Montana Ruling Closes Trails

Montana Ruling Closes Trails, Says Mountain Biking Ruins Solitude for Others

Check out this article for a taste of what we could be one day looking at if we don't work toward stewardship agreements with management of areas such as Penticton's Sublot 18 and the Grasslands Protected Parklands near Oliver...

http://www.imba.com/news/news_releases/04_10/04_10_montana_ruling_closes_trails.html

Get involved with your local bike club and help out with responsible land use! PACA has immediate plans to sign land-use agreements with the Ministry of Tourism, Culture and the Arts for the Carmi area, and long-term plans to sign land-use agreements with BC Parks & The Land Conservancy - for Sublot 18 (above the Skaha climbing area parking lot). This is just the tip of the proverbial iceberg; as the valley’s population grows, so too will land-use issues.

There is also the potential that opportunities will arise for negations with BC Parks for the Rattlesnake Lake, Mt.Keogan and White Lake areas. The Oliver bike club has shut its doors in the wake of its president moving to Nelson, and this leaves their land-use agreements with BC Parks in limbo…

We have need of individuals who are keen to work with us in securing riding areas for us as well as future generations of trail lovers. Contact Andrew Drouin to learn how you can help.

I am personally keen to implement an annual program called 'Mending Fences' - which would see PACA members spend a day each year assisting ranchers in replacing broken posts and fencelines.

In our area, much of the Crown Land is leased to ranchers - and these are the areas that many of us ride daily. I feel that if we demonstrate to these lease-holders that riders can be a very good thing to have on the land, then they will support us long-term. This is just one way that we can display responsible citizenship with lease-holders; I am sure that there are many others that we can collectively come up with.

A.