Seeing and have heard varying reports about trail "closures" at Kooc this spring...
This Easter weekend, on the ridge trails on the south side of Baynes inlet, there were live trees, many of them quite mature, that had been purposely and freshly felled across the trail network, among other odd "barriers" (stick piles, rocks) and some excavations ie: GAMP style deactivation. Is this the work of a government agency, or local yokels? Sure seemed a waste, and for the most part, ineffective, and in some cases, dangerous.
"Official" closure signs have been up barring the most obvious climbs visible from the Dorr cutoff road, and a few other spots, for a bit now, and now hearing specific trail markers are being placed further in the trails.
Anyone know the straight dope on this?
Kooc Troof
-
theowenmaz
- User
- Posts: 44
- Joined: Tue May 09, 2017 7:41 pm
Re: Kooc Troof
Any updates on this? Current of future closures past the May 1st date in the link?
Re: Kooc Troof
The Koocanusa Recreation.ca group is heading up Stage 2 of the Dorr Road Rec area. The Ranchers are calling the shots on several initiatives with backing from Enviro groups and BC Forestry. Kooc Rec hired a bunch of mountain bikers out of Fernie to install signs, decommission trails and sign a designated singletrack trail system. Most of the legal ST signs have been installed. Jeff Zukiwsky is the lead guy and they have tried to reach out to find dirtbikers to Stewardship and have their voice in the process, but unfortunately it looks like the Elk Valley Dirt Riders club has dissolved and there is currently no Dirt bikers involvement which is a major problem moving forward. If I lived in Fernie or closer to Kooc I would do it having ridden there since 1984 I know the area very well. If anyone is interested in or you know of someone who would be interested in working with Kooc Rec on behalf of ST riders contact Kooc Rec or the RMDRA can get you contacts.
I do not think this will end well for us if we don't have involvement.
I have seen the large master map for the area. The far north end will be closed to OHV's do to sensitive habitat and a MTB trail system will be put in place. This is approx. 1 - 2 km of the far north end. My one issue with this sensitive habitat area which is all along the ridge over looking the lake is they are allowing cutblocks ( and its dirty logging ) to go right to the ridges edge - so I guess its not "too" sensitive.
They are decommissioning most non legal trails with signs, trenches and live trees. This will likely effect hundreds possibly thousands of live trees being cut down.
I did mention to the guys working in the area I find it comical they are so concerned about tamping down the grass in the area and then when you come back a year later the area is obliterated with a cutblock - they got a chuckle over that one too.
One major issue we have moving forward is one individual has vandalized and removed almost all of the closure signs in the area that have been installed over the last two years. This was 40 signs and $5000.00 lost for the Kooc Rec group. If this continues I am pretty sure we will loose all OHV access in the area. On that note I mentioned to the guys from Kooc Rec I had taken the NOVACC training and that they went about this completely wrong in closing all the trails first without installing one legal ST sign. They admitted they did it completely wrong and should have done the legal ST trail system first, them decommissioned trails and closure signage. There are several legal trails in the north and a few in the south including the border loop.
All random camping will be closed by next year in the area and the guys mentioned the Ranchers have alot of pull and got this implemented. There will only be two camping/stages area's open. One is the current area on the north side of the road 1 km from HWY 93. The 2nd will be on the grassmere road near Loon Lake but not at Loon lake. Both will have Outhouses.
All 3 guys I talked to from Kooc Rec on two different occasions were very helpful and I believe want us to have a decent ST trails system but need input as I think they are all MTBers not dirtbikers.
I will do a separate post in this thread in regards to the 3 Dorr road beach campsites as that is a gongshow in itself.
I do not think this will end well for us if we don't have involvement.
I have seen the large master map for the area. The far north end will be closed to OHV's do to sensitive habitat and a MTB trail system will be put in place. This is approx. 1 - 2 km of the far north end. My one issue with this sensitive habitat area which is all along the ridge over looking the lake is they are allowing cutblocks ( and its dirty logging ) to go right to the ridges edge - so I guess its not "too" sensitive.
They are decommissioning most non legal trails with signs, trenches and live trees. This will likely effect hundreds possibly thousands of live trees being cut down.
