Motorized dirt bikes and all -terrain vehicles are being squeezed out of public trails, but a push by Snohomish County might open some private land for new trails.
Otherwise, rural Snohomish County is left with only one area of unofficial public off-road trails. Overcrowding is expected.
“There’s over a half-million ORV users in Washington, and very few ORV parks or trails throughout the region,” said Linda Kuller, the county’s chief planning officer, referring to off-road vehicles. “There’s a high user demand, but not a lot of opportunities for places to go to actually ride on trails.”
A dirt-bike racetrack in Monroe, for example, closed in November because it lacked permits. Two weeks later, the state Department of Natural Resources closed a logging road near Granite Falls that was popular with ATV riders, citing off-road accidents that killed one man and paralyzed another.
The last place to ride ATVs in the county, Reiter Trails on 4,600 acres of DNR land near Gold Bar, is often said to be closing. The nearest sanctioned riding area is in Walker Valley in Skagit County.
The private land targeted by the county isn’t much, but it’s better than nothing, said Matt Sterett of Arlington, a motorcycle rider since age 4.
“It would be a great idea if Snohomish County would do that,” said Sterett, 30.
Trail riding means adrenaline, exercise and the same panoramic views of nature that hikers get, he said.
The proposed rules head to the County Council Jan. 18.
If adopted, developers could seek to build riding trails on 1,100 acres of forest and recreation land across the county, provided they meet buffer, noise, business and environmental requirements.
Snohomish County has the second-highest number of registered ATV and off-road motorcycle owners in the state, according to the Department of Licensing. Of 99,236 registered statewide in 2004, King County has the most with 18,675, followed by Snohomish County with 10,718.
Supporters say riding dirt bikes and four-wheelers is a family sport that builds character.
“We have a large population of ORV owners who are good stewards of the environment,” County Executive Aaron Reardon said, citing volunteer cleanup efforts at Reiter Trails. “They deserve a place to ride, with clear parameters and predictability.”
Despite the county’s “impressively high number of ATV registrations, there are no sanctioned riding areas. That gets down to politics,” said Mike Liebold, co-owner of Everett Powersports, a motorcycle and off-road-vehicle dealer.
The county’s proposed rules should be seriously considered, he said.
“Heaven knows there’s not much public land available for off-road recreation. It’s all taken up by the Nature Conservancy and the Sierra Club,” Liebold said.
The proposed county rules would allow developers to finance and build trails on private forest properties 20 acres or larger that are at least 2,000 feet from homes, schools, hospitals, sanitariums, churches and bed and breakfast inns.
In the meantime, there are no plans to close Reiter Trails to informal use by riders, said Bill Wallace, the DNR’s Northwest region manager.
Wallace said the state welcomes discussions about making Reiter Trails or other areas formal ATV riding areas, if the plans fit the community.
“Reiter might be one of those areas to consider,” Wallace said.
Statewide discussions are expected with the Legislature, which controls money for trail construction and maintenance.
“In the meantime, ORV folks have been and continue to use the ORV riding area” at Reiter Trails, Wallace said.
Reporter Jeff Switzer: 425-339-3452 or jswitzer@heraldnet.com.
Hearing scheduled
Public comments on proposals to expand private off-road-vehicle trails will be heard at 10:30 a.m. Jan. 18 by the Snohomish County Council, eighth-floor chambers, 3000 Rockefeller Ave., Everett.
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