caution unloading at blue lake till spring

[tex78]

ok so went to blue lake this last week and what a crap show now.... u have to unload ur sled at the trail head, park ur truck-trailer down the road and when u get back u have to fight the line up and pick ur sled back up at the trail head..... takes 1-2 hours longer with 100 plus peeps there....

so y this is, is because last year some one went down the road a bit with there sled, scared the land owner horse [ which is real close i have to say and i would think it would be used to it... ] anyways the horse got out of the fence and hurt it self doing it and died....

so the cop thought this was the best idea for both us and the land owner. they will impound ur stuff and give ya a 600.00 fine if u get caught loading down past there flaged area... oh and they do check often....

 

[BC Sno-Ghost]

Thanks for the heads up. I was thinking about heading over there next week. Maybe not. Sounds like the same Chit show you witness at the boat launches every day in the Summer!

 

[PixelPerfectPhotography]

Thanks for this info. We were possibly going there tomorrow but I think we will stay away. Most people are trust worthy but I don't really like to let my sled be out of eyesight. Was the snow at least worth the hassle?

 

[overkill131313]

ya the farmer blocked the road off with his tractor and chains! this farmer is full of $h!t....if I blocked the road I would be in jail. the funny part is there is no proof to his side of the story! he said the same about the quad club chasing his cows or something....still no proof. I think the cops are on the wrong side and this farmer just made a lot of work for the Cops! you got to hear both sides of the story to see the farmer is a crack head! so now the cops are all over sleds even at Queest and owls! DO NOT TOUCH A ROAD WITH YOUR SLED.....EVEN JUST TO LOAD AND UNLOAD.....OR ITS GONE AND $600 FINE!

thanks for being an A$$.....MR FARMER!

 

[joysled]

There is always a few people looking for free money. He would go away for a few days if the sled club gave him money.

 

[beeonaplug]

I'm sure I could find a deaf and blind horse to give the farmer. Ah, he probably would still be ignorant. Seems like the cops found a new revenue source. I think the Sicomous club is going to have expand some parking lots.

 

[retiredpop]

I guess I'll just write Sicamous off as a sled destination. It's just not worth going there anymore with sled thefts and now the cops being a bunch of a**hats too. Funny how they can be out to give fines but don't seem to be around at night when they are really needed.

 

[AirNorth1]

This message has been deleted.

 

[AirNorth1]

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[dragon]

Once again the actions of A few will ruin it for all!

 

[overkill131313]

Once again the actions of A few will ruin it for all!

so true.......no one was able to find the first "bad" sledder that did all this damage.....and was there really this "bad" sledder????? the old farmer that just moved there this summer I think is making it all up....he isnot even close to the staging area........there is 3 other houses way closer that dont complain!

 

[Rucky]

While there this past week, we did not ride Blue Lake as there are simply too many people that head over there. However, we did ride Queest on Tuesday. When we arrived at the staging area, the lady collecting fees instructed us to park on the South side of the road, where we proceeded to unload our sleds, then driving across the road to start our way up the trail. Upon coming back down the trail at the end of the day I spotted the blue/red lights at the bottom of the trail, near the road... As I went down the trail, I was stopped by a different lady (member of the snowmobile club) that told me I would be awarded a $600 fine if I were to touch the road while on my sled. I'm very thankful for her warning as that fine would have only added to the joy of my day (smoked a tree up top and annihilated my left suspension parts).

Last time I was in Sicamous, my father and I talked about the parking lots in the area... At the mainly frequented riding areas (Owls, Queest, Blue Lake) only one of which has a remotely close to suitable parking lot (Owls), and even that one is lacking room for most rigs. So I have to ask... With all the money being poured in from sledders (Yes, I noticed the two fairly new groomers; one of which being toted around by a contemporary Pete) how can Sicamous club not fight for some better parking access to the areas? It's very unattractive to sledders that come to ride there when you have to go through all this pain in the a$$ before you even get riding. As sledders, we bring a $h!t ton of money into the town, and here we are... Greeted with cops wanting more money, and all kinds of frustration amongst everyone there.... So I must politely say that the Sicamous club should get their a$$ in gear or some riders will be taking their money elsewhere.

 

[tex78]

it will be better in the spring as a guy has to drive up for snow.... just wanted to let peeps know about it.... there was one guy behind u went apechit about it all......and the guys takin the money was just a volanter...
don't want to loose those cause they have a big part of it all...

 

[takethebounce]

Regardless of the incident it is against the law to ride a sled down a public road. We have been very fortunate for many years, especially on the busy days to be able to stage all along the road into Blue. Even Owl's head parking lot is too small.

Whether or not the farmer should have received a fine is a mute point now as the RCMP have decided to side with the residents in the area and it is moreof a hassle now for sledders who were already paying an increased trail fee and season pass.

