Moderator Note
Please refrain from personal attacks on posters and limit your discussion points to what they have posted.
Please refrain from personal attacks on posters and limit your discussion points to what they have posted.
"trashing the wilderness"? Really? And you're going to compare some erosion on a ski trail to the clear-cutting of 100,000s of acres of forest and the subsequent wildfires? I wouldn't put the passage of the Weeks Act in the same category as cleaning up Mittersill. Sorry, but that's a terrible analogy. And do we really have to turn everything into a conspiracy theory by making it a "corporation" against the average-joe "taxpayer"?
Oh geez... Methinks you have been listening to too many political speeches.
While we're all on our high horse here, let's also remember that we're also the first line of offense in destroying the mountains, etc... Let's all keep that in mind when watching cars drive through Franconia Notch to go hiking during mud season.
Sorry if this sounds harsh, but it is this sort of sanctimonious attitude that is pervasive in the hiking community that rubs a lot of people the wrong way. Frankly, there are a lot more important things to worry about than the Mittersill erosion and how it affects our leisure-time recreation. I greatly enjoy hiking, skiing, and many other outdoor recreational activities, but boy can we work ourselves into a tizzy about stuff that only affects about .1% of the population.
I am one person that limits my hiking in mud season. I am not a gridder and would prefer to do other things than sloshing around in mud pits. My subsitute is to go paddling or if I want to get out, I will go bushwhacking.
Ive heard this a few times since Ive been on this board. You should not hike in the mountains during mud season. First off, do some people really adhere to this?
Vermont does.
http://www.greenmountainclub.org/page.php?id=60
"The State of Vermont closes all trails on state land including those on Camel's Hump and Mount Mansfield from mid-April until Memorial Day weekend. Please do not hike in these fragile areas.
Also avoid: Stratton Mountain, Killington Peak, Lincoln Ridge (Mount Ellen to Appalachian Gap), Jay Peak."
There is no outcry from this community over the NH timber harvest community resistance to accept basic guidelines for stream crossing and wetland damage controls with high elevation cuts over large expanses and multiple roads. Most members are exemplary stewards but a few have held out. Probably because most takes place in the far north and can't be seen from popular trails. I see one road and a few gullies, unfortunate but not the high drama of a conspiracy to destroy the environment.
The recent wind farm in this area made a brand new road on a ridge top with miles and miles of beautiful moss and high elevation vegetation furrowed off. This project did an incredible job with protecting wetlands from what I have observed,RE: timber industry, I think most memebrs here including myself are a little in the dark regarding the industry, mainly due to out of sight out of mind.. I thought more rules and regulations would apply in concern of wetlands and high elevation cutting.... any ideas how we can become more informed/involved on this issue?
RE: windfarm, where? and how do we access this new rd. could make for a nice walk..
BTW: I rarely hike on muddy trails, I mainly miss mud season, I snowboard till june or july on mt.w., more rock hopping and snow sliding.. and I'd support closing muddy trails, erosion concerns should trump those concerns of recreational activity.. bradbury mt. 20 min from my house is a great place to mt.bike but they close the trails when wet and I applaud them for it..
I think our poll maker has to come up with a new one soon on a new thread. Who hikes in the mud. Who walks to the side of mud. Who stays home. Who takes giant leaps. Who pole volts.
Mittersill is a developed ski area. The mossy road was once a gravel road and put there for access to a top station that regrew due to no use and was a carpet of moss since nothing else would grow on a harsh packed gravel surface.
I would have expected to see a ton of people upset over A) the damage to the area and B) the closure.
I don't think the contractor (Doppelmayr) is to blame. I base this off a) other Doppelmayr installations, which have never looked like this, b) the liftline was seeded when the lift was installed in Fall 2010 and was growing grass in Spring 2011, c) motorized use occured above the lift installation area, d) motorized use continued well into Fall 2011, long after Doppelmayr had completed the install (January 1, 2011 opening).It would be interesting to know whether the original Mittersill contractor will be required to fix the damage at no charge or whether the delay until August is for the state to find additional funds.
Sure I'm annoyed whenever public land is closed to the public, but "Mt Mittersill" is really an unnamed bump in an area with plenty of other public land.
If the ski trail closing is taken at face value - ie you are unable to walk on any of the ski trails in between the signs - then 730 acres of Franconia Notch State Park are closed to all foot use year round. That's a lot more than just Mittersill/Mt. Mittersill/Mt. Jackson, depending upon what one wants to call that bump.
There is something unique about Mt Mittersill--the '30's era Tucker Brook Tr (ungroomed backcountry ski trail) leaves from the top of Mt Mittersill. The closure looks like it may block top access.If the ski trail closing is taken at face value - ie you are unable to walk on any of the ski trails in between the signs - then 730 acres of Franconia Notch State Park are closed to all foot use year round. That's a lot more than just Mittersill/Mt. Mittersill/Mt. Jackson, depending upon what one wants to call that bump.
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