Caribou Closure Areas

[Ramjet15x]

While doing a little Google-Earthing at lunch I thought I should swing over to the BC caribou Closure site, to look for conflicts, Fish, Wildlife and Habitat Management - Forests, Lands and Natural Resource Operations - Province of British Columbia

It is incredible how much terrain is closed to snowmobiling!!!

Essentially everything near Revelstoke, Valemount, Blue River, etc. I did notice even areas that are some of the most well know heliski areas are of limits to us

 

[Cableguy]

Tour operators have dome a good job comvincing government that there income is more important than
freedom in this country , It is slowly dimishing. They want to be the only ones entertaining the weapthy

 

[plio7]

Tour operators have dome a good job comvincing government that there income is more important than
freedom in this country , It is slowly dimishing. They want to be the only ones entertaining the weapthy

I says pardon????

 

[Bnorth]

I says pardon????

He makes good points, don't turn this into a grammar contest.

While doing a little Google-Earthing at lunch I thought I should swing over to the BC caribou Closure site, to look for conflicts, Fish, Wildlife and Habitat Management - Forests, Lands and Natural Resource Operations - Province of British Columbia

It is incredible how much terrain is closed to snowmobiling!!!

Essentially everything near Revelstoke, Valemount, Blue River, etc. I did notice even areas that are some of the most well know heliski areas are of limits to us

I'm glad you now realize the reality of what we mean when we say we are losing our riding areas and why people are so adamantly preaching good stewardship, obeying closures, making safe choices, and just all around doing our best to present a positive image of the sport.

 

[ferniesnow]

I says pardon????

I'm with plies on this one. Tour operators????????

It has nothing to do with tour operators. Caribou are a "species of convenience" used as a pawn by the folks against motorized transportation in the back country. Tour operators in the sledding industry are firmly questioning the governmental decisions on "caribou closures". I may give you one point and that being heli-ski tour operators like Mike Weigle to name one in the forefront.

 

[Lem Lamb]

Sleds, Quads all in the same boat on many threads on S&M. Not just a Western Canada issue as it will be from Coast to Coast.

https://www.snowandmud.com/the-mud-pit-chat/103754-calling-bans-public-cant.html

 

[Shadam]

Lst nite we were researching the same issue. Caribou arent the big concern, but I know an area that is closed for mtn goat. Never has anyone seen a goat in the 3 drainages covered under stupid legislaton. Nobody even hunts there except for deer nowdays.
Another area is closed for ungulates and grizzly bears. Its all total bs! Hunters say animals are much futher out.

I read alot last nite. It says all legislation governing summer and winter motorized use in bc is implemented under the wildlife act.

All the wording is soooo ambiguous! Laywers could have a great time argueing back and forth at our expense.

Wot I took out of it is its all bs. If they can heliski it, we can brapp it. Sure there are areas they can only land and other they can only pick up, but if they can build lodges and have their various machines there so can we.
There is a certain area I think it best for me not to name that has 2 heli access ski touring lodges that are considered the only area for snowmobiles in the entire river drainage! In the enitre river drainage. Im sorry skiers, bc legislation says your precious ski terrain is for snowmobiles. I kid you not!

Another interesting thing refered to a a winter recreational company that it said a study was done in 1999 to gage client numbers and will be capped at that number for future years. I know for a fact this company has considerably higner clients numbers then that nowdays.

It also said logging activity can NOT prevent you from useing their roads, unless there is significant safety issues or similar crap.

It basicly says they would prefer it we werent there, but there isnt much real offenses stated. It does have alot to say about summer off road vehicles. And there is specific legislation and total bans in place for many areas with big fines like river flats.

My next mission is how to prove there are no goats in said drainages.

Please read it and inform yourself for areas you ride. And feel free to prove me wrong ...

 

[Cableguy]

Yes to clarify I meant ski/board tenures. Not aware of any sled tenures that other sledders cant go into
If all the crybabies have there way the wolves will clean out whats left of the caribou but you can bet we
still wont be able to ride there ever again. Guys like mw want it all. Part of the control the people issues

 

[Depsnolvr]

Not 100% true. The Heli groups in our area were somehow able to institute Section58 closure which allows them to keep out motorized users as it is labeled as conflicting to their operations. Be careful...its a very slippery slope. They can ski, land and low fly over and in Caribou Closures, and can keep motorized users out of non-caribou closed terrain with this piece of legislation. We need to be better and fighting but the real problem comes down to public vs big corporate dollars.

Lst nite we were researching the same issue. Caribou arent the big concern, but I know an area that is closed for mtn goat. Never has anyone seen a goat in the 3 drainages covered under stupid legislaton. Nobody even hunts there except for deer nowdays.
Another area is closed for ungulates and grizzly bears. Its all total bs! Hunters say animals are much futher out.

I read alot last nite. It says all legislation governing summer and winter motorized use in bc is implemented under the wildlife act.

All the wording is soooo ambiguous! Laywers could have a great time argueing back and forth at our expense.

Wot I took out of it is its all bs. If they can heliski it, we can brapp it. Sure there are areas they can only land and other they can only pick up, but if they can build lodges and have their various machines there so can we.
There is a certain area I think it best for me not to name that has 2 heli access ski touring lodges that are considered the only area for snowmobiles in the entire river drainage! In the enitre river drainage. Im sorry skiers, bc legislation says your precious ski terrain is for snowmobiles. I kid you not!

Another interesting thing refered to a a winter recreational company that it said a study was done in 1999 to gage client numbers and will be capped at that number for future years. I know for a fact this company has considerably higner clients numbers then that nowdays.

