Lack of information about funding has caused the group to pause and evaluate its plans
By Lee Juillerat for Ashland.news
Uncertainty reigns because the federal government’s freeze on funding government programs is creating myriad concerns, including the possibility that funding for trail work on popular national forests in Southern Oregon and far Northern California may not be provided.
The uncertainty is impacting planning for trail work on the Fremont-Winema National Forest, including the Sky Lakes and Mountain Lakes Wilderness Areas. Heather Berg, who helped obtain a $194,000 grant for the Klamath-Lake Resource Advisory Committee before retiring from the Forest Service last year, said the freeze on funding projects, along with a Forest Service hiring freeze, has created uncertainty on whether the planned trail work can be funded.
Even if policy reversals allow the funding, delays could impact the necessary time for planning and hiring personnel.
Of the $194,000, Berg said $105,000 was designated for trail work by the Siskiyou Mountain Club. If the work happens, the club would do trail maintenance improvements on about 380 miles of “all user” trails, or trails used by hikers, backpackers, snowmobilers, cross country skiers and equestrian groups with an emphasis on the Forest’s two wilderness areas.
Gabe Howe, executive director of the Siskiyou Mountain Club, said the lack of information about funding has caused the group to pause and evaluate its plans. The club also has projects scheduled in other areas, including the Marble Mountain Wilderness, and the Upper and Lower Rogue River trails.
He said some funding has been “authorized,” which he hopes means the funding is assured. Work in the Fremont-Winema, however, has not been authorized. Howe said an aide to Representative Cliff Bentz, R-Ontario, a district that includes most of Eastern Oregon, said Bentz does not support freezing funds on contracts that have already been authorized, “so that’s at least a step in the right direction.”
Talent office grand opening celebration
The Siskiyou Mountain Club recently moved its office from Third Street in Ashland to 106 Talent Ave., where its Outdoor Store is now open 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Wednesdays through Saturdays.
The public is welcome to attend a grand opening celebration from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. Thursday, March 6, with a State of the Club address at 6 p.m. from Executive Director Gabe Howe.
In an interview in the club’s newsletter, The Siskiyou Hiker, Howe said the group is seeking more community support to help fund its work, adding, “We’re also tightening the belt — a lot — and charting a course to success given the realities that 50 percent of our annual revenue may be gone … Trump and Musk cannot stop us. This is a grassroots movement that’s been building for 15 years, made up of people from across the political spectrum who love their public lands. We’re going to fight for our mission like we always have.”
According to Howe, because of the lingering unknowns, “We’re sharpening the pencil on our 2025 Budget and have paused hiring for interns. Concurrently we’ve seen a surge in high quality applications. We are positioned to pick back up and even expand services if the support is there, but we can’t bring on more folks in this moment of uncertainty.”
On Friday, Howe said there are indications some projects may be approved, but emphasized, “We are planning for a worst-case scenario until we see some ray of light.”
The club has planned a series of outings for volunteers to assist with trail work, including March 8 and 9 along the Illinois River National Recreation Trail, March 14-17 along the Rogue River Trail, and monthly stewardships days through the summer.
Although funding is less certain for trail work on the Fremont-Winema, Berg said various groups, including the Klamath Basin Outdoor Group, Backcountry Horsemen, Klamath Snow Drifters and others, have indicated they will again provide volunteers for limited trail improvements.
The Klamath Trails Alliance has scheduled several trail maintenance days this spring and summer at Spence Mountain, which features a network of more than 50 miles of hiking, mountain biking, and cross country skiing trails. KTA has also scheduled a Rye Spur Collaborative Maintenance weekend in June with Forest Service volunteers, High Desert Trail Riders Back Country Horsemen, and the Siskiyou Mountain Club.
“We’ll still work together and get done what we can get done,” Berg said.
Email freelance writer Lee Juillerat at 337lee337@charter.net.