I did mention to the guys working in the area I find it comical they are so concerned about tamping down the grass in the area and then when you come back a year later the area is obliterated with a cutblock - they got a chuckle over that one too.One major issue we have moving forward is one individual has vandalized and removed almost all of the closure signs in the area that have been installed over the last two years. This was 40 signs and $5000.00 lost for the Kooc Rec group. If this continues I am pretty sure we will loose all OHV access in the area. On that note I mentioned to the guys from Kooc Rec I had taken the NOVACC training and that they went about this completely wrong in closing all the trails first without installing one legal ST sign. They admitted they did it completely wrong and should have done the legal ST trail system first, them decommissioned trails and closure signage. There are several legal trails in the north and a few in the south including the border loop.
All random camping will be closed by next year in the area and the guys mentioned the Ranchers have alot of pull and got this implemented. There will only be two camping/stages area's open. One is the current area on the north side of the road 1 km from HWY 93. The 2nd will be on the grassmere road near Loon Lake but not at Loon lake. Both will have Outhouses.
All 3 guys I talked to from Kooc Rec on two different occasions were very helpful and I believe want us to have a decent ST trails system but need input as I think they are all MTBers not dirtbikers.
I will do a separate post in this thread in regards to the 3 Dorr road beach campsites as that is a gongshow in itself.
Re: Kooc Troof
Changes at the 3 Dorr campsites along the lake edge. These are 14 km in off the hyw 93.
I have camped at the 2nd campsite - Dorr north beach every year since 1984. A group of us planned to camp their 1 week prior to the May long weekend. A couple of us got set up then the camp host came in and said we had to leave, that all the sites have been changed to seasonal. We said if someone comes in to their spot we will leave - nope a bunch of seasonal campers were coming in that weekend and we had to leave. Okay we will move 1 km north to Dorr north camp ground - nope those are also seasonal and almost all sold out. Host said we could move south to Dorr beach but the price has changes from $14 a night to $25 a night, this is with the same amenities as before which is a picnic table and outhouse. We said we will pass.
There were no signs any where saying Dorr north beach and Dorr north had been changed to seasonal. BC Parks website also says otherwise in that the Dorr sites are open as usually and they are first come first serve. Calling BC Parks/Forestry: person #1 had no knowledge of any seasonal sites. Calling another phone number, person #2 also had no knowledge of any changes. Person #3 said that an agreement with the Tabocoo Plains Indians had been reached, an LOC Disposition.
In questioning the camp host from TPI in regards to there is no way to purchase these seasonal sites, their response was it was just word of mouth LOL.
Here is where it gets good, so these seasonal sites are only available from May 10th to the beginning of Sept every year at $1400.00 a site with only a picnic table and an outhouse. You would have to pull your unit out several times a year to dump. So we rode through the Dorr north beach campground late Sat afternoon to see how many seasonal s were there and I wanted to ask them how they got the secret phone call to purchase one - shocker, not a single person, camper or vehicle in the entire campground.
According to BC Parks there is suppose to be a consolation process, but that never happened. This whole thing went down about as well as someone that couldn't organize a piss-up in a brewery.
Bottom line is the TPI do not want anyone in these 3 campgrounds ( they turned down making approx, $600.00 from our group ) and they now own them so they can do whatever they want.
I would like to know how things went at Dorr beach north and Dorr north on the long weekend if anyone tried to get into those sites if you did not get the secret phone call to purchase seasonal sites.
I have camped at the 2nd campsite - Dorr north beach every year since 1984. A group of us planned to camp their 1 week prior to the May long weekend. A couple of us got set up then the camp host came in and said we had to leave, that all the sites have been changed to seasonal. We said if someone comes in to their spot we will leave - nope a bunch of seasonal campers were coming in that weekend and we had to leave. Okay we will move 1 km north to Dorr north camp ground - nope those are also seasonal and almost all sold out. Host said we could move south to Dorr beach but the price has changes from $14 a night to $25 a night, this is with the same amenities as before which is a picnic table and outhouse. We said we will pass.
