Tellico in Trouble, Threatened Trail Closures

carljwnc · 09-22-2007, 03:40 AM

Hopefully this isn't a repost, I did search and found nothing recent. Ever since I've lived in this area, I've been hearing of such issues about Tellico, so I guess this is just the latest round.

NCSU-4runner pointed out this thread on the North Carolina 4X4 Forum in another post;
http://www.nc4x4.com/forums/showthread.php?t=30145
04 Rocko Taco also has a post in this forum from a couple of months ago. What really caught my attention was a couple of weeks ago, it was front page news in the Asheville Citizen Times and since then there have been two other articles.
http://www.citizen-times.com/apps/pb...D=200770914112
http://www.citizen-times.com/apps/pb...D=200770918047
http://www.citizen-times.com/apps/pb...D=200770920118
The 2nd and 3rd are pretty much copies of one another, but might as well post them up.

The thread from the NC 4X4 Forum seems to have the best instructions as to what you can do to help out. Hopefully some kind of compromise can be worked out to keep all the trails open. My .02 says that perhaps a winter closure might be the best solution, but I'd also like to hear what others have to say.

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NCSU-4runner · 09-22-2007, 07:34 AM

IMO, theres hundreds of miles of creeks/rivers and maybe a few hundred yards of that ever comes any where near OHV trails. Saying there is a direct correlation between OHV use and sediment leading to declines in trout/other species is highly questionable. The run-off from other causes has to FAR outweigh what we produce. I requested detailed copies of any SCIENTIFIC study, but doubt I'll ever see any. Anyone thats ever been to tellico can tell you there's breaks in the downhill portions of nearly all the trails which prevent runoff from gaining velocity and carrying significant amounts of sediment anywhere and those are installed by VOLUNTEERS who CARE about the environment.

carljwnc · 09-23-2007, 05:04 AM

I dug a little deeper on NC4X4forum and found This Thread with a good example of someones letter on page 2. Sounds like they want to hear voices by Oct. 17th. I'm not a great writer concerning affairs like this, so this example is a good one for others (like myself) to pattern after.

We can point fingers in any direction we want, but if we don't DO anything then we can't complain when the trails get shut down. When I get my letter written I'll post a copy here for others to see.

carljwnc · 09-23-2007, 05:56 AM

Alright took me about 10min. Heres a copy of what I sent, anyone who wants to use it as a template, feel free (might take you less than 10 mins.

).

Quote:

Dear Forest Service Representatives,
Being relatively new to both the sports of off-roading and trout fishing, I am against even the temporary closure of any of the Tellico trails. There are hundreds of thousands of fishing spots in Western North Carolina and only a very few where we can enjoy the use of our four wheel drive vehicles.
I would be interested to see any studies made to the effect that the off-road vehicles are in fact the cause of all the runoff. I have been to Tellico a few times and it seems that there may be other causes as well, development seems to be taking place in the area and I know that it can cause excessive runoff as well.
Uwharrrie and Brown Mountain both have a winter closure policy. Would Tellico benefit from a similar policy? I would support a similar winter closure in Tellico if it would mean that all the trails would be able to remain open.
I would like to thank you for your time and the privilege given us to comment on the management of the area we enjoy visiting.
Thank you for your continued support in our sport.

Carl Johnson
Fairview, NC

Heres the address to send it to: comments-southern-north-carolina-nan...itee@fs.fed.us

Thanks Folks!!!

09-22-2007, 07:34 AM	#2 (permalink)
NCSU-4runner Contributing Member Join Date: Apr 2003 Location: Raleigh NC Posts: 1,597	IMO, theres hundreds of miles of creeks/rivers and maybe a few hundred yards of that ever comes any where near OHV trails. Saying there is a direct correlation between OHV use and sediment leading to declines in trout/other species is highly questionable. The run-off from other causes has to FAR outweigh what we produce. I requested detailed copies of any SCIENTIFIC study, but doubt I'll ever see any. Anyone thats ever been to tellico can tell you there's breaks in the downhill portions of nearly all the trails which prevent runoff from gaining velocity and carrying significant amounts of sediment anywhere and those are installed by VOLUNTEERS who CARE about the environment. __________________ Jeremy, 94 4Runner Turbo Leaf Spring SAS front - Coilover 4link rear (starts December) / Supra Swap My Truck is featured on Supracharged.com - Home of the original Supra swap and Forum One of two things will happen, I will die, or the truck will be finished. I'm not sure which will be first. Last edited by NCSU-4runner; 09-22-2007 at 07:39 AM.

09-23-2007, 05:04 AM	#3 (permalink)
carljwnc Registered User Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: Fairview, NC Posts: 75	I dug a little deeper on NC4X4forum and found This Thread with a good example of someones letter on page 2. Sounds like they want to hear voices by Oct. 17th. I'm not a great writer concerning affairs like this, so this example is a good one for others (like myself) to pattern after. We can point fingers in any direction we want, but if we don't DO anything then we can't complain when the trails get shut down. When I get my letter written I'll post a copy here for others to see. __________________ '94 'YotaRu' 4Runner 3.slo MT '03 'Blubaru' Forester X

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