It also said logging activity can NOT prevent you from useing their roads, unless there is significant safety issues or similar crap.

It basicly says they would prefer it we werent there, but there isnt much real offenses stated. It does have alot to say about summer off road vehicles. And there is specific legislation and total bans in place for many areas with big fines like river flats.

My next mission is how to prove there are no goats in said drainages.

Please read it and inform yourself for areas you ride. And feel free to prove me wrong ...

 

[pano-dude]

Lst nite we were researching the same issue. Caribou arent the big concern, but I know an area that is closed for mtn goat. Never has anyone seen a goat in the 3 drainages covered under stupid legislaton. Nobody even hunts there except for deer nowdays.
Another area is closed for ungulates and grizzly bears. Its all total bs! Hunters say animals are much futher out.

I read alot last nite. It says all legislation governing summer and winter motorized use in bc is implemented under the wildlife act.

All the wording is soooo ambiguous! Laywers could have a great time argueing back and forth at our expense.

Wot I took out of it is its all bs. If they can heliski it, we can brapp it. Sure there are areas they can only land and other they can only pick up, but if they can build lodges and have their various machines there so can we.
There is a certain area I think it best for me not to name that has 2 heli access ski touring lodges that are considered the only area for snowmobiles in the entire river drainage! In the enitre river drainage. Im sorry skiers, bc legislation says your precious ski terrain is for snowmobiles. I kid you not!

Another interesting thing refered to a a winter recreational company that it said a study was done in 1999 to gage client numbers and will be capped at that number for future years. I know for a fact this company has considerably higner clients numbers then that nowdays.

It also said logging activity can NOT prevent you from useing their roads, unless there is significant safety issues or similar crap.

It basicly says they would prefer it we werent there, but there isnt much real offenses stated. It does have alot to say about summer off road vehicles. And there is specific legislation and total bans in place for many areas with big fines like river flats.

My next mission is how to prove there are no goats in said drainages.

Please read it and inform yourself for areas you ride. And feel free to prove me wrong ...

Doesn't matter if you can prove there are animals or not. Even if you have a masters in biology, the government says there are because there was a study done at some time.
We tried to fight a closure of an area due to a few owls. Even the local biologist said he had no idea if there was any owls in the area but the study that was done in the 90's said there was so no movement on the closure.
We even offered to pay for another study, the gov said no.....

 

[Lem Lamb]

Once its closed it is very hard to re-open. Much the same across all of Canada.

 

[catinthehat]

Doesn't matter if you can prove there are animals or not. Even if you have a masters in biology, the government says there are because there was a study done at some time.
We tried to fight a closure of an area due to a few owls. Even the local biologist said he had no idea if there was any owls in the area but the study that was done in the 90's said there was so no movement on the closure.
We even offered to pay for another study, the gov said no.....

Most of the caribou closures are in fact not to protect the actual animals that may or may not be there but to protect the habitat in case one eventually wanders there. The same is probably true for most other animal related closures.

 

[d8grandpa]

Most of the caribou closures are in fact not to protect the actual animals that may or may not be there but to protect the habitat in case one eventually wanders there. The same is probably true for most other animal related closures.

If this were the case, explain how sledding damages or diminishes the habitat. Imho it has zero to do with the habitat.

 

[moyiesledhead]

If this were the case, explain how sledding damages or diminishes the habitat. Imho it has zero to do with the habitat.

It doesn't. We're just a convenient scapegoat.

 

[Lem Lamb]

Our sled and ohv groups have come across countless groups of caribou that makes them stop and look at us as if they could care less whether we were there or not.

All in open sled and ohv use areas in Alberta and BC through out the whole seasons of riding. Caribou are docile critters unless cougars, wolves, and grizzly bears are around, they don't mind humans or units we are driving since they do not pose any danger since they have been protected for many years.

Sustainable Recourses folks think other wise. Its not their fault they don't know any better since they were never given the chance to spend countless years living on the land, or being around furry critters that share this planet with us.

Just my 2 cents of the way I see it from my small world.

Pal Lem

 

[tex78]

I just seen revy post that guys still going into Frisby closures



Like Come on guys , get out and stay the fawk out

 

[moyiesledhead]

Sustainable Recourses folks think other wise. Its not their fault they don't know any better

They actually do know better. The ones I've been dealing with for 25+ years do anyway. Doesn't matter. It's never been about Caribou, it's about Yellowstone to Yukon.

 

[Lem Lamb]

That's right as Caribou have walk right though Frisby Ridge, Bolder, Clamina, Allan Cr, and many other sled areas with no concern towards the groups we were ridding with, and we came across many of them in the Hinton area moving oil patch and logging equitment that were roaming way out side their range.

As mentioned earlier that it is just a way to close OHV & Seld areas.

 

[steveo10]

How much has Wiegele's operation been affected by caribou closers???

 

[woody_tobius_jr]

I was on a lease in the middle of the night unloading a crane one time, and I noticed some movement off to the side of the lease, scared the bejeezies out of me at first, then I saw that it was a small herd of caribou walking through the lease, just kinda checking me out, they hung around the whole time I was unloading...no real point to that story, other than it was kind of cool having company out there
From what I understand, the predators are able to stay on top of the snow on setup sled tracks where the caribou still sink making it easier for them to hunt down the caribou. The sled tracks go through the flats as well as the hills making trails for the predators to walk on, whereas the skiers are just on the slopes. The unfortunate thing is that the leaf lickers have more corporate backing to present their skewed reports and studies to a bunch of government desk jockeys that don't know $hit from sugar.
Friggin leaf lickers...


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