BOOYAH! Mtn bikes in Nat'l Parks?

Norm

Mayor McCheese
Team MTBNJ Halter's
Cool to hear. I suspect this will never impact us out here. But you never know.
 

Norm

Mayor McCheese
Team MTBNJ Halter's
It could open up the Delaware National Rec. Area.

Right on! I'm just suggesting that it will never happen. The AT running through it will make it a huge battleground and I just don't think anyone will take up the effort to lobby for it, then build trails in it. You know that the AT will be foot traffic only, at least for the foreseeable future. There are other trails in the park but it's an "all roads lead to Rome" where Rome in this case is the AT.
 

mattybfat

The Opinion Police
Team MTBNJ Halter's
Right on! I'm just suggesting that it will never happen. The AT running through it will make it a huge battleground and I just don't think anyone will take up the effort to lobby for it, then build trails in it. You know that the AT will be foot traffic only, at least for the foreseeable future. There are other trails in the park but it's an "all roads lead to Rome" where Rome in this case is the AT.

not completly true imba was there to open up the "blue mt nj" in 1996 and blazed out a nice 5to6 mile loop just next to AT. rangers there were very supportive of the idea of more to come.
 

Norm

Mayor McCheese
Team MTBNJ Halter's
not completly true imba was there to open up the "blue mt nj" in 1996 and blazed out a nice 5to6 mile loop just next to AT. rangers there were very supportive of the idea of more to come.

Interesting. I'd certainly love to be wrong on this score, but I feel pretty strongly that the NY-NJ Trail Conference would put all their ammo into stopping any opening of the park at all to mountain bikers. I imagine other hiking-only clubs in the area would do the same.
 

mattybfat

The Opinion Police
Team MTBNJ Halter's
I agree about AT trial user conflicts but it really is such a small part of that park area most of the 83,000 acers is more of the delaware valley on the nj & pa sides. Growing up in Blairstown I spent a ton recreational time in this area and is just amazing how much open space could be available to mnt. biking.
 

pixychick

JORBA: Ringwood
JORBA.ORG
The AT runs through Wawayanda which is mostly multi-use. The AT also intersects the one multi-use trail in Harriman.
 

idbrian

Crotch Rot
Never seen any part of the AT, would it make for good riding? Imagine a trail like the AT that you could bike, that would be sweet.
 

stb222

Love Drunk
Jerk Squad
Never seen any part of the AT, would it make for good riding? Imagine a trail like the AT that you could bike, that would be sweet.

I have seen a few different parts and pictures of way more. A good majority of the AT is maintained as well as 6 mile.....I think the colorado trail is open to mtb, which is a similiar type trail as far as distance (but much shorter)
 

BiknBen

Well-Known Member
Interesting. I'd certainly love to be wrong on this score, but I feel pretty strongly that the NY-NJ Trail Conference would put all their ammo into stopping any opening of the park at all to mountain bikers. I imagine other hiking-only clubs in the area would do the same.

I agree that the TC and other groups are not going to sit while MTB access is allowed on the hiking only trails. Can't say I blame them.

OTOH, this opens the door to MTBers making new trails. Assuming that the authorities grant permission, the MTB community could make new trails. Leave the existing trails open to hiking only.

We could send out a big FU to the hikers. "No thanks. We don't want your trails. We just got permission to make our own."

This reminds me a bit of Ringwood. There are existing hiking-only trails while the new trails are being made by the MTB community for all to share.
 

SpartaBard

Well-Known Member
Never seen any part of the AT, would it make for good riding? Imagine a trail like the AT that you could bike, that would be sweet.

Many sections of the AT are completely unridable (maybe except for Sean) and really on suited for hiking.
 

clarkenstein

JORBA Board Member/Chapter Leader
JORBA.ORG
OTOH, this opens the door to MTBers making new trails. Assuming that the authorities grant permission, the MTB community could make new trails. Leave the existing trails open to hiking only.

"No thanks. We don't want your trails. We just got permission to make our own."

good point. lewis morris is right next to jockey hollow - would it be cool to ride over from LM to jockey hollow? sure it would. but do i need to ride the grand loop trail? nah. would i like to just once? of course! but i don't need to.

if they let us cut a few multi-use trails into jockey hollow to get some extra mileage added to the lewis morris loops, that would be real cool. IMO there's plenty of space in jockey hollow for another trail or two. i'm sure we could put trails in spots where people wouldn't even know we were there. there are plenty of parks with lots of available space for everyone - and we aren't allowed in on a bike.
 

hardtale70

She's Gone From Suck to Blow
Shop Keep
I was in w/ the AO boys on the last round of "maybe" in the Blue Mt area a couple years back.They were only debating fireroad use(fine by me) but absolutley NO new trail. They seemed to feel that trail cutting would be inevitable so they just bagged the whole deal.............
 

Norm

Mayor McCheese
Team MTBNJ Halter's
OTOH, this opens the door to MTBers making new trails. Assuming that the authorities grant permission, the MTB community could make new trails. Leave the existing trails open to hiking only.

But the key phrase here, and the one that I believe all the hiking groups will rally against, is the assumption that the authorities will grant permission. If you're a hiking club, and you hear this news, do you wait for bikers to threaten your trail? Probably not. You probably put up a fight against bikers entering the park at all. Because once they're in, you feel you've lost something as a hiker.

These are the same ilk of people who sometimes throw themselves in front of whaling ships.
 
F

Fourtyfell

Guest
Why is this such a big deal ? I Know people can snowmobile in Yosetimie ( sp?) Having had snowmobiles i can tell you that MTB is far less dangerous.
 

mattybfat

The Opinion Police
Team MTBNJ Halter's
it's not a factor of danger, but more of enviormental impact. Folks like Mr Rouch think that we are a bunch of rebel rousing mt. dew slurpping dregs out to spoil all the good folks tranquill time in the wilderness. Is that better Norm?
 

Glancing Aft

Active Member
I fully expect to get flamed for this, but I don't think I support this measure. There just always seems like such a push to open up our national parks to everything from Off-Roading to ATVing, the lumber industry, oil companies, mining operation, helicopter moose hunting. I just think that some land needs to be left open with as little environmental impact as possible, and as with any Bush Bill I'm sure this is just the tip of the iceburg and he's trying to open up Pandora's box. I know the tax payers are paying for these lands, so we should have access to them, but there's a difference between backpacking through a park compared to ATVing though it while talking on your cellphone and eating McDonalds. As a culture cant we just not leave something to rest, something that's open? Yes biking at the water gap would be cool, but there's far from a shortage of places to go biking in this area.
 

hardtale70

She's Gone From Suck to Blow
Shop Keep
it's not a factor of danger, but more of enviormental impact. Folks like Mr Rouch think that we are a bunch of rebel rousing mt. dew slurpping dregs out to spoil all the good folks tranquill time in the wilderness. Is that better Norm?

To double the flame potential let me say that 90% of the time the above profile is true..............
 
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