This PLT Wildflower Guide is specific to the Canyon View Preserve, but these flowers grow in almost all our public lands in this area this time of year. You can click to download the two page Guide here.
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This PLT Wildflower Guide is specific to the Canyon View Preserve, but these flowers grow in almost all our public lands in this area this time of year. You can click to download the two page Guide here.  This update from the President of Gold Country Trails Council, Bernie Molloy:
"Sadly, the GCTC board received information that last night caused us to vote to cancel the June 5, 2021 Poker Ride at Skillman Horse Camp for this year. Because we are still in the restrictive Red Tier, Nevada County is still only allowing 50 people at outdoor gatherings. Because of this, USFS will not issue us a permit for an event with more than 50 people. They will only permit for future events, based on current restrictions. The Woods Riders were gearing up for their May 22nd Skillman event, which is nearly identical in scope and size to our Poker Ride. The USFS declined to issue them a permit based on the COVID restrictions now in effect. Woods Riders have decided to cancel their event. They, like us, can not plan and implement a complex plan on short notice, should the regulations loosen at a later time. The GCTC Annual Poker Ride has always been our premier event, and we do not want to damage the ride's reputation by having a last minute event that will not meet GCTC's high standards. Bernard Molloy, President Gold Country Trails Council"  Rattlesnakes are coming out of their dens, basking in the sun, and becoming more active. Today two were spotted on Olmstead Loop, and another on the paved road there. Keep an eye out on the trails, especially at Cronan Ranch, Folsom Lake, Auburn SRA. In our area, rattlesnakes bite hikers, runners, dogs and horses every year, usually starting in April. - Keep your dogs ON LEASH so they don't get bitten. Rattlesnake avoidance training is available all year round. See trainers online, such as "Get Rattled." - Many horses will alert you to snakes - Equestrians should really listen to their horses who can hear and smell them way before their riders can. - Wear long loose pants and high boots. - STAY on the trails. It's almost impossible to see the snakes in high grass. - Mt. bikers slow down so you don't run over them (and get bit in the process). SNAKE FACTS Most people bitten by rattlesnakes have inadvertently stepped or ridden over them. Snakes detect movement by sensing vibrations in the ground. Their eyes see well even in low light. Rattlesnake bites can be dangerous but are very rarely fatal to humans. With proper medical treatment, including antivenin, bites are usually not serious. Rattlesnakes can strike 2/3rds their length, and they are wonderfully camouflaged in the same color grass. NOT ALL RATTLE Young rattlesnakes do not yet have their rattles, though they are as dangerous as adults, according to the National Park Service at Yosemite. Furthermore, some adults may lose their rattles, so it is a good idea look out for the triangular head. After the rattle, rattlesnakes’ most distinctive physical feature is their triangular head. Also, they have vertical pupils, like cat’s eyes. (In Folsom Lake, rattlesnakes that rattle get killed, those that don't...don't. Meaning that after several generations, we have many families of silent snakes.) RATTLESNAKES ARE LOCAL Generation after generation of rattlesnake will use the same dens, sometimes the same den for more than 100 years. Upon leaving their dens, they like to sun themselves on rocks and other open places. Though they are not nocturnal, in the hot summer months they may be more active at night. CALIFORNIA KING SNAKES ARE GOOD SNAKES! Despite their venom, rattlesnakes are no match for California King snakes, which are fond of putting them on their dinner menus. DON'T KILL CALIFORNIA KING SNAKES! (pictures below)
‘Beautiful timing’: Volunteers prepare Daspah Seyo Trail in Grass Valley for public premiere4/10/2021
 New rustic thoroughfares have been added along Wolf Creek through the combined efforts of the city of Grass Valley, Bear Yuba Land Trust, Wolf Creek Community Alliance and the Nevada City Rancheria.
