Callaghan Update

RGM · Jan 17, 2008

I was down at Brandywine today so I thought I would drive up to the Callaghan Nordic center to check it out. I guess what I have heard about clicky clicks hating sleds was wrong as they had a pile of them right at the temporary day lodge.

Yeah right

Why is it their sleds don't stink or emit any noise and the ones we ride do. The blue one in the back is a 07 800 Summit just like I rode last year. Hypocrites!!!

I met a couple of park rangers just loading their sleds (why is it everyone can use sleds but the public) so intoduced my self and started talking to them. Them had sledded up to Callaghan Lake to set up a recreation survey site. This is a form users are to fill out and drop in the slot to be tabulated later. I asked how many tracks he saw going across the lake, NONE. It has been sunny here for three days now and not one ski track across the lake!!! Yeah the goverment is really preserving the back country experience for non-motorized users. To bad there aren't any non-motorized users. He said I could get a copy of the survey when it finished so the results will be interesting. This fight for us to use the Callaghan is far from over and we have to keep on top of this.

C-BRIAN-P · Jan 18, 2008

MAKES YOUR BLOOD BOIL.......

IceCap · Jan 18, 2008

Who is actually inforcing us from going up there? Like who has the authorization to stop us?
What would happen if you just rode by with your sled?
They probably have absolutely no parking available??

farwest · Jan 18, 2008

Hey ,could they arrest all of us if we did a protest ride?

:beer;

Summitseeker · Jan 18, 2008

It is also frustrating that we are not allowed to park on the logging road. Sproatt is not in the no riding zone and is perfectly groomed by the rental company and there is no public parking. Again....that is totally unfair!!

snobandit · Jan 18, 2008

I have seen RCMP on Snowmobile in Callaghan last year... they advised us to stay away from the construction areas... which we wanted nothing to do with anyway. There were 3 officers on Yamaha Phazers.

IceCap · Jan 19, 2008

Cops on Yamaha Phazers.....Now thats funny lol.

RGM · Jan 19, 2008

I forgot to mention it costs 16 bucks to ski around their trails. So all you guys whinning about paying 10 ten you are getting a deal.

graveler · Jan 19, 2008

where do we get that form to fill out?????

RGM · Jan 20, 2008

graveler said:
where do we get that form to fill out?????

You have to ski or snowshoe up there to get the form. Come May 16th when we can legally ride there we need a couple of hundred sledders to go up there and stuff the box.

Griz · Jan 22, 2008

Whats the May 16th date about Ray?

RGM · Jan 22, 2008

Griz said:
Whats the May 16th date about Ray?

It only non-motorized from Nov 1 to May 15th. Last year the lake was still OK to cross at that time so May 16th I would like to see a couple of hundred sledders up there. We need to show the goverment that it is our recreational values that need protecting.

2ManyToys · Jan 22, 2008

I've got it marked on my calendar. Thanks for the info Ray. Have you considered trying to get some positive media coverage for that day?

Norona · Jan 23, 2008

I am a cross country skier-have raced at a high level for 18 years and also have been sledding for 3 years. I was very sad to see Callighan closed down to sledding and have worked hard talking with the management of the area about this. They would have been way smarter to make a sled parking area and charge people 10-15 dollars to park in a proper and easy area and make a road around the xc area leading right up to the lake and past it for sledders and kept the xc area down below. It is true that most will never go to the lake as it is too far for most average xc skiers..

Instead of bashing the xc skiers, which is easy to do, spend your time writing letters, supporting the clubs with funds and any other way you can so they can fight in your name and yes show up on that date to ride! It will also be very interesting to see how this area is managed after 2010 as I live in North Vancouver and would never drive all the way to that area to xc ski....there will be less visits and it will be harder to pay for the grooming. I knew this before it ever happened, time will tell.

The biggest problem with this whole deal is that the government incharge of parks has not been involved as if they built some proper roads to access Garibaldi Park no backcountry skiers would need or want to come into the sleding areas. it is only because they don't have good access that they use the sledders parking and roads and then fight to shut us out...

XC-ski for fitness so I can rip on my sled!

