Posts Tagged ‘ochoco’

Proposal for Motorized Trail System on the Ochoco National Forest (Oregon)

For Immediate Release:
November 18, 2009
Contact: Virginia Gibbons 541/416-6647
Bill Queen 541/416-6500

Prineville, OR – A proposal for a designated motorized trail system on the Ochoco National Forest is currently available for public review. The “Ochoco Summit OHV Trail” would be located east of Highway 26 on Forest Service-administered lands in the general vicinity of Big Summit Prairie on the Lookout Mountain and Paulina Ranger Districts. The project includes 124 miles of motorized trails that would be used, in a varying capacity, for ATV, motorcycle, jeep, small truck and buggy recreational riding. The trail system includes a number of staging areas, trailheads, camping opportunities, riding areas and interconnected trail loops.

Prior to this proposal, the McKay Creek area was considered for a designated motorized trail system. Ochoco National Forest Supervisor Jeff Walter felt it made good sense to conduct an analysis for a designated motorized trail system in McKay watershed that could be managed and enforced. The McKay watershed has sustained significant resource damage from illegal OHV use for a number of years and more recently, the reintroduction of steelhead into the McKay Creek system has created additional concerns. However, upon review by local citizen groups and cooperating agencies affiliated with the Deschutes Provincial Advisory Committee and the Crook County Natural Resource Planning Committee, the proposal for a motorized trail system in McKay was not well supported.

The Forest recognizes that not all of the issues have been resolved with the Ochoco Summit OHV Trail Proposed Action and that many people have yet to provide input. It is important to note that the proposal is just the starting point in this planning process. Issues that are unresolved, or that emerge as a result of public input will be addressed through a modification of the “Proposed Action” and/or through the development of alternatives that will be analyzed and compared in the Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS).

We anticipate the public comment period for this Proposed Action will begin on November 20, 2009 and end on December 21, 2009, pending publication in the Federal Register. The Proposed Action, maps, and additional information is posted on the forest website at www.fs.fed.us/r6/centraloregon/travel-mgmt/och_summit/index.shtml

Comment forms and a comment inbox are also available on the website. Those who wish to view printed paper maps or receive an electronic copy of maps on CD may go to thefollowing locations:

Ochoco National Forest Supervisor’s Office
3160 NE 3rd Street, Prineville, OR 97754
Rager Ranger Station (Paulina Ranger District)
171500 Beaver Creek Road
Paulina, OR 97751

Crooked River National Grassland
813 SW Hwy 97
Madras, OR 97741

A CD may also be requested by contacting the Ochoco National Forest at (541) 416-6500. Hard copy comments may be mailed or delivered to:

Ochoco Summit OHV Trail Planning Team
Ochoco National Forest
3160 NE 3rd Street
Prineville, OR 97754

The Ochoco Summit OHV Trail DEIS is tentatively scheduled to be available for public review and comment in the spring of 2010. Public meetings and a 45-day public comment period will be scheduled and announced at that time. A Final Environmental Impact Statement and Record of Decision is tentatively scheduled for completion in the summer of 2010.

The Ochoco Summit OHV Trail Proposed Action is not to be confused with the “Travel Management DEIS” for the Ochoco & Deschutes National Forests. The Ochoco Summit OHV Trail is a separate analysis from the Travel Management DEIS, and it is consistent with the direction stated in the “Forest Service 2005 Travel Management Rule”.

For more information on the Travel Management DEIS, which is currently available for review and public comment, please visit our website at www.fs.fed.us/r6/centraloregon/travel-mgmt

For specific project information regarding the Ochoco Summit OHV Trail Proposed Action, contact Dede Steele, Project Lead, at (541) 416-6500. For general concerns and questions regarding the Ochoco Summit OHV Trail proposal, contact Bill Queen, Lookout Mountain District Ranger (541) 416-6500; Slater Turner, Acting Paulina District Ranger (541) 416-6900; or Virginia Gibbons, Public Affairs Officer, (541) 416-6647.

http://www.fs.fed.us/r6/centraloregon/news/2009/11/20091118-ochsum-propmotor_trail_ochoco_nf.pdf

Temporary Closure of Ochoco-Deschutes FS Roads 4601 and 370 – October 28th – 30th

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Ochoco and Deschutes National Forests
Contact: Marv Lang
October 23, 2009 (541) 383-4793
Sue Olson
(541) 383-5561

Bend, Oregon – Approximately ten miles of Forest Service (FS) Roads 4601 and 370 will be
temporarily closed for maintenance next Wednesday through Friday. Portions of road
from the Happy Valley area on FS Road 370 east to the 4601/4602 junction, and from the
370/4601 junction north to FS Road 16 near the Three Creeks Lake area will be closed.

Work to be done on these popular routes before winter includes removal of dead trees for
safety along the roadside and reinforcement of drainage structures. This maintenance
work aims to improve these routes both as roads and as snowmobile trails for the months
to come.

Road crews will manage as best they can to have one road section open while another one
is closed. These roads connect to Todd Lake and FS Road 46, to the Sisters Three Creeks
Lake area and to the Skyliner area. Access to any of these destinations could be blocked
off by the maintenance operations during that time period.

Road managers are scheduling so as to have the least impact on hunters and
recreationists.

http://www.fs.fed.us/r6/centraloregon/news/2009/10/20091023_temprd_close370.pdf

Forest Service to Host Next Series of Open Houses on Motorized Access

BLUERIBBON COALITION ACTION ALERT!

Forest Service to Host Next Series of Open Houses on Motorized Access

The Deschutes and Ochoco National Forests and Crooked River Grassland are formulating a new travel plan that will limit ALL vehicle use to designated roads, trails and areas. The public is invited to attend any of several upcoming open houses scheduled in Central Oregon communities. The Forest Service (FS) is asking for your input during the 45-day public comment period, which will run through June 15, 2008.

Over the past year, personnel at the Deschutes and Ochoco National Forests have been working with citizens, as well as state, county and local governments to identify how to provide for motorized access to dispersed campsites. The FS is now ready to begin environmental analysis of the proposal.
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Oregon: John Day to Prineville via Malheur, Ochoco and Deschutes National Forests

Over on Expedition Portal, there is a great post on a backroads trip a member (beers_52) took from basically John Day to Prineville, Oregon. Great story and photos.

You can read the post at http://expeditionportal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=7122

Enjoy.

The Deschutes and Ochoco National Forests and Crooked River National Grassland are formulating new travel plans

The Deschutes and Ochoco National Forests and Crooked River National Grassland are formulating new travel plans that will limit ALL vehicle use to designated roads, trails and areas. Over the past few months the Deschutes/Ochoco Travel Management Working Group has been busy. The working group is made up of Tribal, Federal, State, and Local Government Agencies; interest groups such as tourism, recreationists (both motorize and non-motorized), users and industry; and private individuals that use or are neighbors to the forest.

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