they are trying to shut down Castle to off road use

[knee deep in it]

front page story in the calgary herald this morning about proposed changes to the entire castle area west of pincher creek. They want to close of 99% of the area ( i think the only exempt area is the ski hill).

Cindy Ady is the MLA in charge of Tourism and Parks. She is the primary decision maker and we have to flood her with emails.

If there is anyone with the Alberta Snowmobile Association lurking, wtf are you guys doing? Get off your rears and start organizing this.

If you are sending an email to Cindy Ady, use calgary.shaw@assembly.ab.ca .

Be polite and clear about what impact this is going to have.

 

[jj48]

thanks for the info,i will spread the word and send an e-mail

 

[330AC]

Why is the area being closed? Maybe you can post the article? If it is being closed down due to unappropriate quad and 4X4 use in the rivers and creeks hard to not support that decision. Unfortunatley sledders get painted with the same brush. Need to know what the issue are before hacking the ASA. 330AC

 

[polarice]

Why is the area being closed? Maybe you can post the article? If it is being closed down due to unappropriate quad and 4X4 use in the rivers and creeks hard to not support that decision. Unfortunatley sledders get painted with the same brush. Need to know what the issue are before hacking the ASA. 330AC

here is the link to the story ... still very much in the early stages but we have a voice with the asa ... as long as eveyone has been buying trail passes to support the area


Castle protection plan worries off-roaders

 

[Sledderglen]

I`m sure the ASA knows about this. The Quad squad and snowmobile club work very close together. The ASA regional director is also on the ASA board of directors. But as users of the area and just citizens of Alberta we need to voice our message of continued use and responsible use of this area. Plan does not have very good LOCAL support.
Funny how a group can be put together with minimal representive from the users and gets the governments ear. Send you message but dont be rude or it will just be looked as another junk response

 

[Shibby!]

These types of situations kill me.

On one side, you have the users. And yes, being an avid dirt biker I see PLENTY of things we can do (ATV's, trucks, and bikes), to lesson our impact on the earth. Do we do it? No. People's facked up attitudes prevent it. This can go into great detail but I'll only get people bitching at me like other posts in the ATV forum. Simple rules:

1) Follow the RULES! Don't go on trails you shouldn't be on.
2) Don't make new trails. Every spring I see POSTED single track trails ruined because quaders think because they have a chainsaw they have a right to fit down the trail.
3) Stay out of the mud! I don't care if you enjoy it or think you have your own right to play in it. Avoid ALL mud. Rivers, puddles, muskeg, etc. Just stay out of it. Don't wear a GD raincoat when you ride.
4) IMO, trails and riding areas should be closed on long weekends, and when trails are wet to prevent enviro damage.

Secondly, are the groups and people that think areas should be closed. They are just as ironic as we are because:

1) They just don't want people there. Castle mountain is now becoming a "resort" and locals don't like this new influx of people.
2) Those who sit on the couch or drive out to go shopping and coffee, etc don't understand what enjoying the outdoors involve. They jump on the bandwagon thought they it should be closed. They think they deserve a flower in their hair but don't understand what their vehicle does while idling in city traffic, or their used coffee cups do the environment. I think these people need a trip to the dump to watch machines pile over massive areas of non-degradable one time use products.

The sad thing is these groups are close to closing areas down in 3 years! Our recreational groups have been around for decades and have VERY little say in it.

What can you do? Become a member of an orginzation who believes in fair treatment of these areas. I believe there is the Alberta Quad club (previously quad squad), and if you ride bikes join the Rocky Mountain Dirt Riders Association. We have monthly meetings to discuss ways of keeping areas open and raising money.

 

[spikeydave]

My biggest question in regards to the article and it will be emailed to the mentioned address is if they are trying to protect the area then why are they recommending the future use and development of oil and gas in the proposed area. I am all for protecting the woods for future generations to enjoy and that may require some regulations and hopefully those that enjoy the area will follow the common rule of TREAD LIGHTLY in the sensitive areas and not chew everything up. I believe that if they are going to push something like this through then the oil and gas should be included with the rest of us. I am in the oil and gas industry myself and do not want everything shut down but on the same token if we as general public aren't allowed in areas then neither should anyone!!! I think not only should we be standing up for our rights but be making noise on the allowance of big industry in said areas. This is similar to what has happened in BC with the fishing industry, cut sportsman out of the picture but allow the big industry purse seiners to rape the ocean and screw it all up. Politics unfortunately is bullocks!!!!

 

[Shibby!]

My biggest question in regards to the article and it will be emailed to the mentioned address is if they are trying to protect the area then why are they recommending the future use and development of oil and gas in the proposed area. I am all for protecting the woods for future generations to enjoy and that may require some regulations and hopefully those that enjoy the area will follow the common rule of TREAD LIGHTLY in the sensitive areas and not chew everything up. I believe that if they are going to push something like this through then the oil and gas should be included with the rest of us. I am in the oil and gas industry myself and do not want everything shut down but on the same token if we as general public aren't allowed in areas then neither should anyone!!! I think not only should we be standing up for our rights but be making noise on the allowance of big industry in said areas. This is similar to what has happened in BC with the fishing industry, cut sportsman out of the picture but allow the big industry purse seiners to rape the ocean and screw it all up. Politics unfortunately is bullocks!!!!

