corridor for motorized and non-motorized recreation and its highly diverse and scenic character.
• Provides access to area #7
• Transportation corridor to the La Sal mountains and Moab Area #9 Granite Creek
This zone includes upper Granite Creek and Pinyon Mesa. It is characterized by mesas and benchlands incised by the heads of several canyon systems and a network of primitive road that connect the Dolores River with Pinyon Mesa. The zone is valued is valued for big-game hunting, remote character, and dispersed motorized recreation.
• Maintain critical access from Glade Park to Utah and area #6
• Keep existing trails and roads Area #10 North/Ute Creeks
This zone is two discontinuous units separated by the West Creek unit of the Dolores River Zone (#2). It is bounded by the Niche Road, which provides access to the Uncompahgre Plateau. It is characterized by two perennial streams, North and Ute Creeks. The zone is valued for its scenic quality and undeveloped character |
