Dosewallips River Road repair - New EIS Released

[sailBOI]

The new Dosewallips Road DEIS is posted to the ONF web (all 355 pages) . The 60 day public comment period clock should be starting promptly.

 

Ken

 

Draft EIS - cover letter http://www.fs.fed.us/r6/olympic/projects-nu/documents/let%20release%20no%20DEIS.pdf

 

Draft EIS - summary http://www.fs.fed.us/r6/olympic/projects-nu/documents/DEIS%20Summary.pdf

 

Draft EIS (full text) http://www.fs.fed.us/r6/olympic/projects-nu/documents/DEIS%20May%2008.pdf

Edited June 14, 2008 by sailBOI

[RodF]

Friends of Olympic National Park supports the reopening of the Dosewallips Road.

 

The Dosewallips Road provides the sole road access point into the eastern portions of Olympic National Park for 80 miles along Highway 101, between Staircase and Deer Park. It provides access to the Dosewallips Campground (30 spaces), Ranger Station and several trailheads, backcountry camping areas and climbing routes.

 

While overall Park visitation has increased, visitation to backcountry destinations in the Dosewallips drainage has fallen by 71% since the washout (as indicated by the number of backcountry camping permits issued). For this large majority of hikers, the washout has prevented access to Thousand Acre Meadows and many other destinations up the main fork Dosewallips, and to the once very popular cross-Park hike over Anderson Pass and through Enchanted Valley.

 

Access to popular climbing routes for Mt. Constance, Mt. Deception, Mt. Anderson, Sentinel Peak, etc. in the northeastern Olympics has been lengthened such that these are no longer accessible to most climbers as weekend destinations. Elkhorn Campground, a popular starting point for both horsemen and kayakers, is closed. Usage of backcountry campgrounds (Dose Meadows, Bear Camp, Camp Marion, Honeymoon Meadows, Diamond Meadows, Big Timber, etc.) has plummeted. Dispersed camping opportunities are greatly restricted. Usage has shifted to other, already overused, areas, notably Staircase and the upper Big Quilcene, adversely impacting fragile vegetation and the quality of the wilderness experience for visitors.

 

Visitation to the Park's frontcountry Dosewallips facilities (campground, Terrace Loop Nature Trail, dayhikes to Calypso Falls and the Dose High Bridge) has been blocked by the washout, and the Ranger Station has been closed. Access for those individuals with physical limitations has been completely prevented. Administrative use of the Dosewallips Ranger Station, to provide information and interpretive services to Park visitors, support trail maintenance, and support emergency search and rescue operations when needed, has stopped.

 

Together, these effects represent a significant impairment of Park resources and values.

 

We have also thoroughly examined the alternative of decommissioning the upper Dosewallips Road and its conversion to trail. This was analyzed in the 2004 Environmental Assessment, and rejected as not fulfilling National Park and National Forest management goals, as mandated by law, and we concur. Further, proponents have failed to identify any possible route for the heavy equipment required to accomplish this work. We conclude that it would have significantly greater environmental impact, and cost, than simply reopening the road.

 

Friends of Olympic National Park promotes understanding of the Park's ecological, educational, economic and recreational importance through educational and informational programs. We support the Park in preserving its natural, cultural and recreational resources for the benefit of present and future generations. We endorse the goal of Olympic National Park's Final General Management Plan / Environmental Impact Statement: to provide continued seasonal road access to the Dosewallips Ranger Station, Campground and trails, by whichever alternative the Forest Service deems most practical.

 

 

Sincerely,

 

Larry Stetson /s/, President

Friends of Olympic National Park

P. O. Box 2438

Port Angeles, WA 98362

 

To: Dale Horn, Forest Supervisor

c/o Tim Davis, Forest Planner

Olympic National Forest

1835 Black Lake Blvd., Suite A

Olympia, WA 98512-5623

 

cc: Sue McGill, Acting Superintendent, Olympic National Park

Jonathan B. Jarvis, Regional Director, National Park Service

 

Re: WA FS ERFO 2002(1)-21(4): Dosewallips Road Washout DEIS

 

 

[johndavidjr]

Sailboi is the same guy whose Web site offers lots of really weird links to far-right wacko crazy political stuff about the United Nations taking over the world with their black helicopters.