Locals and visitors alike can participate this month in the land trust’s inaugural NatureFest, a free event dedicated to engaging families in the outdoors. The Daspah Seyo Trail, named in honor of the Nisenan people, offers the option to get closer to the water along Wolf Creek. Land trust Trails Coordinator Bill Haire said the paved Wolf Creek Trail, which begins near the wastewater treatment plant, was just opened before the COVID-19 pandemic hit last spring. “It was just beautiful timing because since that it’s been a place for people to get outdoors and walk and exercise and feel safe and all that,” Haire said. Haire said the paved project improves everyone’s access to nature, including those who use wheels out of choice or necessity. “That option is excellent for anyone with any disabilities or those pushing a stroller,” Haire said. “This gives people the option of leaving paved trails for dirt trails.” Haire said because the paved trail is somewhat distant from the creek itself, the land trust approached the city of Grass Valley to ask if it could build a more primitive trail — narrower, rougher — closer to the water’s edge. “We know how humans behave,” Haire explained. “They’re going to go down to the water and rather than have them make their own trails, let’s make one that takes them down a reasonable path — a sustainable trail.” Haire said city readily approved the idea. The “woodsy” trail, set to premiere April 24, was created by volunteers. “The city funded the oversight that the BYLT is doing,” Haire said, referring to project oversight and volunteer management. Haire said his team is wrapping up work on the southern end of the trail as it leaves city and Wolf Creek Lodge property. “’Daspah’ is the name of Grass Valley, and the people here called themselves ’Daspia,’” said Shelly Covert, spokesperson for the Nevada City Rancheria and executive director of the California Heritage Indigenous Research Project. Covert said “seyo” can refer to any type of waterway. Covert said the Wolf Creek Community Alliance’s decision to name the trail in honor of the Nisenan follows a positive trend in her tribe’s visibility. “People are now curious and are asking,” Covert said. “The really unfortunate piece is much of that knowledge is lost.” Covert said she feels a sense of shame when she can’t answer what her people’s ancestors named certain local spots, but feels empowered and creative when asked for input on nomenclature. Covert said her community has received such little attention over the years that naming a trail inspires gratitude even amid the tribe’s current fight for formal recognition. “There’s been nothing for so long,” Covert said. “They’re like, ’you got a trail with a Nisenan word in it?’ and they’re so happy.” Josie Crawford, executive director of the Wolf Creek Community Alliance, said her organization is working with Covert to identify and plant botanicals used by the Nisenan people in a shaded patch of grass 100 yards below the wastewater treatment plant along the new dirt trail. Crawford said the alliance is working with a landscape designer to plant the first iteration of the native plant garden before fall 2021. Crawford said she hopes the flowers will both beautify and edify the surrounding area. Participants in the first annual NatureFest can go to Alan Thiesen Trail at Adam Ryan Wildlife Preserve in Alta Sierra; the Wolf Creek Trail; the Litton Trail near Sierra College; or Banner Mountain’s Cascade Canal Trail on April 24 to explore the region’s flora and fauna. “When you do get down in there you’re pretty much in a different world,“ Haire said of the Daspah Seyo Trail, adding ”even though there’s a shopping center within a quarter of a mile.“ CLICK HERE to see many more photos and the complete article in The Union newspaper.  By Kelsey Marier - Published: Apr. 8, 2021 at 10:35 PM PDT
