Salmon-Challis National Forest Borah Peak Recommended Wilderness Area USFS Region 4 - Idaho

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1 Salmon-Challis National Forest Borah Peak Recommended Wilderness Area USFS Region 4 - Idaho The Salmon-Challis National Forest recently designated 109 miles of new motorized routes in Inventoried Roadless Areas and, of these, nine motorized routes were designated in the Borah Peak (shown here) and Pioneer Mountains Recommended Wilderness Areas. Idaho alone illustrates the need for a national policy because forests in the upper half (located in USFS Region 1) are proposing to manage recommended wilderness as non-motorized, non-mechanized while forests in the lower half (located in USFS Region 4) are designating motorized routes in these areas. Swauger Lakes Trail, originally designated for hiking and pack and saddle use, was designated as a motorcycle trail in the recently finalized travel management plan. Shown: Upper left, upper right, and lower left. Lost Creek Road (shown above) was designated in the Borah Peak inventoried roadless and recommended wilderness area in the recently completed travel planning process. The road runs at least 3 miles into the Borah Peak area and is available for use by full-sized cars and trucks.

2 Sawtooth National Forest White Clouds Recommended Wilderness USFS Region 4 - Idaho The Sawooth National Forest allows for motorized use in recommended wilderness areas, including the White Clouds (shown here), Pioneer Mountains and Hanson Lakes areas. Damage to Wilderness potential is common among forests that allow motorized use in areas recommended for wilderness. This is a serious concern given that current Forest Service Manual direction (FSM ) requires the agency to manage recommended Wilderness so as not to compromise Wilderness values. These photos taken in the White Clouds area highlight Wilderness values clearly being comprised.

3 Rogue River-Siskiyou National Forest Recommended South Kalmiopsis Wilderness Addition USFS Region 6 - Oregon Above - Map of the Rogue River-Siskiyou National Forest s proposed South Kalmiopsis Wilderness Addition with stream course highlighted and location of the proposed Biscuit Hill motorized trail added (yellow dash line). The Rogue River-Sisikiyou National Forest is proposing to designate this user-created route, located in the recommended South Kalmiopsis Wilderness addition, as a motorized trail in the forest s current travel planning process. The Forest Supervisor, former Under Secretary of Agriculture, Mark Rey, and Governor Ted Kulongoski have all announced support for the expansion of the Kalmiopsis Wilderness. However, designating a motorized trail in a recommended wilderness area could reduce an area s potential to become Wilderness, a violation of Forest Service Manual

4 Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest: Bridgeport Ranger District Recommended Hoover Wilderness Addition USFS Region 4 - California Despite a long-standing recommendation for wilderness designation, the Forest Service continued to allow winter motorized recreation throughout additions to the Hoover Wilderness on the Bridgeport Ranger District of the Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest in California. (Photo above taken in 2006.) As a result, Congress did not designate as Wilderness all of the areas recommended by the agency when it passed its omnibus public lands legislation early in March Rather, those portions where the Forest Service allowed snowmobile use inside recommended wilderness were designated as a winter recreation area, which is intended for use primarily for winter motorized vehicle recreation. The agency s management of its recommended wilderness directly reduced the potential for wilderness designation.

5 Clearwater National Forest Great Burn Recommended Wilderness Area USFS Region 1 Idaho/Montana Border This areal photo of an officially sanctioned snowmobile area was taken over the Great Burn Recommended Wilderness Area in the Clearwater National Forest. While dirtbikes, ATVs, and other ORVs for summer use can degrade the wilderness value of an area, snowmobiles and other over-snow machines can also degrade the wilderness values and an area s wilderness potential. Any policy managing recommended wilderness as non-motorized and non-mechanized should apply to over-snow vehicles as well.