Even if you don't live in California or Nevada please take 5 minutes, that's all it will take, maybe even less, to help stop more Federal land closures.
After all these are OUR PUBLIC LANDS, not CBD's, not the Sierra Club's!
> PLEASE HELP US KEEP THIS VERY IMPORTANT BACKCOUNTRY ROAD OPEN
>
> It was recently learned that the Center For Biodiversity, Sierra Club,
> and others are flooding BLM and Forest Service fax machines with comment
> letters requesting the total closure of Furnace Creek to motorized access.
> Yesterday alone, the BLM received 500 letters supporting the closure.
> This is NOT the Furnace Creek located within Death Valley but another
> Furnace Creek in the White Mountains between Bishop, CA and Dyer, NV.
> Thanks to Randy Banis of Death Valley Dot Com we now have our own
> Internet fax software to easily send faxes to the BLM and Forest Service
> to
> support a modified version of Alternative #6 which would keep the long
> existing road open for public use. The comment period is open until
> February 17 so we have enough time to offset the closure advocates mass
> faxes.
> Please help us keep this fabulous backcountry experience open to the
> public. Go to http://www.deathvalley.com/action/furnace_creek.shtml, fill
> in the appropriate blanks, scroll down the page, review the letter, and
> click on the "send my fax" button. A fully customized letter with your
> name and address will be automatically faxed to the BLM and Forest Service
> and a copy returned to you via e-mail for your records.
> The Furnace Creek Road is an incredible 8.5 mile road on the eastern
> side of the White Mountains that begins near Dyer Nevada. The road was
> originally built at the turn of the last century for ranching and mining.
> It was improved with heavy equipment in the early 1950s. The road passes
> old mines, old corrals, an elaborate old cow camp, and many points with
> breathtaking vistas. Up until the CBD lawsuit, it was one of the best
> kept
> secrets and used almost exclusively by locals. Roger Mitchell, in his
> 1969
> book, "Inyo Mono Jeep Trails", states, "Furnace Creek Road undoubtedly
> offers one of the most interesting jeep trips in the county. Mitchell
> goes
> on to say, "Unlike many canyon roads, the jeep trail up Furnace Creek did
> not just happen. As you will soon see, the route has been carefully
> constructed. In places where the canyon bottom was impassible, a-road was
> bulldozed out of the canyon wall". The road, at least the two-track
> portion, ends at Tres Plumas Flat, a most beautiful aspen dotted flat
> situated at 9200 ft. elevation. There are several deer hunter's camps
> dispersed in the aspen groves. The view from Tres Plumas Flat is
> astounding and makes one think of a calendar quality photo.
> The Inyo National Forest Land Use and Management Plan designated the
> entire Furnace Creek Road corridor to Tres Plumas Flat as "Semi-Primitive
> Motorized Recreation". The environmentalist have fought for 20 years to
> close the road because it would be a corridor into their proposed
> wilderness legislation, however, there has never been adequate resource
> concerns to justify closure. There are no Threatened or Endangered flora
> or fauna, no fishery, or any other identifiable significant issues. The
> riparian issue is associated with only a very tiny portion of the road.
> In
> fact, there really isn't any creek as there is no water flow except during
> spring runoff and heavy rains.
>
> PLEASE PASS THIS MESSAGE ON TO ANY FRIENDS OR ASSOCIATES THAT SUPPORT
> PUBLIC ACCESS TO PUBLIC LANDS.
>
>
>
>
>
> This information is provided by Ron Schiller, Chairman, High Desert
> Multiple Use Coalition. As usual, please feel free to pass this
> information on to any other interested parties. Anyone wishing to receive
> future information regarding issues related to the management of public
> lands in the California Desert should send an e-mail to
> [email protected] and request to be placed on the distribution
> list. Please print "PLEASE ADD TO LIST" in the subject line.
After all these are OUR PUBLIC LANDS, not CBD's, not the Sierra Club's!
> PLEASE HELP US KEEP THIS VERY IMPORTANT BACKCOUNTRY ROAD OPEN
>
> It was recently learned that the Center For Biodiversity, Sierra Club,
> and others are flooding BLM and Forest Service fax machines with comment
> letters requesting the total closure of Furnace Creek to motorized access.
> Yesterday alone, the BLM received 500 letters supporting the closure.
> This is NOT the Furnace Creek located within Death Valley but another
> Furnace Creek in the White Mountains between Bishop, CA and Dyer, NV.
> Thanks to Randy Banis of Death Valley Dot Com we now have our own
> Internet fax software to easily send faxes to the BLM and Forest Service
> to
> support a modified version of Alternative #6 which would keep the long
> existing road open for public use. The comment period is open until
> February 17 so we have enough time to offset the closure advocates mass
> faxes.
> Please help us keep this fabulous backcountry experience open to the
> public. Go to http://www.deathvalley.com/action/furnace_creek.shtml, fill
> in the appropriate blanks, scroll down the page, review the letter, and
> click on the "send my fax" button. A fully customized letter with your
> name and address will be automatically faxed to the BLM and Forest Service
> and a copy returned to you via e-mail for your records.
> The Furnace Creek Road is an incredible 8.5 mile road on the eastern
> side of the White Mountains that begins near Dyer Nevada. The road was
> originally built at the turn of the last century for ranching and mining.
> It was improved with heavy equipment in the early 1950s. The road passes
> old mines, old corrals, an elaborate old cow camp, and many points with
> breathtaking vistas. Up until the CBD lawsuit, it was one of the best
> kept
> secrets and used almost exclusively by locals. Roger Mitchell, in his
> 1969
> book, "Inyo Mono Jeep Trails", states, "Furnace Creek Road undoubtedly
> offers one of the most interesting jeep trips in the county. Mitchell
> goes
> on to say, "Unlike many canyon roads, the jeep trail up Furnace Creek did
> not just happen. As you will soon see, the route has been carefully
> constructed. In places where the canyon bottom was impassible, a-road was
> bulldozed out of the canyon wall". The road, at least the two-track
> portion, ends at Tres Plumas Flat, a most beautiful aspen dotted flat
> situated at 9200 ft. elevation. There are several deer hunter's camps
> dispersed in the aspen groves. The view from Tres Plumas Flat is
> astounding and makes one think of a calendar quality photo.
> The Inyo National Forest Land Use and Management Plan designated the
> entire Furnace Creek Road corridor to Tres Plumas Flat as "Semi-Primitive
> Motorized Recreation". The environmentalist have fought for 20 years to
> close the road because it would be a corridor into their proposed
> wilderness legislation, however, there has never been adequate resource
> concerns to justify closure. There are no Threatened or Endangered flora
> or fauna, no fishery, or any other identifiable significant issues. The
> riparian issue is associated with only a very tiny portion of the road.
> In
> fact, there really isn't any creek as there is no water flow except during
> spring runoff and heavy rains.
>
> PLEASE PASS THIS MESSAGE ON TO ANY FRIENDS OR ASSOCIATES THAT SUPPORT
> PUBLIC ACCESS TO PUBLIC LANDS.
>
>
>
>
>
> This information is provided by Ron Schiller, Chairman, High Desert
> Multiple Use Coalition. As usual, please feel free to pass this
> information on to any other interested parties. Anyone wishing to receive
> future information regarding issues related to the management of public
> lands in the California Desert should send an e-mail to
> [email protected] and request to be placed on the distribution
> list. Please print "PLEASE ADD TO LIST" in the subject line.