The people this will really hurt are the Eagle Valley Club and the buisnesses in Sicamous. Over the past few winters its been ever harder to find a good meal in the mornings as the small restaunts struggle to stay open.

Now I can see people being even more dettered (as some have already said) to ride in Sicamous. Sure the locals in the area are saying "awesome" keep the rest of the crowd away and leave the good snow for us. But anytime I go to Sicamous I see nothing but Albertan vehicles spending Albertan money there. I am not saying the town is going to shut down, but take 100 sleds away from Sicamous every weekend and that is much less gas purchased, much less booze drank, many less meals eaten and less and less hotel rooms booked.

Somehow, someway, if Eagle Valley wishes to keep the out of towners riding there and keep the revenue of trail fees coming in some agreements may have to be considered, or more space for parking looked at.

 

[Free Rider]

I don't see any bigger parking lots coming anytime soon.

 

[overkill131313]

you all can park in my yard! lol this is why I have a road from my back door right to owls head and hunters range........never have to see all the traffic. but I love blue lake.......now I just go when not so busy.

 

[tex78]

you all can park in my yard! lol this is why I have a road from my back door right to owls head and hunters range........never have to see all the traffic. but I love blue lake.......now I just go when not so busy.

hey i might take ya up on that..... hey does demon still live at the bottom of owl's?

 

[Bogger]

you all can park in my yard! lol this is why I have a road from my back door right to owls head and hunters range........never have to see all the traffic. but I love blue lake.......now I just go when not so busy.

Doest that invite extend to LHF as well ???????

 

[jbb]

ya the farmer blocked the road off with his tractor and chains! This farmer is full of $h!t....if i blocked the road i would be in jail. The funny part is there is no proof to his side of the story! He said the same about the quad club chasing his cows or something....still no proof. I think the cops are on the wrong side and this farmer just made a lot of work for the cops! You got to hear both sides of the story to see the farmer is a crack head! So now the cops are all over sleds even at queest and owls! Do not touch a road with your sled.....even just to load and unload.....or its gone and $600 fine!

Thanks for being an a$$.....mr farmer!

i think the sicamous cops hate sledders! Can you go look in the local rcmp parking lot to see if they all drive subaru's and have ski racks on the roofs. It may answer some questions. Lol

 

[Modman]

Doest that invite extend to LHF as well ???????

You bitch when they argue like schoolgirls on any other thread and then you come in and make a post like this?

While there this past week, .....So I must politely say that the Sicamous club should get their a$$ in gear or some riders will be taking their money elsewhere.

To the guys threatening to take $$ away from any sled town, keep in mind that its about respect and how much trouble earning that extra revenue is for the businesses of these towns. Sure we bring in extra revenue, but if a hotel has to replace furniture or have the non-smoking room detoxed because someone got a little excited or thought the rules didn't apply to them, or hiring security to control people drinking in their rooms, or if the cops need to have extra staff on for the weekend because the sledders have been fighting in the bars with "other patrons" (often who are not into "mechanized" recreation), etc etc, then the extra revenue is simply not worth the hassle for them.

The extra "payout" from sledders is negated by the added expense they have of repairing damage or keeping us "in line".

It would be more of a threat if all sledders were respected and these businesses were showing real value for the $$$ we spent, our united voice would carry more weight, but if the hotel owner is getting yelled at every week because the residents across the street had to listen to 10 diesels with 5" exhausts and no restrictors, gargling away at high idle for 2 hrs for the past 3 mornings (for no reason), do you really wonder why they do not put a ton of stock in the threat of us taking our $$$ elsewhere? The extra $$$ is not worth the hassle.

By coping an attitude and acting aloof like we should be treated like royalty when we walk through the door, we also lose our propents in any given area, which are typically some of our biggest assets for keeping riding areas open.

Everyone seems to be condemning this "farmer" without any real proof about this BS that he is solely responsible for the smaller staging area. LIKE WTF??? if someone drove on your land and killed your dog you'd probably be pretty pissed off about it. I love how everyone blames the farmer, maybe his horse died, maybe it didn't....his horse sure is being downplayed like it had 3 hoofs in the grave already, so we basically did him a favour.......what gives sledders the right to ride on private property in the first place? Give your fawkin heads a shake, be a man stand up and take some responsbility, stop whining and looking for a scapegoat for someone's stupid actions. Maybe the other 3 landowners are just as angry but this guy is the only one with enough balls to stand up and say something.

How many of the people squawking have the balls to stand up and say to someone riding across his private property (or out of bounds) that what they are doing is wrong, write down their license plate and give it to the farmer (or cops) so he can report them?

If we spent as much time talking to the farmer as we have bitchin about him, the staging area might even be bigger this year, instead of smaller.

Show respect to get respect. Its a 2 way street.