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Summitseeker · Jan 23, 2008

Nice pics Dave! I have been riding Callaghan since the early 90's and am very frustrated that we lost this area. I...and many more have wrote letters into the ministry and they did not do a thing. I agree with Brian (Too Many Toys), we should get as many people as we can to ride that area on May 16th and get media coverage. I am not sure if it will make a difference but it might give them an idea of how many people want to ride this area.

With the new highway going through Callaghan Valley to the Olympic venues, there is no reason why we could not park at the old parking lot (for groomer) for Callaghan Country resort which is already past the Olympic venues.

I just hope that after the Olympics are over, we can win this area back. As we get closer to May 16th, I will make up a flyer and put them on the windsheilds of trucks. We should also give them out to the hundreds of people expected at the Big Dawg Shootout in April and really try to get the point across!

2ManyToys · Jan 23, 2008

Rod, if you make up the flyer, I can get them printed. Let's also ensure they don't end up on the ground after they are distributed on windshields. Let me know what I can do to help. We need to take a pro-active, professional approach to this.

Dave N- I also live in North Van. We met via Brodie Bikes a few years ago. If you ever want to talk about what else we can do regarding Callaghan let me know.

RGM · Jan 23, 2008

Hey Super Dave

Many sledders today are into backcountry skiing or snowboarding. I started doing it over 10 years ago and also take out the snowshoes and skinny skis with the wife once in a while. So although I do bash what I call the clickity clicks it because of the hypocrisy that some of them have. When a jet fly overhead it makes more noise than a sled 1/2K away but I never here them complaining about that. I am glad you are part of the forum and we have been telling the government for years to make better access and even hut to hut skiing in Garibaldi Park but so far nothing has happened but they may be listening now. Only guys like you are fit enough to spend all day skinning up to the alpine, ski all day and head home.

Norona · Jan 23, 2008

thanks guys. I write a bi-monthly column in the North Shore News and a weekly 3/4 page outdoor article in the Vancouver Metro. I will do a full story on this issue to help spread the word and help keep it aware. I post all the time on backcountry forums like club tread etc about these issues.

The biggest problem is so many backcountry skiers don't want to share the park with even other backcountry skiers. I recently had a cool guy buy some skis form me who was on the alpine club board and he was frustrated on how many people do not want better access put into Garibaldi or a hut system as they think it will bring too many people. This is false and would create awesome places for snowshoers, and backcountry skiers to raom without any sound....The funny thing is as this guy told me is that they don't want it but they travel to jasper and Europe every year to do the hut to hut skiing there..

Most people are hypocrites and I get it a lot as I live on both sides of the fence and I have never met a better bunch of people who don't care how fancy your gear is or what you wear but treat everyone with respect than the fellow sledders and dirt bikers I have met. These people who complain always will and I have found it useless to call them names etc as they will never stop complaining as it is their nature. We are too busy riding, having fun, spending time at work and with or families which is why it is so hard to get people involved. it is not that they do not want to help as we are all passionate but we are just too dam busy living!

If you e-mail me at dave@davenorona.com I can e-mail you the stories I have done on snowmobiling in the corridor and have them for any use. Whatever I can do to help. I know a lot of you were out there way before my time and I and others appreciate all the time you have logged fighting for these areas and creating the awesome areas we have...

windbreaker · Jan 24, 2008

I must thank you for your support on CT's board as well. We are all losing elbow room due to population increases and we have to co-operate with ALL back country users. Just a little sanity ..

Norona · Jan 24, 2008

well said. Like I said it is easy to name call etc on other user groups. However just like we don't like to be generalized neither do any other groups. We look much better if talk about the benefits of sledding, show how much money we bring to an area, the things we do as a group to enhance the areas we visit like better parking lots etc then we look better showing we have taken the higher road...

The number one thing we need to support is to have the government increase the road access into Garibaldi. If there were proper roads for bc skiers and snowshoers to access that terrain they would go there and conflicts would be less.

I purposely do not go to Callighan to xc ski as I do not want to support that area for how they have shut sledders out of a perfect area that worked so well. I am just one guy but hopefully they will need more income there in the future to up keep the grooming etc and realize that the sledders contribute a lot to the area and supply us with a proper plowed lot with a groomed access road up past the lake and show off how they have different users sharing and getting along...now that would be a positive step..

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