 

He seems to have taken down the anti-darwin link that included an eyewitness account of seeing a dragon flying over the ocean. But that was my personal favorite! Am so sad to see it go.

 

To see what I mean, go to this page on his site, and hit some of the links at left, especially the ones toward the bottom under "related resources" and under "daily news."

 

http://brinnonprosperity.org/focusitem_dose.html

 

Positive proof of devolution in action, and another sad reason not to move to PNW.

 

He and RodF only post on CascadeClimbers.com when they want to talk about this topic. It appears the ice cream-stand constituency is trying to push this, hoping for more RV traffic.

 

Sorry to be so frank about the Web site links, but they make Rush Limbaugh look like a communist.

 

For those who have minimal respect for reality, and any interest in Dose road construction project, see Olympic Park Associates:

 

http://www.drizzle.com/~rdpayne/opa-alerts.html

 

[faster_than_you]

Open the road!! Let the public back in.

[payaso]

Positive proof of devolution in action, and another sad reason not to move to PNW.

 

Don't let the door hit you in the ass.

[quicker_than_ewe]

Open the road!! Let the public back in.

 

Open the road and let the people in!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Fairweather]

johndavidjr; aren't you the guy from New Jersey who flies out here once every year in a big fuel-guzzling airliner, rents a big thirsty SUV, spends two or three days in the Olympic Mountains, and then tries to lecture the good people who actually live here about environmental issues?

 

This road needs to be repaired, and the elitist carpetbagger enviro groups who oppose this traditional access need to be mocked and marginalized.

[Hugh Conway]

johndavidjr; aren't you the guy from New Jersey who flies out here once every year in a big fuel-guzzling airliner, rents a big thirsty SUV, spends two or three days in the Olympic Mountains, and then tries to lecture the good people who actually live here about environmental issues?

 

Tacoma residence makes you local? This is one of those anyone further away from me to there is not a local things isn't it?

[Fairweather]

 

Tacoma residence makes you local? This is one of those anyone further away from me to there is not a local things isn't it?

 

Sailboi lives near the Dose. Reading comprehension issues Hugh? But yes, Tacoma's proximity combined with the amount of time I spend in these mountains sure does make me more of a local than a guy living in Jersey.

[johndavidjr]

Fairweather:

 

With all due respect, I recently read a history of the park called "Olympic Battleground" which was a little bit long and boring, but very comprehensive and meticulously documented.

 

If it were up to the locals, there WOULD HAVE BEEN NO OLYMPIC PARK. NADA NIX NOTHING. The roads were all mapped out and the stumpage fully calculated in terms of board feet.

 

In fact, the park owes its existence in very large measure to the long-term efforts of two HIGHLY ELITIST rich people in New York City, working closely and at times even a little deviously, with a politico/journalist guy, who lived both in DC and St. Louis.

 

Opposition to establishing ONP was die hard and essentially monolithic in the Northwest. They used any and all tactics to kill the idea, including plenty of lies and also, you may be sure, bitter complaints about "elitist outsiders."

 

Getting North Cascades National Park was a cakewalk in comparison (but it too, faced tremendous local opposition).

 

It's an interesting story, and I recommend it particularly to people like yourself, who are fortunate to be so intimately involved with the place.

 

As for sailboi, I don't really mind that he isn't a climber, or even that he doesn't like to hike. Or that he is wrong about the road construction project.

 

Please look at the links on his Web site that I referred to. I think his stuff is really very bad news indeed.

 

 

 

 

[Fairweather]

Your premise regarding the creation of the park has little or nothing to do with current and traditional access. In any event, the Dose repairs are both outside of the National Park boundary. Erroneously laying claim to history does not give you the right to dictate modern policy or terms of use outside law, and painting those with whom you disagree as some kind of evil chainsaw barons from a century passed is suspect. The funny thing about the modern urban boutique enviros is that they seem hell-bent on making enemies out of allies. Do you hear what I'm saying?