TRUCKEE, Calif. (KOLO) - For the first time, a new class of electric bicycles is allowed on 35 miles of trails in the Tahoe National Forest. This shift means a new experience is waiting for you and your family. "I see E-bike use continuing to grow in the region." said Jonathan Cook-Fisher, District Ranger in Truckee Ranger District Forest officials have opened up 35 miles of existing non-motorized trails to class 1 E-bikes in and near Truckee. It's the first national forest in the Pacific Southwest region to allow these types of bikes on its trails. They were not allowed before because they were put in the same class as motorized vehicles. "They are particularly popular with families, or with individuals who are maybe reengaging with mountain biking, perhaps recovering from knee surgery, or lost that ability to really get out deeper into the trails and explore the forest," Jonathan Cook-Fisher, District Ranger in the Truckee Ranger District said. So what is an E-bike? "it provides a power-assist that's most useful on flat or uphill terrain. You have to be pedaling for that motor to be engaged and it does shut off at 20 miles an hour, Cook-Fisher said. Class 2 E-bikes have a throttle and max assisted speed of 20 mph. Class 3 E-bikes are pedal-assisted only, with a max assisted speed of 28 mph. According to Cook-Fisher, class 1's have most of the same components as a traditional mountain bike and are safe when it comes to speed. Cook-Fisher added, "The class 1 E-bike is very quiet, you may not even notice that the person who just rode by you is on a class 1 E-bike. A standard mountain bike rider going downhill was actually able to achieve higher speeds than a class 1." (MLT: This statement is disputed and speed depend on the trails traveled. Basic physics would tell us since the e-bikes are considerably heavier, they can achieve higher speeds going downhill. Because they have a motor, they can travel much faster and farther uphill than standard mt. bikes.) Class 1 E-bikers can now ride on the Emigrant Trail, Big Chief Trail, and Sawtooth Trail. Cook-Fisher says this mode of transportation won't leave a negative imprint on our planet and provides inclusive access to what the Tahoe National Forest has to offer. (MLT: This statement is disputed by environmental, hikers and equestrian groups. Tahoe National Forest has been sued by several groups for adding motorized e-bikes on non-motorized trails without proper science and process.) "The environmental impacts from E-bikes are indistinguishable from standard mountain bikes," Cook-Fisher said. (MLT: This statement is disputed by environmental, hikers and equestrian groups. Tahoe National Forest has been sued by several groups for adding motorized e-bikes on non-motorized trails without proper science and process.) In addition to the 35 miles of non-motorized trails in the Tahoe National Forest, the Town of Truckee allows all three classes of E-bikes on 22 miles of scenic paved paths, bringing the total to 57 miles of paved and dirt trails open for riding. To view a map of the multi-use paved trails and bike paths, click here. CLICK HERE to see the article and view the television news on KOLO-TV  A proposal to allow certain electronic bikes access to nearly 150 miles of trails in the Tahoe-area basin is a step in the right direction but still has a long way to go, according to area riders.
The U.S. Forest Service’s Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit allows certain classes of e-bikes on 25 of its 385 miles of trails. Under the management unit’s proposed plan, an additional 120 miles of new and existing trails would open to e-bikes, bringing the total number of e-bike accessible miles to 145, not counting dirt roads. “This project is our effort at being proactive and managing e-bikes,” according to Jacob Quinn, engineering technician for the LTMBU. “We’re not trying to only open difficult and longer trails, but a variety.” But Collins said the forest service is a little behind the ball and keeping e-bikes off non-designated trails will be a challenge. One reason e-bikes are being pushed onto public trails - money: "The first year, e-bikes accounted for 1 percent of dollar sales at the shop. But by the third year, they accounted for 5 percent of dollar sales; by the fifth year, they accounted for 35 percent; and last year, they accounted for 75 percent of total dollar sales at College Cyclery. (An entry-level mountain e-bike is about $5,500...)" But “the general sentiment with e-bikes is pretty polarized,” according to Amanda Wentz, a board member with the Biggest Little Trail Stewardship, a nonprofit group that builds and maintains trails throughout the Reno area. “From a management perspective, it makes sense why they are so tricky – it’s a grey area.” The Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit spans Alpine, El Dorado and Placer counties in California, plus Douglas and Washoe counties and Carson City in Nevada. Nevada has not adopted a tiered e-bike classification system, but California has, depending on the speed the bike can travel and how much assistance riders must provide the vehicle.
