Recreation

Objectives

Provide a wide range of developed and dispersed recreation opportunities that contribute to meeting projected recreation demand within the planning area. Provision of recreation opportunities in or adjacent to water will be emphasized.

Manage scenic, natural, and cultural resources to enhance visitor recreation experience expectations and satisfy public land users.

Pursue recreation opportunities that will benefit local community economic strategies consistent with BLM land use objectives.

Manage off-highway vehicle (OHV) use on BLM-administered land to protect natural resources, provide visitor safety, and minimize conflicts among various users. Three areas will be managed specifically to provide for OHV use.

Enhance recreation opportunities provided by existing and proposed watchable wildlife and wildflower areas and national back country byways.

Manage special and extensive recreation management areas in a manner consistent with BLM's Recreation 2000 Implementation Plan and Oregon-Washington Public Lands Recreation initiative. Manage Special Recreation Management Areas to realize their potential to provide appropriate/prescribed recreational experience opportunities while protecting sensitive resources, increasing public awareness, reducing conflicts and diversifying the regional economy. Manage Extensive Recreation Management Areas to provide opportunities for dispersed, unstructured, and resource-dependent recreation uses, while protecting sensitive resources.

Land Use Allocations

See Map 9 for locations for a list of sites and areas.

The congressionally-designated Pacific Crest National Scenic Trail and the Rogue National Wild and Scenic River will be managed to preserve their remarkably outstanding natural resource values and the desired recreational opportunity settings in accordance with applicable legislative mandates.

Special Recreation Management Areas. In addition to continuing management of the three existing special recreation management areas (SRMAs): Hyatt Lake-Howard Prairie Lake, Pacific Crest Trail National Scenic Trail, and Rogue National Wild and Scenic River. Two new SRMAs (Lost Creek and Galesville Reservoir) will be designated.

Recreation Sites and Trails. In addition to the 11 existing recreation sites that will continue to be managed and maintained, 27 potential recreation sites will be managed to maintain their potential for development. The 14 existing trails will continue to be maintained and 16 new potential trails will be developed. These potential sites and trails will be developed as funding and opportunity exists.

Back Country Byways. In addition to continuing management of three existing back country byways, eight new BCBWs will be designated. (NOTE: Map 9 does not correctly illustrate the Williams to Selma Back Country Byway.)

Off-Highway Vehicles. Existing off-highway vehicle (OHV) closures within the congressionally-designated Rogue National Wild and Scenic River and the Pacific Crest National Trail, except for roads crossing the Pacific Crest Trail, will continue in order to protect their outstandingly remarkable recreational resource values and to meet legislative mandates.

All research natural areas (RNAs, 10,274 acres) will be closed to any OHV activity. Areas of critical environmental concern (ACECs, 7,236 acres), environmental education areas (EEAs, 550 acres), and recreational sites/campgrounds (1,000 acres) will be closed or limited to existing roads only depending on the values of the individual site. The Soda Mountain Wilderness Study Area (WSA 5,867) limits OHV use to existing ways/roads only. Big Game areas (268,000 acres) will be limited to existing roads not physically blocked or managed by a seasonal restriction.

About 49,636 acres will limit off-highway vehicle (OHV) use to existing roads. These acres are in deferred watersheds in the Ashland, Butte Falls, and Grants Pass resource areas. These watersheds have been identified as having high cumulative effects and management activities, including timber harvest and other surface disturbance, will be deferred for ten years. In certain instances, some watersheds will limit use to rocked or surfaced roads only. The northwest part of the district has been designated as limited and will limit off-highway vehicles to existing open roads unless specifically designated as closed. The remaining portion of the district will be considered open unless specifically limited or closed with a special designation.

The winter tubing hill (10 acres) and cross-country ski trails in the Ashland Resource Area will be closed to OHVs. Snowmobiles will be limited to existing roads when traveling through big game areas that are not seasonally closed. In other areas when a snow depth of 12 inches is reached, areas will be considered open and not limited to existing roads.

Off-highway vehicle use will be limited to designated roads in areas that have been infected with Port-orford root disease.

Three areas, Ferris Gulch (2,200 acres), Timber Mountain/John's Peak (16,250 acres), and Quartz Creek (7,120 acres) will be managed to provide for OHV use. See Table 8.

Management Actions/Direction

Management Actions/Direction - General

Enhance travel and recreation management through increased emphasis on interpretive and informational signs and maps. Identify on informational handouts at field locations, all major travel routes within the planning area. Prepare a districtwide travel map for public distribution. These actions, and others, will support State and local strategies to encourage tourism.

Manage recreation areas to minimize disturbance to a number of fungus and lichen species known to occur within these areas. Follow survey and manage actions/direction as stated in the introduction to Land Use Allocations and Resource Programs.

Management Actions/Direction - Riparian Reserves

Design new recreational facilities within riparian reserves, including trails and dispersed sites, so as not to prevent meeting Aquatic Conservation Strategy and riparian reserve objectives. Construction of these facilities should not prevent future attainment of these objectives. For existing recreation facilities within riparian reserves, evaluate and mitigate impacts to ensure that these do not prevent, and to the practicable extent contribute to, attainment of Aquatic Conservation Strategy and riparian reserve objectives.

Adjust dispersed and developed recreation practices that retard or prevent attainment of Aquatic Conservation Strategy and riparian reserve objectives. Where adjustment measures such as education, use limitations, traffic control devices, increased maintenance, relocation of facilities, and/or specific site closures are not effective, eliminate the practice or occupancy.

Management Actions/Direction - Late-Successional Reserves

Retain and maintain existing recreation developments consistent with other management actions/direction for late-successional reserves.

Use adjustment measures such as education, use limitations, traffic control devices, or increased maintenance, when dispersed or developed recreation practices retard or prevent attainment of late-successional reserve objectives.

Neither construct nor authorize new facilities that may adversely affect late-successional reserves.

Review on a case-by-case basis new recreation development proposals. They may be approved when adverse effects can be minimized and mitigated.

Locate new recreation developments to avoid degradation of habitat and adverse effects on identified late-successional species.

Remove hazard trees along trails and in developed recreation areas.

Management Actions/Direction - All Land Use Allocations (LUAs)

In addition to the guidelines for late-successional and riparian reserves, manage recreation resources consistent with the LUAw, in which they occur, and consistent with the following guidelines.

Management Actions/Direction - Recreation Sites and Trails

Limit burn acreage within all developed sites and recreation trail areas. Use prescribed fire to reduce fire hazard and to protect developed sites from wildfire. Restrictions on fire suppression equipment use and activities should be identified on a site specific basis.

Manage timber within developed recreation sites for purposes of removing hazard trees, providing space for additional facilities and activity areas, and providing desired regeneration of the forest canopy.

Pursue mineral withdrawals for existing developed recreation sites and for proposed recreation sites when development is approved.

Management Actions/Direction - Special Recreation Management Areas

Address special recreation management area issues and prioritize projects in watershed analyses or separate recreation area management plans, as appropriate. Prepare project plans as needed.

Management Actions/Direction - Extensive Recreation Management Areas

Address extensive recreation management area issues and prioritize projects in watershed analyses. Prepare project plans as needed.

Management Actions/Direction - Back Country Byways

Coordinate management of back country byways with county governments, chambers of commerce, regional tourism alliances, and the U. S. Forest Service. Designation of backcountry byways does not change how adjacent lands are managed.