[johndavidjr]

Uh Oh... Flame war? Dubious for "Acess" forum...Now don't take this too personally Fairweather, because I respect you perfectly well, and you've been helpful and kind to me a couple of times.

 

But my "premise" about creation of the park isn't a premise but rather just a few facts. I find it ironic to hear the same bleating of generations past about the same issues today.

 

TO say that the Dose issue isn't relevant to park management is ....Not very insightful?

 

What might you have to say about sailboi's link to:

 

"+The Eco-logic site - This is an expose on the Yellowstone National Park, and private property rights."

 

Gee, I wonder what that one's about. A local issue perhaps?

 

Or how about this one:

"+ Michael Crichton - Global Warming"

 

Even better:

"+Still Waiting for the Greenhouse... - the John Daly site."

 

How about his link to the utterly brilliant "Freedom 21" site, where you can read that

 

"it has become clear that U.N. Agenda 21...is a worldwide collectivist government under the penumbra of the United Nations.

 

Successful implementation of U.N. Agenda 21 policies and processes has already resulted in loss of private property throughout the USA. The ultimate outcome of successful implementation of U.N. Agenda 21 will be as follows:

 

* Loss of USA independence

* Forced USA servitude to "developing nations",

* Diminished individual liberties of USA citizens, and

* Loss of private property.

 

 

That's only a taste of what you can find there

 

Sorry, but NOBODY needs somebody like that offering "education" about national park issues.

 

 

[mattp]

Johndavidjr, your post appears to have been the first to offer a personal or tangential attack, based on the idea that sailBOI had some crazy stuff linked on his web page. (I agree that Fairweather's posts continue this trend.)

 

Lets see if in this forum (access issues) we can talk about access issues instead of who is more of a nutcase. In my book, you both lose and it is "outside the scope of this forum." Take that argument to spray.

[RodF]

Reopening of the Dosewallips Road has the unanimous, bipartisan support of all state legislators and county council members representing the area. I'm sure one could selectively criticize one party or the other, but that overlooks the fact that many legislators who support this have substantive environmental records. Attacking individuals simply does not address the issues.

 

Johndavidjr, I read into your words a sincere interest in Olympic National Park, it's history, and the environmental issues and access to Park resources affected by the Dosewallips Road. These issues merit a more thoughtful consideration than is reflected in your comments above. I encourage you to read the DEIS and supporting documentation, and would welcome the opportunity to discuss any substantive issue with you here.

 

Perhaps you will find the environmental issues, while very important, are actually scarcely affected by this project, and the true issue is a philosophical one? And if you support this National Park as I do, you might conclude that restricting public access to it is inconsistent with your values, too?

[johndavidjr]

Yeah, a philosophical thing.

 

You may know there was a plan, in the 1960s? with solid support in Port Angeles, to construct a tramway that would reach far into the Olympic National Park. It was a question of improving public access.

 

Earlier, there were plans for a road up the Elwah and across the Low Divide. That it was never built is an historical anomaly.

 

Then of course, who pays for this Dose construction project? Generally places like Jefferson County are subsidized by federal taxpayers. These places get more value from the feds than they pay out.

 

This is neither tangential nor personal. This looks like a $10-$15 million job. Are there other, more worthy FS projects? Can Jersey City contractors get a piece of this? (Probably.)

 

So the ice cream parlor in Brinnon will sell more ice cream, and project will pay for itself? And what's your problem? You don't want to hike an extra six miles?

 

Somebody ought to open a shop in Brinnon, and rent mountain bikes. What an extraordinary opportunity!!! Brinnon prosperity (.org) will soar!!!!

 

Instead of another government bailout, entrepreneurialism can yet win the day!!!!

 

 

---------

 

[RodF]

Then of course, who pays for the Dose construction project? Generally places like Jefferson County are subsidized by federal taxpayers. They receive more value from the feds than they pay out.

