[Colorado] Save the Gulches: Call to Action

[Neal A. Tew]

Call to Action

(This is a copy and paste from an email and a Facebook post. I am not the author. -neal) As I am sure you know, our beloved Colorado trails are under constant threat of closure and we need your help! One such area that we have struggled to keep open are the Gulches, more commonly known as Hackett Gulch, Longwater Gulch and the surrounding network of trails. These trails were temporarily closed after the Hayman Fire of 2002 and the sections in Park County have never officially been re-opened. After the fire, the Forest Service offered Teller County and Park County control of the trails. Teller County immediately recognized the trails in their county, but Park County has been an entirely different story. From politicians blocking progress, to the Forest Service losing paperwork, the story of the past 17 years and why the trails have never officially been reopened is almost unbelievable! Our current focus is to get the trails officially reopened and recognized by Park County. This is where we are asking for your help, we need you to take a few minutes and email your concerns to the Park County Commissioners. Please copy and paste their email addresses below into an email and ask them why they have never reopened the trails in their county. Mike Brazil, mbrazell@parkco.us Dick Elsner, delsner@parkco.us Ray Douglas, rdouglas@parkco.us We are not asking you to simply copy a form letter for the body of the email, however. Form letters are not nearly as effective as real substantial comments. Tell them how you feel about the area or your desire to visit the area in the future. Describe how you use the area for recreation, business and why you love going there. Your comments do not have to be long and can contain only a few sentences. Remember to be respectful, here are some example phrases to help get you started: “I have enjoyed using these trails in the past because…” “I value the trails in this area because…” “I have not yet visited these trails but I plan to in the future…” “I would appreciate if you would legitimize these trails for our continued enjoyment” “These trails are important to my business because…” Additionally, it would be helpful if you ended your email in this manner: “Please work with our representatives from the 4x4 community to find a non-closure solution for these trails.” Discussions as to the future of these trails are currently in progress. Decisions could be immanent, and action will make a difference in those decisions. The time to add your voice is now, please send email communications ASAP to the commissioners to show your support. Thank you for your help, together we can keep our trails open for future use. If you would also kindly BCC landuse@keeptrailsopen.com when you send in your email, we will be able to track the number of comments that come in. This will be helpful for future engagement with the commissioners. Thanks for your help, Marcus Trusty - Colorado Off Road Enterprise - President Cory Moul - Mile-HI Jeep Club - Public Relations Brian O'Connors - Colorado Association of 4WD Clubs - President