This is a message to ALL Rubicon Trail users from the Trail Boss
Wheeling on the Rubicon - 2010 - 2012 The CAO Era
A commonsense approach to staying safe, having fun, and not trashing the place.
Friends of the Rubicon will put over 10,000 volunteer labor hours into the Rubicon Trail over the next 2 years installing drainage structures, hardening loose soil areas, installing signs and a few other trail projects in an effort to comply with the Water Boards Clean up and Abatement Order.
As the 2010 Wheeling season is about to kick off., what is really important to remember, is that on the Rubicon - there are no seasonal restrictions for travel. You can wheel all you want, any day, any time.
It is one of the most beautiful places on Earth. It is an incredible experience. It is a free, open trail.
That Freedom however, we all understand, is not free. There is always a price. Being free oftentimes comes with restrictions, most of them of the common sense variety, some of them, the draconian variety.
This is the "Mom" variety. Much of it has been said over and over - but there's some new stuff in here too.
Don't get stupid drunk and then get behind the wheel of your rig
Don't engage in stupid, dangerous behavior - rescuing you puts a downer on everyone around you
Don't flop your junk on the trail because you think it might be fun - it's not - it makes a mess
If you garage sale your junk (roll or flop), pick it ALL up, every bolt, washer and shard of brake light.
Don't bring your leaky broken down junk to the trail - fix it before you get there
Don't burn your cans and bottles in your campfire - it's trash - not wood
Don't leave your oils spills on the trail - clean them up
Pack out what you pack in and then some! Be a part of the Solution!!!
Don't adopt the attitude that you can do what ever you want because you are "in the wilderness". It's not the Wilderness, it's a forest, its a public road in a forest. It's not yours to do with how you please.
Always use portable sanitation in camp - if you are staying the night you should have a toilet in camp, you should pack out your wag bags and put them in the receptacles we installed at the trail heads (Loon and Wentworth). DO NOT PUT THE WAG BAGS IN THE TOILET!!! I know it seems logical - but it creates a huge problem for the extractors.
Ladies - DO NOT leave toilet paper or feminine products in the Forest - it takes YEARS to degrade despite what you've been told, and for every pile of TP/FP you leave, know that I or someone else will be there in October to retrieve it from the forest.
Guys - if you forget your toilet paper, and decide to sacrifice a $3.00 pair of underwear to the cause - please take them with you, every pair of dirty underwear you leave in the forest, know that I or someone else will be there in October to retrieve it from the forest. (Over 200 pairs of dirty mens underwear were taken off the trail in 2009 - that is just disgusting).
Friends don't let Friends go Commando on the Rubicon - they make sure they come back with their underwear on!
Always keep toilet paper in your rig! Keep a separate zip lock bag for fresh and used TP.
Law Enforcement -
There will be Law Enforcement on the trail this year - 6 full time officers - and yes, they will be there nights and weekends too!
They will ticket you for going off trail
They will ticket you for driving over vegetation
They will ticket you for not having a fire permit
They will ticket you for no Registration or Green Sticker
They will ticket you for Drinking and Driving
They will ticket you for resource damage
What is Resource Damage?
Going off trail
Creating a bypass
Using a blocked bypass
Leaking fluids
Driving over vegetation
All we really ask is that you be responsible, and what may help others see the trail as we, FOTR does, is that anything that causes damage to the trail - we have to fix. If you have never been to a Rubicon work day - I encourage you to participate in one sometime in the next two years. Not only will you be giving back - it will also allow you to see the trail as we 'see' it. It goes a long way to helping folks have the same 'eyes that we have for the trail and help us spread the word about trail damage.
About Responsible Winter Wheeling on the Rubicon:
You may access the trail from all three western entrances - Loon Lake, Airport Flat and Wentworth Springs. We still prefer that you use the Wentworth Springs or Airport entrances as there are at times many snow shoer's and cross country skiers in the Loon Lake Winter Recreation area. This does not prevent you from entering on the Loon Lake side - it simply just makes our life easier not having to deal with "complaints" from other users.
You may wheel all year round. Again there are no restrictions - other than common sense restrictions;
Stay on the Road or Trail
Be prepared with extra cold weather gear and food
Make sure your self recovery equipment is in good working order
Let other people know when you will be going and when you will return
Bring proper communication devices - on the Rubicon that means a Ham radio.
If you are not a licensed Ham operator- get one - we have members who will help you. Just ask.
Know the trail well - it looks totally different in Winter.
Never go wheeling alone
Wheeling during the melt:
The melt is a time of year when the Trail is transitioning from Winter to Spring. There are some very dangerous aspects to the melt. Mostly that the snow pack is no longer stable, drifts can have small rivers underneath them. Believe it or not, you can do more damage to your vehicle during the melt, than you can during the dry season.
Then there's the mud. IMHO mud sucks. And there's holes - HUGE holes that your entire vehicle can fall into, making recovery incredibly difficult, and again dangerous. It's simply not safe and I totally discourage it for a novice snow wheeler. Unless you are adept at dropping off 10-15 foot snow banks safely an being able to drive back out of it - stay home, or go to Moonrocks, or Hollister.
Most folks who have been there - done that, avoid the trail during the melt - it's just too dangerous and frankly, a pain in the butt. I only go if I need to, and that's usually some sort of FOTR project where we have to observe something or locate downed trees in the trail, open clogged drainages etc. Other than that I like to relish my last few free weekends at home before the FOTR busy season starts. Besides, I hate being wet and cold - during the melt it's guaranteed - you will be wet and cold.
Here is my take on the environmental "issue" with wheeling on the trail when it's possible - but still wet. This is the truth as I see it, and it may cause some controversy.
I absolutely refuse to give in the "environmental benefit". I have seen enough to know there is very little if any effect on the trail for the few weeks that it is wet, and for the few vehicles that do traverse during that time period, vs the entire Memorial Day to Christmas (7 months) of high use. (3500 vehicles). There are no studies, there is no proof. There is no science. I will not ever agree with the drama-lama environmentalists until they or we come up with some real proof - not a study about magic pebbles in Ellis Creek.
The facts are - there are no studies in either camp, so if you hit the trail when it's wet - be gentle, don't spin your tires and fling mud everywhere. If you can't get up it, take a strap, if you don't - it just creates more work for us.
All in all, with the Water Board's Clean up and Abatement Order -
We need to be more mindful of our impacts on the trail. There will be a new campaign out this summer that will focus on the 4 S's - Sanitation, Spills, Safety and Sedimentation. Each and every one of us can be successful with modifying our behavior out on the trail, especially when it comes to Sanitation, Spills and Safety. The Sedimentation will need to be a group effort between the volunteer labor provided by Friends of the Rubicon, the El Dorado County Department of Transportation and the Eldorado National Forest Service's Pacific Ranger District.
You will see a lot of work being done on the trail this year, and honestly for a while - not long - it will look a bit more like a road until all of our work settles in and it begins to look more like a trail again. There will be an inordinate amount of drainage features installed, a lot of surface hardening or rocked sections of trail, and my commitment to you is that I will make sure the Rubicon does not look like a cobblestone road. I promise you we will make it 'interesting' and keep it challenging. Please be careful driving over drainage features and try not to damage them - they aren't obstacles.
So when you see us on the trail working this year - stop and say hi, thank the volunteers for what they do, lend a hand, make a donation or sign up for the next work day. We need 100 volunteers at every work day - We need YOU!!!
Thanks - I look forward to seeing you all on the trail this year!
Jacquelyne Theisen - AKA Bebe
Trail Boss - Friends of the Rubicon