 

This is a project of the Federal Highway Administration's Western Federal Land Highway Division, and is funded from gasoline excise taxes.

 

National Parks and Forests, and the roads within them, are indeed subsidized by federal taxpayers. As to whether they return more value than they cost is a subjective question... one I am surprised to see raised in a climbing or hiking forum (we value these national treasures rather highly, don't we?)

 

This is probably a $10-$15 million project (will please some local contractors?). Are there other, more worthy FS projects?

 

The original proposal, to replace the road in its original alignment, would have cost $320,000. The alternative of decommissioning the road, all facilities on it, removing the bridges, would have cost $490,000. (Costs more because the only way to get the heavy equipment in to decommission the road is to first reopen it, of course.) link to background info

 

The final proposal, to relocate 0.8 miles of road completely away from the river thus obviating the environmental issues, will cost $2,550,000. Summary DEIS

 

This does not come out of the Forest Service budget, and does not compete with other Forest Service roads or projects. funding issues

 

And what's your problem? You don't want to hike an extra six miles?

 

Basically, it is the loss of irreplacable National Park facilities (2 campgrounds, Ranger Station, Nature Trail, etc.) having a replacement cost (if there were a location to replace them, which there isn't) greater than the cost of road repair. This is summarized in Friends of Olympic National Park's comment letter posted above.

 

However, the true value of our National Parks is intangible.

 

[johndavidjr]

So true.

 

 

http://brinnonprosperity.org/focusitem_dose.html

 

 

http://www.drizzle.com/~rdpayne/opa-alerts.html

 

[mtn_mouse]

johndavidjr; aren't you the guy from New Jersey who flies out here once every year, spends two or three days in the Olympic Mountains, and then tries to lecture the good people who actually live here about environmental issues?

 

FW, the park is called

"Olympic National Park", not "Olympic In My Backyard Park".

He has as much right to say what goes on in the park as you do. That is the reality of national parks and it is a good thing that wilderness has a good support group.

 

I do however, agree with you that the dose road should be rebuilt, and I in fact believe in maintaining all current facilities, roads, trails, cabins, & infrastructure in Olympic NP. I think the trend of the NPS to abandon roads is misguided, and certainly wasteful of our tax dollars.

[faster_than_you]

Open the road!! Let the public back in.

 

Open the road and let the people in!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

But keep all the Nodders out.

[spicoli11]

You can still mt bike it..right?

[RodF]

He has as much right to say what goes on in the park as you do.

I completely agree. And that right carries a responsibility to be informed.

 

Everyone should note what is MISSING from the web pages of those opposing the Dose Road: how do they propose to decommission, not abandon but decommission, the upper Dose Road? How do they propose to get the heavy equipment required (bulldozer, tracked excavator, etc) up past the washout, and demolition debris (more than 200 tons from the FS2610-040 concrete bridge alone) back out past the washout? There is only one way: reopen the road in order to decommission it. But does that make any sense? Cheaper to reopen it and leave it open. So they don't say a thing about what they're actually proposing and asking the public to support. That's intentionally deceptive, and it often works.

 

I do however, agree with you that the dose road should be rebuilt, and I in fact believe in maintaining all current facilities, roads, trails, cabins, & infrastructure in Olympic NP. I think the trend of the NPS to abandon roads is misguided, and certainly wasteful of our tax dollars.

Just FYI: after six years of revision and public comment, Olympic National Park just issued its new General Management Plan for the next 20+ years. The plan is to maintain all entrance roads that exist today, just as you suggest.

 

You can still mt bike it..right?

Yes. In fact, you can take a Honda 50 trail motorcycle up it, and the Park Ranger does just that. Its a road. Dogs are OK, too.

[johndavidjr]

Sorry but let's take another look at:

 

http://www.drizzle.com/~rdpayne/opa-alerts.html

 

A Short History of the Dosewallips Road.

