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Any Thoughts for a Yellowstone Winter Use Plan?
Yellowstone winter use scoping comments focus on increasing sled numbers
Park County wants more snowmobiles through East Gate
RUFFIN PREVOST Gazette Wyoming Bureau | Posted: Tuesday, March 16, 2010 6:06 pm
CODY — As the National Park Service begins a fourth attempt in recent years to craft a winter use plan, Park County commissioners again are focusing on snowmobiles as a central issue in their scoping comments.
Commissioners on Tuesday released their draft comments, saying that snowmobile travel is a traditional mode of transportation used in the park for nearly half a century, and that it should not require further study or justification.
A public scoping meeting is scheduled for Monday in Cody to discuss the park’s winter use plan, which has been the subject of legal challenges seeking variously to eliminate, limit or expand snowmobile use.
Commissioners are seeking to raise the daily limit of snowmobiles allowed through the East Gate from 20 to 30, and are asking for a pilot project to allow qualified individuals to enter the park without a commercial guide.
Commissioner Jill Shockley Siggins said the Park Service must be made more aware of the socioeconomic issues related to reduced snowmobile traffic, particularly around the East Gate, about 50 miles west of Cody.
She said that rules requiring professional guides and uncertainty over the status of Sylvan Pass have pushed daily visitor numbers from more than 50 in past years to single digits in recent years, costing jobs and setting back winter tourism.
Deputy County Attorney Jim Davis said the county is pursuing a legal argument that snowmobiles are an established form of travel, like automobiles during the summer, and should not be subject to a higher standard of environmental review or legal justification.
Court rulings have required the Park Service to “state why the impacts of snowmobiles are acceptable and necessary before that use can happen,” despite their use for decades, he said.
“That is a fundamental issue the Park Service should examine,” he said.
Snowmobiler Loren Grosskopf urged commissioners at their Tuesday meeting to push for increased access by unguided sledders.
“When they originally started this, they were going to give opportunities for a normal person to become his own guide. But they abandoned that and never allowed that to happen,” Grosskopf said.
“Someone needs to stand up for the average snowmobiler. They can’t fight anymore. A lot of people would love to go snowmobiling through the east entrance again, and winter use around here could blossom again like it used to,” he said.
In their draft comments, commissioners state that individuals trained in a manner similar to commercial guides “could represent a percentage of daily entries at a particular gate while maintaining enough daily numbers to secure the viability of commercial guide operations.”
They also state that the Park Service should rely less on a snowmobile’s date of manufacture to determine if it meets pollution and noise standards. And they say that total daily sled numbers in the park should be increased from 318.
“It’s a drastic change from the way it was on some weekends when there were 4,000 snow machines in the park. Then we settled on a daily average of 960. And through court actions, we’ve gone to where we’re at today, much to my dismay,” said Commissioner Tim French.
Environmental advocates, park planners and others say that limiting the number of sleds and requiring cleaner, quieter models has made winter travel safer, more enjoyable and less stressful for wildlife.
The Park Service regularly reviews its policies to ensure that resources are properly managed, and snowmobiles should not be exempt from that review, they say.
Since 1999, annual visitation numbers in Yellowstone for those using snowmobiles and snow coaches have dropped by approximately 60 percent.
Based on the outcome of the last three winter use plans, many observers expect this latest effort to be challenged, if not settled, in the courts.
Contact Ruffin Prevost at rprevost@billingsgazette.com or 307-527-7250.
© Copyright 2010, The Billings Gazette
Views: 10
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Rusty Grizwald on -
Hi Gina,
I side with the Park Service on this one for a couple of reasons.
1. Avalanches. Maybe Park County would like to take responsibility for managing the snow accumulation. I understand that managing it is both costly and that it is a danger for employees who must carry out the work.
2. One fine day in early spring in 2008 I conversed with a Bighorn ram. He told me that winter was tough enough without having to contend with those @#88 snowmobilers.
The comparison to automobiles is not a very good one since cars are restricted during winter. Why not jet packs? -
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Permalink Reply by Connie on -
I also side with the Park Service on this issue. If more are allowed, they at least should be required to be accompanied by a qualified guide and follow established guidelines about where they can go.
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Permalink Reply by Gina O'Connell on -
Thanks for your comments as it's good to gather differing opinions on this long-standing issue.
FYI, Park County and the State of Wyoming offered to take on the cost of avalanche control about three years ago and got shot down. I believe when this was suggested, a study had shown that in the approximately 50 years of avalanche control at the East Entrance, there had not been one incident of injury to any employee or visitor.
There is also a fear that as limitations get implemented on winter use, so might they also start to be seen on summer visitation such as the "no-vehicles allowed" restriction in place in Denali National Park (you now have to see most of Denali in public shuttle busses). It may never happen in YNP but it needs to be taken into consideration. What if you had to bring (and pay for) a guide with you in your car every time you entered YNP during the summer months? The majority of snowmobilers are rule-abiding riders and you never hear about them. It's the fewer problem ones that get the press coverage, seems like a stricter violation system could somehow be put in place to stop these problem riders. It would be nice to at least see some unguided experienced riders allowed into the park without the expense of a guide. You will always have those who choose to break the rules but this happens in the summer too. I agree that snowmobile numbers should be in line with a level which the wildlife can sustain without harming them. What that level is I will have to leave to educated professionals who, hopefully, fairly assess this situation.