I agree,

We can all enjoy the environment and keep it in good shape for future generations to enjoy.

I was lucky enough to be raised with lots of outdoor activities, and I fully plan to do the same when I have kids.

The thing is, these areas are being closed to "reserve them", yet like you said, big commercial industries are allowed to do their own thing, often leveling massive areas to build access roads or harvest their resources.

Question for you guys:

Has anybody on this board seen what's been done, and continued to be done to Wiaprous now that certain areas are closed?

I took a drive down the TransCanada road the spring following the closures since some of my favourite riding trails involve the Bar C area.

What did I find?

The area has been LEVELED by the lumber industry. Completely clear cut. Gone.

For where there was once secluded single track (the size of cow trails) weaving the river valley, is now replaced with massive demolished areas with left over stumps and wood scraps. Truly is a hard site to see.

I took pictures that I should dig up. I was going to send these pictures to the newspaper so those who sit at home realize what decisions they are making. I should check and see if I still have the before/after pictures. People need to see that what they DON"T see, isn't as bad as some make it out to be.

Some of the reason for this clear cut, as well as what's happening in south Mclean? Pine beetle and the forest industry.

Funny thing? THE TREES AREN'T PINE TREES!!! The pine beetle does not use these trees to spread and survive.

Funny how the public can be bought out so easily with false claims.

 

[Bogger]

The environment is very versitile.... I've seen Hells 1/2 acre at the end of a riding season chewed to chit....then come spring the first few rides you would think you are the first rider to ever enter the area in the boggy muskeg areas... there are still the hard pack ruts but the bogs are amazingly regenerative.....

 

[polarice]

The environment is very versitile.... I've seen Hells 1/2 acre at the end of a riding season chewed to chit....then come spring the first few rides you would think you are the first rider to ever enter the area in the boggy muskeg areas... there are still the hard pack ruts but the bogs are amazingly regenerative.....

its not so much they are regenerative its how far it has set it back having to reestablish itself every year .... this is the same reason why its so tough to get stuff done at the cabin in revy they only allow certain stuff up to prtoect the vegetation that has a short growing season ...i dont want to see the area close ive have yet to sled in the area but someday i hope to ....

 

[Shibby!]

its not so much they are regenerative its how far it has set it back having to reestablish itself every year .... this is the same reason why its so tough to get stuff done at the cabin in revy they only allow certain stuff up to prtoect the vegetation that has a short growing season ...i dont want to see the area close ive have yet to sled in the area but someday i hope to ....

Exactly. It's not that it can come back, it's how far ahead would it be if it wasn't touched in the first place.

The whole idea involve marsh lands is they are mother natures filter system. They purify water which goes into the rivers, those rivers are where you get your water.

Ripping up 'skeg and turing it into a boggy mess ruins that filter so any water going through it is now unfiltered and full of sentiment. It then goes into your water supply.

There is an easy solution. STAY OUT!! Make a sustainable trial AROUND the bog on higher ground.

If everybody would do this you would see a MASSIVE change in riding areas.

 

[awkwardmoose]

This is a paraphrase from a post I did on this topic a few years ago:

The Yellowstone to Yukon Conservation Initiative (Y2Y) has been around for over 17 years. Their vision “… people working together to maintain and restore the unique natural heritage of the Yellowstone to Yukon region.”
In english, keep out everything that damages the environment…this includes you and me on our motorized vehicles. Their effects have been widely felt in the US but to Canadians, their past actions have seemed transparent.

This article refers to their proposed Andy Russell Wild land Park. They've been pushing this area for a few years. Once complete, this ‘new’ park will consume the majority of the Castle area. From the Waterton Park boundary extending up to the Crownsest Pass; this will be off limits to all motorized vehicles. For sledders and quadders, the trail system will be gone.

Enviro Friendly Flyer: http://www.ccwc.ab.ca/files/proposedpark.pdf

Who’s behind this proposal?
The Castle-Crown Wilderness Coalition – Pincher Creek (supported and funded by Y2Y)
The Sierra Club of Canada Prairie Chapter – Edmonton (supported and funded by Y2Y)
Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society (CPAWS) – Calgary (supported and funded by Y2Y)

The list of ‘public groups’ that discussed the issue with the Governments, contains a few familiar names:

The Sierra Club of Canada Prairie Chapter – Edmonton (supported and funded by Y2Y)
Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society (CPAWS) – Calgary (supported and funded by Y2Y)

They don’t move fast, but they’re big and everywhere. They have the public’s support and the politician’s ear.

And to top it all off, Y2Y’s head office…is right here in Canmore Alberta.

 

[Zig Zag]

Sleds leave basicly no imprint on the enviro. I can see concern with ATV's and 4x4's ruts and so on and past history at Indian Graves. Sledders as a whole support their sport more so than otheer recreational users. We pay trail access fees in Revy and Sicamouse and support the Crownest with the BC sled fed pass so like I said as a whole we support our sport more so than any other user group. The castle area doesn't seem to get the kind of traffic as say Fernie or Revy or Valemount. I can't see the reason here except to create a boundry that will encompass a vast area from Kaninaskis south to the U.S that will stop motorized access or dictate usage. Hope it don't go,