 

Much of today's conflict over the Dosewallips road stems from poor decisions in the distant past. In the decades before the creation of Olympic National Park, commercial interests pushed hard for a road across the Olympics. The Brinnon to Lake Quinault route was at the top of their list. The forest service was compliant, and Photographer Asahel Curtis was conscripted into the promotional effort. By the 1930s CCC crews blasted a road up the steep grade of Dosewallips Falls to Muscott Flat. With the creation of Olympic National Park in 1938, road construction was thankfully halted.

 

This legacy of early road building abounds in the Olympics. Hikers today seldom notice that stretches of scenic hiking trails at Staircase, the North and East Fork Quinault, West Elwha, Obstruction Point, Deer Park or Duckabush were at one time early roads. Trail conversions have lessened ecological impacts and created new recreational hiking opportunities that few regret. A Dosewallips River trail would provide nearly year-round hiking, biking, and equestrian access though a magnificent valley forest. It would access two quiet, streamside campgrounds and a spectacular falls. It is by far the best choice for the Dosewallips.

 

For the nutter case, see also

 

http://brinnonprosperity.org/focusitem_dose.html

 

 

And may God bless the 400 households of Brinnon and bring them endless propsperity!!

 

What would Harvey Manning say about this project? If Fred Beckey were/is capable of advanced moral reasoning, what might the values that he has eloquently expressed suggest?

 

This RodF guy only posts here (and certain similar boards) about this multi-million$ Dose construction project. NOTHING else.

 

His rather intense and sudden interest in Cascadeclimbers.com seems...peculiar...

 

 

 

[RodF]

Realize that OPA advocates closing not just the Dosewallips Road entrance to Olympic National Park, but also Queets, Graves Creek (Enchanted Valley) and the North Fork Quinault park entrance roads. They have challenged repairs necessary to keep the Hoh (Rain Forest Visitor's Center) and Sol Duc (Sol Duc Hot Springs) entrance roads open. They've requested the Obstruction Point Road be closed to public use. Just read their newsletters over the past few years; its all there.

 

Their words match their actions. As OPA's vice president wrote, in opposing the reopening of both the Dosewallips Road and the Mountain Loop Highway, "I can tell you that I experience nothing but sheer delight when forest roads wash out. And the harder time the Forest Service has rebuilding them, the better."

 

Close most of the Park's entrances, and the Ranger Stations and campgrounds on them, most Park visitors won't have any reason to come, and few will have the additional days to hike the additional miles to experience Olympic National Park's backcountry at all.

 

Umm, that may be the point? The question is: do you endorse that goal?

 

Loss the Dosewallips Road has kept 71% of backpackers out of the Dosewallips backcountry, and closure of the majority of Park entrances should keep a similar percentage of total Park visitors out. Just as well hang out a "Park Closed" sign.

 

More to the point, keep most of the public out of Olympic National Park, and one must expect it will lose most of its public support and funding, most of which goes to environmental restoration and preservation projects. Do you accept those consequences of keeping most of the public out of a National Park?

 

It should come as no surprise that the overwealming majority of the public do not support this idea.

[RodF]

What would Harvey Manning say about this project?

 

Alas, we'll never know. However, his close collaborator for decades who coauthored 38 guidebooks with him, Ira Spring, did tell the Forest Service what he thought about the Dosewallips Road.

In honoring Harvey Manning, NCCC wrote "Harvey, Ira Spring and Louise Marshall knew, early on, that getting people into wild areas was the best way to make people love those places. They saw that when people were passionate about the backcountry, they were moved to preserve it. That was the main reason they wrote and published guidebooks." said Helen Cherullo, Mountaineers Books publisher. You don't do that by closing roads to trailheads!

 

Please read more about Ira Spring's legacy, the Spring Trust for Trails: "He loved the trails and he just wanted to share that with everyone." not with only a few.

[johndavidjr]

From Jan. 11, 2003 Seattle Times:

 

Manning said his friendship with Spring ended over the summer.

 

"Ira and I were friends for nearly half a century, but not anymore," he said. "He's gone his own way. He's now a trail promoter, not an environmentalist."