Wentz, who has only ridden an e-bike for a few weeks, said she hears many misconceptions about them, such as the bikes chewing up trails.“There’s just not enough power with an e-bike to actually do that,” she said. “I think there’s misconceptions about the amount of damage they can do.” According to the Rails to Trails Conservancy, “User conflicts caused by speed are more about behavior than technology. Both traditional cyclists – especially fit cyclists or racers – and e-bike users have the potential to cause speed-related user conflicts.” “From a trail-builder standpoint, between a regular and class one e-bike, there’s really no difference in wear on the trail. It’s just a philosophical problem that needs to be resolved,” said Randy Collins, owner of College Cyclery in Reno. Wentz has also observed traditional riders exhibit jealousy toward e-bike riders who are ascending hills faster without working as hard and possessiveness over area trails. “I think of it differently,” she said. “Great. Let’s get people on more trails, and then let’s get more trails.” Under the proposed plan, new and enhanced trailheads including Elks Point and Pine Drop Trailhead in the Kings Beach area will be open to e-bikes, as would the Incline Flume, the Angora Ridge trail system and a new trail to be built in the Emerald Bay area. No trails that access the Desolation Wilderness will be open to e-bikes, nor will the Tahoe Rim Trail. South Lake Tahoe’s Pope Baldwin Bike Path, the highest-use trail in the Tahoe Basin, will also remain closed to e-bikes. “On a summer weekend, there will be thousands of users on it every day. You’ll see hikers, runners, road bikers, people riding beach cruisers, people pushing strollers, everybody uses that trail in the summer. Our intent was to not introduce another use to a trail that is already at capacity,” Quinn said. When Collins started selling e-bikes seven years ago, he didn’t know what to expect. The first year, e-bikes accounted for 1 percent of dollar sales at the shop. But by the third year, they accounted for 5 percent of dollar sales; by the fifth year, they accounted for 35 percent; and last year, they accounted for 75 percent of total dollar sales at College Cyclery. An entry-level mountain e-bike is about $5,500, about the equivalent price of a good mountain bike without a motor, Collins said. Collins switched to riding an e-bike several years ago. It’s now his only bike. “That’s what people generally find when they get an e-bike,” he said. “The old bike becomes an obsolete item.” Collins said more than half of his sales are to regular customers. “Demand is so high with e-bikes,” he said. “When you ride them, your enjoyment factor doubles. It’s intangible. Once you do it, you’ll never go back.” A decision on the proposed Tahoe-area e-bike plan should be made by the end of the year, Quinn said. But Collins said the forest service is a little behind the ball and keeping e-bikes off non-designated trails will be a challenge. “The train left the station a couple years ago. You have to get ahead of this,” he said. “They are making moves to accommodate e-bikes, but they are on trails everywhere right now. They don’t have a way to enforce it. “I don’t think it will make much difference because people are using them now. But from a legal standpoint, it’s a great move forward.” Wentz said she supports the Forest Service’s efforts to catch up to e-bike usage on trails. “I think that e-bikes are only going to increase in popularity, and just mountain biking in general. And if we can all figure out how to play along and play together, that’s pretty good.” CLICK HERE to see the original article and photos in the Reno Gazette Journal newspaper.  There is a new comprehensive overview of the map products available from the Forest Service.
FOREST SERVICE STANDARD MAP PRODUCTS The Forest Service publishes a variety of map products to help you plan your next adventure or enjoy your next visit. MAIN MAP PAGE <https://www.fs.usda.gov/visit/maps> National Overview Maps We've released the next generation Interactive Visitor Map! <https://www.fs.fed.us/ivm/index.html> Visitor Map 2.0, provides the public with an online view of Forest Service roads, trails, recreation sites, wilderness areas, and wild & scenic rivers. “A Guide To Your National Forests” <https://www.fs.usda.gov/sites/default/files/GuideMap-2020.pdf> is a free brochure showing locations of national forests and grasslands along with contact information. Forest Visitor Maps, National Forest Atlas, and Wilderness Maps <https://store.usgs.gov/filter-products> These maps are available for purchase at the U.S. Geological Survey Store, many Forest Service offices and other retail outlets. Many Forest Visitor Maps are also available for purchase as georeferenced PDFs on Avenza, for use on mobile devices. - Forest Visitor Maps for each national forest and grassland provide forest-wide information on attractions, facilities, services, and opportunities. - National Forest Atlases are full color atlases, containing 8.5-inch by 11-inch topographic quadrangle maps at 1 inch to the mile scale and