RyanSpaulding wrote: Oh yeah, maybe folks will stop trying to grow weed up there with more foot traffic as well (not sure if that's a good thing or a bad thing, though )

What? Pot farms in George Creek?



Are you sure those aren't special dietary supplements for the sheep?

wingding wrote:I can only image the hoards of people that will head up George Creek if year-round access is allowed in that area.

I know you are being ironic, but ... I have worried about... "be careful what you wish for, you just might get it."

On my one meager trip to Williamson and Tyndall, via Shepherd Pass, I noticed lots of small rock piles in the camping area at the pass. I didn't check to see what was under the rocks.

I just received John Wehausen's blessing that it can go away!!!!

He agrees that it has outlived it's purpose and is no longer required.

OH YEAH!!

Going to see Margaret Wood this afternoon!!

Wish me luck!!!

Outstanding!!

Good luck there!

Prediction: Mt. Carl Heller's east arete will become the new 'must-do' 4th class route.

Wow. I was just going to draft my letter (been busy lately). I'm not used to things moving this fast in government.

MoapaPk wrote:Wow. I was just going to draft my letter (been busy lately). I'm not used to things moving this fast in government.

That's what happens when a Retired Navy Chief takes on a task like this....

FAILURE IS NOT AN OPTION!

I am out the door. Will try to make get this thing done and OFFICIAL today or tomorrow!!!

cp0915 wrote:Prediction: Mt. Carl Heller's east arete will become the new 'must-do' 4th class route.

If Carl Heller says it's 3rd class, then dammit, it's 3rd class.

Bob Burd wrote:If Carl Heller says it's 3rd class, then dammit, it's 3rd class.

Dammit, Bob! Why did you post the pic? Now I have to wipe the drool off of my keyboard!

goldenhopper wrote:I hope you wore long sleeves Chief. They might wet themselves if you arrive tats exposed and all!

Nope, went in there with short sleeves and let em know who they were dealing with!

Here's the skinny...

Margaret Wood shared with me that all of the Science, including John Wehausen and Tom Stevenson (CAF&G), and FS Law Enforcement folks involved with this entire issue have already been in contact with her and have notified her that they are onboard with rescinding the closure and opening the entire area up, ASAP!

She then explained that there is a 45-120 day "administrative process" that she must adhere to in order to get all the access protocols incorporated which includes determining the Wilderness Permit parameters, set them up and then implement em.

She promised me that she will get this process started tomorrow and officially assign a management team on the 21st of this month, to initiate all the line items required, get all the folks involved together and then blah blah blah to get this done!!!

It will culminate with an open public meeting to get the public's voice, which she admitted she already knows where the majority stand on this issue, "Open it Up Now!!!" and then she will send her blessing to her boss who then clears her to officially rescind the 38 years old order to open it up.

SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!

You all need to get everyone you know to email her, send her letters and call her and tell her to make this happen immediately!! No procrastination, no stop here or anything...

JUST DO IT NOW!!!!!!

The meeting ended with me looking her square in the eyes and I told her straight up that I will be checking in with her every 10 days or so to get a status report of where the process stands. I informed her that this has become my "pet project" and I will see this through all the way to the day she signs the order.

We shook hands and I then thanked her for doing this, winked at her and then told her ...

FAILURE IS NOT AN OPTION!

The Chief wrote:Even Wehausen himself, the original author of this closure, believes this closure is outdated with the incorporation of today's precise sat tracking technology.

This is the most cogent argument. Are his statements written up anywhere?

Does anyone have access to the 1979 article that is so vaguely quoted in much literature?

I respect Diggler's comments. It is just jarring to have been in other bighorn terrains, and see the sheep so oblivious to backcountry hikers. I've had mountain bighorns sneak up behind me and begin chewing on my shirt; that didn't seem like shy behavior. Yes, I do believe that barely-surviving herds can be more skittish, pushed to the limits by the mere effort of running away from humans; but maybe that tells us something about their viability.

MoapaPk wrote:

The Chief wrote:Even Wehausen himself, the original author of this closure, believes this closure is outdated with the incorporation of today's precise sat tracking technology.

This is the most cogent argument. Are his statements written up anywhere?

Yup!! He passed onto me during this morning's discussion that he in fact indicated several times to the FS through memos, during both the Recovery Plan Draft and Critical Area Desig process, his staunch recommendation to open up this study closure which he helped secure in 1981. That it in fact had long served it's initial process and that he indeed felt through his recent field research, study and analysis that the amount of minimal human contact that would in deed frequent the area, would not be anything that he is worried nor concerned about. Tom Stevens shared the same sentiment when we spoke last week

The Chief wrote:
The meeting ended with me looking her square in the eyes and I told her straight up that I will be checking in with her every 10 days or so to get a status report of where the process stands. I informed her that this has become my "pet project" and I will see this through all the way to the day she signs the order.

We shook hands and I then thanked her for doing this, winked at her and then told her ...

FAILURE IS NOT AN OPTION!

Chief,

Sounds promising, like this might actually go through ... either that, she just put a restraining order out on you this morning

Thanks for pursuing this!
g4b

granite4brains wrote:

The Chief wrote:
The meeting ended with me looking her square in the eyes and I told her straight up that I will be checking in with her every 10 days or so to get a status report of where the process stands. I informed her that this has become my "pet project" and I will see this through all the way to the day she signs the order.

We shook hands and I then thanked her for doing this, winked at her and then told her ...

FAILURE IS NOT AN OPTION!

Chief,

Sounds promising, like this might actually go through ... either that, she just put a restraining order out on you this morning

Thanks for pursuing this!
g4b

No worries... She knows now I am not the only one with a watchful eye. She indicated to me that she has already received numerous emails and phone calls in the past week concerning this matter.

THE PEOPLE HAVE SPOKEN!