There were no signs any where saying Dorr north beach and Dorr north had been changed to seasonal. BC Parks website also says otherwise in that the Dorr sites are open as usually and they are first come first serve. Calling BC Parks/Forestry: person #1 had no knowledge of any seasonal sites. Calling another phone number, person #2 also had no knowledge of any changes. Person #3 said that an agreement with the Tabocoo Plains Indians had been reached, an LOC Disposition.
In questioning the camp host from TPI in regards to there is no way to purchase these seasonal sites, their response was it was just word of mouth LOL.
Here is where it gets good, so these seasonal sites are only available from May 10th to the beginning of Sept every year at $1400.00 a site with only a picnic table and an outhouse. You would have to pull your unit out several times a year to dump. So we rode through the Dorr north beach campground late Sat afternoon to see how many seasonal s were there and I wanted to ask them how they got the secret phone call to purchase one - shocker, not a single person, camper or vehicle in the entire campground.
According to BC Parks there is suppose to be a consolation process, but that never happened. This whole thing went down about as well as someone that couldn't organize a piss-up in a brewery.
Bottom line is the TPI do not want anyone in these 3 campgrounds ( they turned down making approx, $600.00 from our group ) and they now own them so they can do whatever they want.
I would like to know how things went at Dorr beach north and Dorr north on the long weekend if anyone tried to get into those sites if you did not get the secret phone call to purchase seasonal sites.
-
malcolmzilla
- 2024 RMDRA Member
- Posts: 879
- Joined: Fri Jun 26, 2009 11:14 am
Re: Kooc Troof
Thanks Dylan, sounds familiarly crooked, like GAMP where the outfitters making a living off public land got the big stick in their hands at the "table" as well.
Re: Kooc Troof
We idled through both campgrounds on Saturday last, the far north was 70% full and the beach north was 20% full.trailguy wrote: I would like to know how things went at Dorr beach north and Dorr north on the long weekend if anyone tried to get into those sites if you did not get the secret phone call to purchase seasonal sites.
Re: Kooc Troof
Has anyone been down recently? I was thinking of heading that way this weekend, probably to try to free camp at km 1 of Dorr road there.
Would appreciate any info on recent developments.
Would appreciate any info on recent developments.
-
Dobi
- 2024 RMDRA Member
- Posts: 3770
- Joined: Thu Mar 03, 2005 9:33 pm
- Location: deep in the woods on some epic singletrack
- Contact:
Re: Kooc Troof
While we haven't been down there, we did book camping stalls for the Aug long weekend by phoning the Tobacco plains store and talking to the correct lady (this took some trying...)
The last time we were there I saw lots of great singletrack motorcycle signs all over the place. In talking with the CO's the camping at Km1 seems to be legit and will continue. In future they plan to better identify the legal random camping nodes.
The last time we were there I saw lots of great singletrack motorcycle signs all over the place. In talking with the CO's the camping at Km1 seems to be legit and will continue. In future they plan to better identify the legal random camping nodes.
-
RoachToast
- Contributor
- Posts: 67
- Joined: Wed Dec 15, 2004 7:45 am
- Location: Saratoga Springs, Utah
Re: Kooc Troof
I was riding in the Kooc area on the Labour Day long weekend. Saw many of the signs at the entrance to single track tails. Also saw many of the metal sign posts where the sign had been removed (as was mentioned above). Also ended up on trails that we thought were open, but then found a sign at the exiting end of the trail. The groups in charge of that area have created a complete mess. What a disaster.
I am a Canadian expat living in Utah. When I read and hear about all of the trail and area closures in Alberta and BC, it saddens me. Utah sees the OHV community as a valuable resource in their economy. Alberta and BC seem clueless to that idea. Anyway, having ridden since the early 80's in Calgary and SE BC, it really saddens and disappoints.
I am a Canadian expat living in Utah. When I read and hear about all of the trail and area closures in Alberta and BC, it saddens me. Utah sees the OHV community as a valuable resource in their economy. Alberta and BC seem clueless to that idea. Anyway, having ridden since the early 80's in Calgary and SE BC, it really saddens and disappoints.