are available for many of the forests in California. - Wilderness Maps are topographic maps that show natural features such as mountains, valleys, plains, lakes, rivers, and vegetation using contour lines depicting elevation gain or loss. Each map covers all or part of one wilderness area and the scale is generally 1 inch per mile (1:63,360). Topographic Maps <https://data.fs.usda.gov/geodata/rastergateway/states-regions/states.php> FSTopo is the Forest Service series of large scale topographic maps. FSTopo maps are 7.5 minute, 1:24,000-scale over the conterminous United States, and 15 minute X 20-22.5 minute, 1:63,360-scale over Alaska. These maps are available in several formats: Geo-enabled PDFs and Geotiffs that contain both collar and non-collar editions in a single zipped file. <https://data.fs.usda.gov/geodata/rastergateway/states-regions/states.php> Hard copies <https://store.usgs.gov/filter-products> are available for purchase at some Forest Service offices, U.S. Geological Survey Store, and some retail outlets. Motor Vehicle Use Maps <https://www.fs.fed.us/recreation/programs/ohv/ohv_maps.shtml> Motor Vehicle Use Maps identify those roads, trails, and areas designated for motor vehicle use are available one or more ways: PDFs Georeferenced PDFs through Avenza. <https://www.avenza.com/avenza-maps/> Printed maps at Forest Service offices. <https://www.fs.fed.us/ivm/> Other Map Products FSGeodata Clearinghouse <https://data.fs.usda.gov/geodata/> The Forest Service Geodata Clearinghouse is an online collection of digital data related to forest resources. Through the Geodata Clearinghouse you can find datasets related to forests and grasslands. You can also find boundaries and ownership, natural resources, roads and trails, and datasets related to state and private forested areas such as insect and disease threat and surface water importance. The information includes map products you can download, raster data, and links to other resources. National Forests and Grasslands produced maps <https://www.fs.fed.us/maps/forest-maps.shtml> Most national forests and grasslands offer online maps or instructions on how to obtain a printed map. Map Services Nationwide datasets are published as map services. These map services are available: In the REST directory <https://apps.fs.usda.gov/arcx/rest/services/EDW> On ArcGIS Online <https://usfs.maps.arcgis.com/home/index.html> On data.gov <https://catalog.data.gov/organization/4ae51f6c-467a-4f9d-b40a-2c52e83c326a?publisher=U.S.+Forest+Service> Dynamic Maps ArcGIS Online Applications ArcGIS Online is a collaborative, cloud-based platform that allows members of an organization to use, create, and share maps, scenes, apps, and data, and access authoritative basemaps and ready-to-use apps. Several National Map Viewer Applications have been created using AGOL and include: Indian Lands Map Viewer <https://usfs.maps.arcgis.com/apps/webappviewer/index.htmlid=fe311f69cb1d43558227d73bc34f3a32> Land Status and Encumbrance Map Service Viewer <https://www.fs.fed.us/land/ALPLandStatusandEncumbrance/> Forest Service Communications Site Map <https://www.fs.usda.gov/managing-land/special-uses/commsitemapviewer> For more maps please visit ArcGIS Online. <https://usfs.maps.arcgis.com/home/index.html> Active Fire Mapping Program <https://fsapps.nwcg.gov/> The Active Fire Mapping Program is an operational, satellite-based fire detection and monitoring program managed by the Forest Service Remote Sensing Applications Center in Salt Lake City, Utah. The Active Fire Mapping program provides near real-time detection and characterization of wildland fire conditions in a geospatial context for the continental United States, Alaska, Hawaii and Canada. Detectable fire activity across all administrative ownerships in the United States and Canada are mapped and characterized by the program. Roadless Roadless maps <https://www.fs.usda.gov/wps/portal/fsinternet/cs/main/!ut/p/z1/04_Sj9CPykssy0xPLMnMz0vMAfIjo8zijQwgwNHCwN_DI8zPwBcqYKAfDlZggAM4GuhHEaMfj4Io_MaH60fpYzEgzAdhgD5-E_w88nNT9QtyQyMMskwUAUTs3ig!/dz/d5/L2dBISEvZ0FBIS9nQSEh/?position=BROWSEBYSUBJECT&pname=Roadless-%20Maps&navtype=BROWSEBYSUBJECT&ss=119930&pnavid=151000000000000&navid=151150000000000&ttype=main&cid=null> The 2001 Roadless Rule establishes prohibitions on road construction, road reconstruction, and timber harvesting on 58.5 million acres of inventoried roadless areas on lands managed by the agency. The intent of the rule is to provide lasting protection for inventoried roadless areas in the context of multiple-use management. National Forest System Land Ownership and Boundary Information <https://www.fs.fed.us/land/ALPLandStatusandEncumbrance/> All these maps are available off of one NFS webpage - MAIN MAP WEBPAGE: <https://www.fs.usda.gov/visit/maps>  Tahoe Basin-e-bikes
