The Crested Butte News Serving the Gunnison Valley since 1999
Bridge at Deadman’s
The U.S. Forest Service will tackle a handful of trail and road improvement projects near Crested Butte this summer. The objective: to repair or improve trails and roadways and, in some cases, alleviate strife among forest users.
“We were approached by CBMBA [Crested Butte Mountain Bike Association], the towns of Crested Butte and Mt. Crested Butte to mitigate conflict between ranchers and recreation,” says district ranger John Murphy. “Ranchers sometimes feel like they’re being run off the forest.”
Murphy suggests visitors unfamiliar with the trails are the primary culprits. “People veer off the main trail and onto a cow trail. That negatively impacts the ranchers,” he says. To clarify routes, the USFS will “improve the signage so people don’t get lost.” They’ll also put up some interpretive signs in town to educate visitors and locals alike about ranching and the presence of cattle in the forest.
Another priority includes the construction of a low-water crossing on Gothic Road, south of Rustler’s Gulch. Funding for this comes from a $29,000 grant received through the Safe and Rural Schools Act, which includes a mandate to support watershed improvements in rural areas. A low-water crossing is less expensive than a bridge. It is instead a rise, or low-elevation crossing, that allows passage during low water flows. High-water conditions in late spring may still inhibit travel. “There could be a short road closure while that construction goes on, sometime in July or August,” says Murphy.
Half a dozen cattle guards are planned for trails in the Cement Creek area, where gates are routinely left open by mountain bikers, allowing cattle to meander where they don’t belong.
Grant money will also fund bridges on the Deadman’s Gulch Trail. “CBMBA and the GOATs [Gunnison Valley O.H.V. Alliance of Trailriders] kicked in on this one, too,” says Murphy. A contract will be awarded in August, he added, which means the work on Deadman’s may be delayed until next summer.
“In the Ruby-Anthracite area, there’s the Wagon Road—we’ll build a new bridge there too,” says Murphy.
Elsewhere in the county, south Taylor Park, Pitkin and Tincup are in the crosshairs for future road and trail consideration. “We’re gathering suggestions, but the ideas coming forth are just conceptual at this point,” says Murphy. The primary concern in these areas is ATV access and proposals for alternative routes.
Today’s brainstorming, says Murphy, will eventually lead to public hearings and the instigation of a NEPA process. “Resolutions on these travel management problems are at least two years out,” he says.