Jet packs would be cool!
See you in YNP! -
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Permalink Reply by Gina O'Connell on
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Here's a little news update:
Winter visits at Yellowstone's east entrance up
Associated Press | Posted: Thursday, March 25, 2010 3:25 pm
POWELL, Wyo. — Preliminary figures from Yellowstone National Park show there were nearly 500 winter visits through the park's east entrance this season, up from 293 last season.
That's still down from about 4,300 winter visits in 2001-2002.
The National Park Service in 2007 announced plans to close the east entrance to winter travel, citing the expense and safety of managing avalanche danger on Sylvan Pass. It relented after local residents and government officials objected.
The agency is in the middle of developing new winter use guidelines for Yellowstone, which could affect winter travel through the east entrance.
FYI: When the NPS put limits on the number of snowmobiles allowed in YNP per day and made that number be all guided, visitation naturally fell. Then, the NPS tried to use this lower number as one of the factors to close the East Entrance stating that the cost of avalanche control outweighed the volume of entry at the East Entrance. In essence, the NPS created the lower numbers and then tried to use those lower numbers to close the entrance. This is when Park County and the State of Wyoming offered to pay for the avalanche control so we would not lose access from the East Entrance in the winter. The NPS finally backed off this issue but now we find ourselves at the crossroads of a new winter use plan being created. This is why this issue is so near and dear to Wyoming residents. 96% of Yellowstone is located within the State of Wyoming and yet we could lose winter access from the only Park entrance located near a Wyoming population center. -
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Permalink Reply by Connie on
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Agreed that it would not be fair to only let the wealthy see the parks by snowmobiles...
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Permalink Reply by Rusty Grizwald on
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Connie, If you see a poor man who has found transportation to Yellowstone, paid for lodging, and rented or bought a snowmobile, report him to the FBI as he has made an unauthorized withdrawal from a bank.
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Permalink Reply by Gina O'Connell on
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Ah, but what about the locals?
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Permalink Reply by Gina O'Connell on
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Here's a topic update - Park County, Wyoming's comments on the YNP Winter Use Plan:
http://www.codyenterprise.com/articles/2010/03/29/news/doc4bb10de0b... -
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Permalink Reply by Rusty Grizwald on
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Hello Gina,
Please do not take my remarks, or those of the ewe personally. I enjoy reading your posts.
The conflict between economic interests and preserving national parks is going to continue. I agree with the Park County dimwit who characterized the Park Service as "Big Brother" and I accept kinship with the Service.
The slippery slope argument professing that disallowing snowmobiles will result in all access to the park requiring guides implies that the Park Service has sinister motives. I'm more inclined to attribute that to Park County Commissioners.
She (below) says that she knows Park County BS when whe sees/smells it.
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Permalink Reply by Gina O'Connell on
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Thanks, Rusty. We'll have to see how this transpires. I know that "ewe", Park County and many others will all be watching. Just have to hope that the East Entrance (or any others for that matter), isn't "rammed" onto the chopping block again.
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Permalink Reply by Todd on -
The biggest problem with this whole issue is a serious lack of understanding of the issue by the general public!!I have just completed my 2nd season guiding in the park and I have heard more propaganda on this issue than anything. Guides are needed! Even a decent snowmobiler doesn't have all the knowledge needed to travel in the park and have a safe trip for both themselves or any others that might be depending on them. I understand the frustration of locals who want things the way they were, but today is a new day(greener) and that changes things too much to return to the old ways. Wildlife encounters can be dangerous for people as well as the animals, and in the winter animals have fewer options to flee from us which can cause more fight reactions in the encounters with people. The issue of the east gate is simple economics, not enough demand for a service that is too expensive to provide from there. While West Yellowstone is set up and well layed out for snowmobile vacations both in and out of the park. Everyone wants to blame NPS, thats just ignorant! This whole thing started with lawsuits against NPS by independant wildlife groups, NPS is just trying to protect themselves from futher costly litigation! NPS makes money from entrance fees, they want as many visitors as possible. The true enemy to those of us who spend winters in the park is a group called The Greater Yellowstone Coalition, and I don't disagree with most of what they do. Heck I used to solicite for their organization at my past job. You learn who they are because they keep real quiet at these meetings, then they spend a small fortune in D.C. on lobbyist and lawyers. They are well funded and very organized, yet most people think the NPS are the bad guys. One more thing I would like to convey to those who don't know, WE ONLY TRAVEL ON ROADS IN THE PARK!!!! Sure there is snow on top of the road, but I'm sick of people thinking we just take off across fields chasing bison. Lastly before get off my soap box I would like to say that this kind of trip is not just for the "rich", I took people in from all walks of life and all socieoeconomic levels from farmers, church groups, and college students to doctors, businessmen, and other well to doers. Just because some people can't show enough initiative to save money for a vacation we shouldn't think of this as an eletist ativity!
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