MARCH 18, 2021 FROM:T ROY PATTON, BCHC, VICE PRESIDENT, PUBLIC LANDS Once again, the Tahoe Basin area is pursuing opening more trails to e-bike use. (Photo credit: Shutterstock) Comments must be received by MARCH 28, 2021 (instructions below). If equestrians do not comment, they will be left out of any further ability to comment on these changes in the future. It is imperative that these trails are looked at to see which ones are used by equestrians and which might be suitable for e-bike use and which trails we would like to keep for strictly hiker and equestrian use. You can review the trail maps, get more information and comment by going to the following: https://www.fs.usda.gov/project/?project=54566 Some of the proposals in the project are: *my comments are in blue italics . Change 87 miles of non-motorized trails to motorized trails open to class 1 e-bikes only – this is taking trails from one user group and giving them to another. In return they will construct 1mile of non-motorized trail! . Change 1 mile from motorized use to motorized trails open to class 1 e-bikes only. E-bikes, bicycles and motorcycles are all classified the same. Why not put them together. . Designate 4 miles of existing non-motorized trails as motorized open to motorcycles only, seasonal – why not put e-bikes (or all bikes) on the same trails as motorcycles under Forest Service guidelines, they are all motorized? . Construct 23 miles of multi-use trails that are designated as motorized trails open to class 1 e-bikes only - why not just designate these trails for all bikes, e-bikes and motorcycles rather that multi- use where you are inviting accidents and user conflicts. . Construct 5 miles of new trails designated as motorized trails open to motorcycles only, seasonal – Again group bikes, e-bikes and motorcycles all on the same trails as they are all in the same classification. . Construct 3 new trailhead facilities _______________________________________________________________ Basically, this results in 97 miles of new motorized trails for e-bikes and motorcycles and in return they will give 1 mile of new trail as non-motorized! Does that seem a fair trade? As always, they make getting to the comment page a little difficult. The web address listed above may not get you directly to where you can comment. It may take you to the Tahoe Basin page with the title “Projects” at the top. If so, try the following: . Under “Land & Resource Management” click on “Projects” . Under the Heading “Under Analysis” click on “Basin Wide Trail Analysis Project” . On the right side of the screen click on “Comment/Object on project” This will take you to the page where you can type your comment. Please read the top of that page and try to format your comments to answer their questions. If you ride these trails or know anyone who rides or is a horse owner in the Tahoe Basin, please share this information with them. Also, share this information with other horse groups in your area (whether you ever plan to ride there or not). They are basing approval strictly on comments they receive. We need to bring forth as many concerns as possible from all equestrians throughout California. I am sorry for such short notice, but we have been receiving more information from various sources and I wanted to include as much information as possible. Thank you for your help. TROY PATTON, BCHC, VICE PRESIDENT, PUBLIC LANDS outdoortroy46@gmail.com Copyright © 2021 Backcountry Horsemen of California, All rights reserved.  A reminder about the annual spring turkey hunt and temporary closure of Spenceville. No one is allowed in but those with special turnkey hunting permits.
 Truckee, Calif. – The U.S. Forest has recently approved the East Zone Connectivity Project authorizing construction of marquee additions to the Truckee trail network. New trail construction will occur on the west slope of the Verdi Range adjacent to Boca and Stampede Reservoirs near Truckee, Calif.
Specifically, the Connectivity Project approves:
In addition, the Connectivity Project designates thirty-five miles of existing non-motorized trail as open to Class 1 eBikes, including the Sawtooth Trail, the Jackass Ridge trail system, Emigrant Trail, and the Big Chief Trail. This is the first major addition of authorized, Class 1 eBike use on National Forest System trails within the surrounding area. “From the historic paths of the Washoe, the Emigrant Trail and the Transcontinental Railroad,” said Jonathan Cook-Fisher, Truckee District Ranger, “to the more recent additions of Interstate 80 and the Airport District, the Truckee area has often found itself at the center of a trail and transportation network. We hope that the opportunities afforded by the East Zone Connectivity Project, along with other regional trail projects, honors this history. Our community continues to provide an excellent example of collaborative planning and recreation access that others can emulate.” “Specifically, the addition of single-track motorcycle trails to our recreation network was a missing piece, as was the additional opportunities for Class 1 eBikes,” Cook-Fisher continued. “In the future, we envision multiple routes to travel on between the communities of Lake Tahoe’s North Shore through Truckee and on to Verdi or Reno, or west over the Sierra to points beyond.” CLICK HERE to see original article in YubaNet. |
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