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About Applegater. (Jacksonville, OR) 2008-current | View Entire Issue (July 1, 2014)
10 Summer 2014 Applegater Cantrall-Buckley Park NEWS Father’s Day barbecue at Cantrall-Buckley Park by dAVId lAANANEN Don’t forget the Father’s Day barbecue that will be held on Sunday, June 15, from 11 am to 4 pm, sponsored by the Greater Applegate Community Development Corporation (GACDC) and the Applegate Valley Lions Club. The Lions Club will barbecue tri-tip, chicken, and hot dogs. The Ruch Country Store will roast corn, and the McKee Bridge Historical Society will offer root beer floats and baked goods. Wine, beer, and other beverages will be available. The usual $4 per car fee for entry to the park will be charged. Come out to celebrate Dad and family. David Laananen 541-846-0500 david.laananen@asu.edu Applegate Trails Association inaugurates a new Applegate trail by dIANA cOOglE Blow trumpets and wave flags! The Applegate Trails Association (ATA) is having a trail dedication ceremony on June 7 to celebrate the installation of a new kiosk and picnic table at the Long Gulch Trailhead. This official opening of the Heart Trail, in the heart of the Wellington Wildlands, begins at 10 am and will feature free food, music, bubble-blowing and face-painting for the kids, and a ceremonious cutting of the brilliant red ribbon at the trailhead. Jeff Leland, U.S. Forest Service archeologist, will fill us in on interesting history of the area, and ATA chair David Calahan will talk briefly about the organization’s dream of building the Applegate Ridge Trail (ART) from Grants Pass to Jacksonville. The ART would connect with the Jack-Ash Trail that the Siskiyou Uplands Trail Association is building from Jacksonville to Ashland. Eventually, then, we will be able to walk from Grants Pass to Ashland, spending the night at the Jacksonville Inn along the way and taking in dinner, a play, and a night in a B&B in Ashland at the end—and, maybe also, a long soak in a spa. If you’re wondering why anyone would want to walk from Grants Pass to Ashland, come to the trailhead dedication on June 7 and hike the Heart Trail. The Wellington Wildlands is a gorgeous piece of the Applegate, hidden behind mountains and as wild as any place in the area, offering spectacular views of Siskiyou mountains, wildflowers in profusion, and gentle ridge-top trails (and some doozies, but the Heart Trail isn’t one). To get to Long Gulch Trailhead, go through Ruch towards Jacksonville. Turn left on Forest Creek Road and follow the signs. To carpool, meet at 9:30 am at the Bunny Meadows Staging Area (0.7 mile up Forest Creek). ATA offers hikes all summer. You can find the schedule at www.applegatetrails. org. And if you’re wildly enthusiastic about wildlands and hiking, come to the ATA fund-raiser at Red Lily Vineyards in September or join us on the board. Diana Coogle dcoogle@laughdogpress.com The challenges and benefits of local trails by hOpE RObERTSON The Applegate Valley has fantastic we hope it will be named an Oregon State trails, including Jacksonville’s wonderful Scenic Trail. But reviving and maintaining trail system managed by the Jacksonville this resource took time and lots of effort. Another example of how funding cuts Woodlands Association and a wide array of trails scattered across rural areas and are impacting local recreational resources wildlands around our valley. In addition, is the removal of old, unsafe bridges on proposed ridge-top and nonmotorized some US Forest Service (USFS) trails and trail systems include the Jack-Ash Trail roads such as the Middle Fork Trail of the that would connect the Jacksonville Applegate River. There were no plans or trails to the Ashland trail system, and the money to replace the Middle Fork bridges. Applegate Ridge Trail that would run from But thanks to an organized request from the community, money to replace several Jacksonville to Grants Pass. Trails bring together people of all USFS bridges was recently allocated for ages and political and religious persuasions fiscal year 2015-2016. We look forward to to enjoy the simple pleasure of being better access to that gorgeous trail. What does the fate of these outdoors, whether it’s a short-distance stroll or a long-distance run. A recent two trails portend for the future of recreation survey showed that 47 percent our recreational resources? First of all, of Jackson County residents take advantage an organized community can have a of local trails, enjoying the amazing and big impact on behalf of a recreational trail resource. The Sterling Mine Ditch diverse ecosystems in our valley. But these simple pleasures Trail became overgrown and impassable also provide concrete value to and the gorgeous Middle Fork trail our regional economy. Many studies languished without its bridges until document the economic benefits of local organized community efforts triggered trails; these benefits include higher property BLM and USFS to allocate scarce resources values and an increase in recreation to those trails. Again, community time and dollars spent at local businesses that sell effort produced results. Second, considering that trails equipment, food and clothing. Trails through our gorgeous wildlands add to represent a significant revenue source for other wonderful regional amenities such as our economy, each of us should remind theatre, wineries and music, bringing more our elected officials of the economic value of recreation, lest the recreation budgets tourist dollars into the economy. Despite the well-documented value for the county, state and federal agencies of recreational opportunities, we should disappear. Third, the community can no longer not assume that existing trails (or other recreational amenities) on public lands sit back and assume that the government will remain open for use, or that new trail will maintain beautifully trimmed trails systems will be added. As with so many for our enjoyment. Those days are gone. other services provided by government, If we want great trails, we all need to chip funding cuts threaten the continuation of in, either by making financial donations recreation services on public lands. to the various trail groups in our region or We are seeing trails and by showing up to help work on the trails. campgrounds in our region being Our experience is that if we step up abandoned due to lack of funding to the plate and demonstrate willingness to for maintenance. Unfortunately, it may work on the trails, the relevant government become necessary to choose which trails agency will respond in kind—especially to save, but there is hope! if there is political support for doing so. For example, four years ago large As a bonus, we have found that working sections of the historic Sterling Mine Ditch on trails is a fabulous way to build a Trail in the Applegate were impassable. community of like-minded friends while Hikers and equestrians gave up using most enhancing the amenities of our region. of it because it was almost impossible to Hope Robertson hack through the undergrowth or crawl Siskiyou Upland Trails Association over fallen trees. Because the trail was sutaoregoncontact@gmail.com no longer being used, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) questioned spending scarce recreation dollars on its maintenance. The Rogue Valley and Applegate communities rallied around efforts of the Siskiyou Upland Trails Association (SUTA) and volunteers to re-open the Sterling Mine Ditch Trail. This organized community effort resulted in tremendous cooperation and funding assistance from the Medford BLM. The community now has seven trailheads accessing 30 miles of trail within the Sterling Mine Ditch system, which has become a wildly popular recreation resource. The trail should remain a community Community volunteers maintaining the Sterling Mine Ditch trail—the necessity of the future. resource for years to come, and Please support our advertisers! Shop local; keep our dollars local.
