My good friend Mark Menlove over at the Winter Wildlands Alliance just sent over the letter below. I wanted to post it so that any backcountry travelers who check in here will take a minute (took me about 10mins) to comment on a proposed Forrest Service rule regarding motorized winter traffic.
With your support, Winter Wildlands Alliance has worked for years to see that snowmobiles play by the same rules as other off-road vehicles. This week, the Forest Service released a draft rule for managing winter motorized use. It’s a good first step, but the proposed rule misses the point on a couple of key details.
The draft says each national forest must designate appropriate trails and areas for winter motorized use, but does little to promote consistency across seasons or different National Forests.
This is a rare opportunity to help shape Forest Service policy. We don’t have a lot of time – closes Aug 4th – but Winter Wildlands Alliance is here to help make sure your voice is heard.
We have an ambitious goal to rally at least 1,000 backcountry skiers, snowboarders and snowshoers to weigh in on this draft rule. Your action today will make a difference across millions of acres of public land. Can you take 10 minutes to share your story right now?
We’ve taken a thorough look at the rule and have some suggestions for improving it, but the Forest Service needs to hear from skiers and snowshoers about how this rule can improve your backcountry experience.
Personal comments are proven to make the biggest difference to decision-makers!
Thanks for all you do,
Mark and the Winter Wildlands team