Cooks Meadow Extension Day 1

Posted on November 2, 2015 by 44trails

The motley crew of trail workers – slideshow of images at bottom of page

Well, despite the weather taking a serious shift toward the cold and wet, 44 Trails fans turned out in force for our first day of trail work on the new Cooks Meadow extension trail.

Many thanks to everyone who braved the weather and helped rough in several miles of sweet new hand-built single track!

We had trail users from Bend, Vancouver, Portland, Dufur as well as the Hood River Valley and White Salmon. What a great crew! And, truth be told, the weather wasn’t really too bad. We actually had snow in the air and sun breaks.

A big thanks to our sponsors. The following businesses go out of their way to help make our events a success and deserve your business: Fresh Baked Goods from PINE STREET BAKING, Fresh Coffee from DOG RIVE COFFEE, Great Sandwiches and chips from NEW YORK CITY SUBS, Poster Printing from THE UPS STORE in Hood River, Swag from DIRTY FINGERS BIKE SHOP, Hats from PISTIL DESIGNS, Softwoods from DAKINE, monetary donations from FAT TIRE FARM / HOOD RIVER BICYCLES and THE SIXTH STREET BISTRO.

As much as we’d love for the snow to start stacking up in the hills, we’re hoping to pull off two more trail days! Here’s the dates – stay tuned for updates as the date approaches – if you sign up for our e-mail list, you’ll get the notification about the work day!

Saturday, November 21, 2015
DETAILS: Meet 9am at Little John SnoPark on Highway 35
PROJECT: Tread work

Saturday, December 5, 2015
DETAILS: Meet 9am at Little John SnoPark on Highway 35
PROJECT: Tread work

Mt Hood Wilderness

Posted on October 16, 2015 by 44trails

Oregon Wild is still working to expand the Mt Hood Wilderness designation in the Boulder Lake / Barlow District area of the Mount Hood National Forest. It’s all part of what they call “unfinished business” related to the 2009 legislation which added wilderness status to new sections of the Mt Hood National Forest.

The newest additions sought will impact mountain bike recreation on the Barlow District of the Mt. Hood National Forest by closing access to bikes. Specifically, the Boulder Lake zone and the various rides that connect to that area will become closed to bikes. Mt bike access was already impacted by the 2009 Wilderness legislation and this proposal expands the impact.

At this point, the best way to voice your opinion on the proposal is to write our regional reps in the House and Senate – Walden, Wyden, Blumenauer. For those who would like to offer their opposition to increased wilderness designation, here are a few talking points:

Between wilderness designation and Bull Run watershed protection, the Mt Hood National Forest has very limited access for multi-use recreation. Adding wilderness designation to more areas further limits an already small multi-use trail system.
Contrived wilderness segments with preserved road access weaken the Wilderness Act by not staying true to the Act’s original intent.
These are lands which should be managed primarily for recreational value— the areas with true wilderness values on Mt. Hood have already hold wilderness designation.
Putting the wilderness blanket over these lands makes it difficult to manage them for recreational value — ie. trail maintenance and construction is limited to hand tools so all blowdown must be cleared without mechanized help (chainsaws).
We debated these same areas before the 2009 legislation was passed. The current wilderness designation reflects a compromise that was reached between interested parties. Now, we’re being asked to compromise on the compromise.
The 2009 wilderness designation resulted in the loss of approximately 100 miles of multi-use trails and roads. Traffic and use on the remaining multi-use trails in the system has increased to the point that these trails are showing increased signs of wear and tear, requiring more maintenance.

Fire Closure – Mt Hood National Forest

Posted on October 6, 2015 by 44trails

If you have not heard, there is a fire near Badger Lake on the Barlow District of the Mt Hood National Forest.

It’s not directly affecting the bulk of the 44 Trails zone, but there are a number of closures to consider if you are headed up to the area, most notably High Prairie, Gumjuwac, Gunsight and most everything adjacent to Badger lake including the Boulder Lake.

Here’s the latest official info from the USFS.

Media Information Line: 503-668-1791/503-668-1776
Public Fire Information: (541) 467-2291
Office hours: 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

10/6/15 UPDATE:

The Badger Lake Fire is approximately 60 acres in size and burning in heavy dead and down timber. The fire is located northwest of Badger Lake in the Badger Lake Wilderness. Steep terrain, limited road access and an abundance of snags (standing dead trees) pose challenges for firefighter safety. Retardant was dropped on Forest Road 3550 yesterday with the goal of keeping the fire within the wilderness. Additional retardant has been ordered. Two helicopters continue to work on the fire.

The Badger Lake Fire began on Saturday, October 3, 2015. The cause of the fire is under investigation. Base Camp for the Fire is at Badger Lake Campground.

An area closure is in effect for the area surrounding the fire to protect public and firefighter safety as crews work to contain the fire. The closure includes roads, trails and developed recreation sites. Please contact the Barlow Ranger Station for details or the website address below.

PERSONNEL AND RESOURCES: Approximately 70 personnel, including 2 20 person crews, 4 Type 6 Engines, 1 Type 1 helicopter, and 1 Type 2 helicopter, and 12 rappellers.

SPECIAL MESSAGES/CLOSURES: An area closure is in effect for the Badger Lake Fire. For more information on the closure go to the Mt. Hood NF Closure webpage.

Badger Lake Fire Closure
Effected roads:

3500640 Closed
3500641 Closed
3500642 Closed
3500660 Closed
3540000 Closed
3540011 Closed
3540012 Closed
3540630 Closed
3540640 Closed
3540641 Closed
3550000 Closed
3550620 Closed
4860000 Closed
4860140 Closed
4860160 Closed
4880000 Closed
4891000 Closed
4891120 Closed

Effected Trails:

465 PINE CREEK Closed
477 BADGER CREEK CUTOFF Portion Closed
458 DIVIDE Closed
478 CRANE CREEK Portion Closed – North End
464 CRANE PRAIRIE Portion Closed
466 THREE MILE Closed
479A BADGER LAKE Closed
480 GUMJUWAC Closed
680 JEAN LAKE Closed
467 POST CAMP Closed
477A WEST FORK Closed
685B CAMP WINDY Closed
463 BOULDER LAKE Portion Closed
493 HIGH PRAIRIE Closed
685 GUNSIGHT BUTTE Closed
479 BADGER CREEK Portion Closed (West of Bonney Crossing)

Effected Rec Sites are

Badger Lake C.G. Closed
Camp Windy C.G Closed
Bonney Meadows Closed

Cooks Meadow Extension Approved

Posted on September 14, 2015 by 44trails

view of mt hood from cooks meadow extension

Well, it took a little longer than we were hoping, but the Hood River Ranger District just approved the proposed Cooks Meadow Extension Trail that we have been hoping to begin work on this fall.

44 Trails Association would like to thank all who commented and added their support during the public process for the new trail.

map of area

The new trail will move the route off of the 4410 road and create approximately four miles of new single track! A short section (2/10 of a mile) at the very top, which crossed the High Prairie Meadow, was adjusted based on public comment. Although it would have been nice to roll through the meadow, we can live with 2/10 of a mile on the road to connect to the parking lot.

You can read the full Cooks Meadow decision document from the district ranger here.

We will announcing our work party schedule before the end of September and hope to hold at least one trail work day this October. Stay tuned for details or sign up for our e-mail list to be notified automatically.

Once completed, the Cooks Meadow extension will connect the lower Cooks Meadow trail with High Prairie and the 450 trail, creating a new loop ride and further working toward our goal of an interconnected trail system worthy of destination riding on the Mt Hood National Forest.