Tonto Closure

[Tough_Boots]

Looks like I won't be playing on the Highline this weekend

Area closures on Tonto National Forest begin June 21 due to extreme fire conditions - Fireworks prohibited at all times

Release Date: Jun 20, 2012

Payson, Ariz. (June 20, 2012) –Public safety concerns due to drought conditions, hot temperatures, and increased fire danger have resulted in two temporary area closures on the Tonto National Forest beginning at 8 a.m., Thursday, June 21. The area closures are within the following boundaries:

All National Forest System Lands, roads and trails described as follows: Beginning at Forest Road 708 at the Fossil Springs Trailhead thence proceeding southeasterly along the power line corridor following the Mazatzal Wilderness Boundary; thence easterly along the power line corridor to the junction of Forest Trail 540 (FT540); thence easterly and southeasterly along the power line corridor to the Tonto Natural Bridge State Park; thence easterly along Forest System Road 583 to State Highway 87; thence southerly following State Highway 87 to the Intersection with State Highway 260; thence easterly along State Highway 260 to the junction of the Colcord Road (Forest Road 291); thence easterly and southerly along FR 291 to Forest Road 512; thence northerly along FR 512 to the Forest boundary at the top of the Mogollon Rim; thence westerly along the Mogollon Rim and Tonto National Forest Boundary to the Fossil Springs Trailhead at Forest Road 708.
All National Forest System Lands, roads and trails within the Mt Ord, Four Peaks and Three Bar Wildlife Area, more specifically described as follows: bounded by Highway 87 on the west beginning at the intersection with Forest System Road 143; thence northerly along the eastern edge of State Highway 87 to the intersection with State Highway 188; thence southerly along the western edge of Highway 188 to the Salt River corridor; thence westerly along the north side of the Salt river corridor including the north shores of Apache Lake, Canyon Lake and Saguaro Lake to Cottonwood Creek; thence northerly along Cottonwood creek to the intersection with Forest System Road 401; continuing northerly on Forest System Road 401 to the intersection with Forest System Road 143; thence westerly on Forest System Road 143 terminating at the intersection with State Highway 87.

Forest System Road 583 from State Highway 87 will remain open for access to Tonto Natural Bridge State Park. The Tonto Creek Fish Hatchery operated by the Arizona Game and Fish Department will be closed for public access.

State Highway 87, State Highway 260, and State Highway 188 are open.

County roads through the Tonto National Forest remain OPEN unless the road is specifically closed by the agency managing that road; all National Forest System roads and trails within the described area are closed.

http://www.fs.usda.gov/detail/tonto/new ... RDB5375197

[Tough_Boots]

@Rick Vincent
According to the rangers I met at the Sunflower ranger station a few weeks ago, target shooting is becoming a bigger fire issue as well because of higher powered weapons and ammo. Some afternoons, the wilderness around Payson sounds like a battlefield.

[RickVincent]

Unfortunately the boneheads seem to outnumber the people who CAN responsibly manage a campfire (and take our trash out with us, and not destroy the beauty of the area, and, and, and...)

Going to have to start issuing camping licenses. Will have to take a class on camping, hiking, caring for fires, and cleaning up. Some people didn't learn when they were 5.

[chumley]

Today's update directly from the Coconino Forest Supervisor:

The Forest Supervisor has decided to not go into additional forest closures and/or restrictions at this time, however, further restrictions including additional area closures and/or full Forest closure will be options that will be continually evaluated and considered as situations change.” We are well staffed for the weekend and Fourth of July week with overhead, engines, dozers, and water tenders. In addition, we have all our lookouts and a full complement of prevention folks out on patrol. In addition to our local resources, we have a Type 2 Initial Attack crew on stand-by in Flagstaff and an additional engine. We have also pre-positioned a Type 3 Helicopter at Mormon Lake Guard Station.

They sound so prepared, I'm thinking a little campsite fireworks show is appropriate! :roll:

[chumley]

As noted in a recent triplog, there is a closure on the Tonto that is slated to continue until September 2, 2012 due to "the preponderance of bear sightings this year".

You can read the most recent bulletin here: http://www.fs.usda.gov/detail/tonto/new ... RDB5379827

And I'm attaching a map of the two restricted areas. North of AZ260 is day-use only. South is closed entirely. The closure includes the Hellsgate and Bear Flat trailheads, though usually when a closure boundary is drawn along a trail or road, you can still use that trail or road. I would check with the FS if you plan on visiting this area to verify that. Apparently the signs on-site make it seem like that is not the case.

[big_load]

there is a closure on the Tonto that is slated to continue until September 2, 2012 due to "the preponderance of bear sightings this year".

I'm glad the USFS doesn't control access to my driveway.

[Outlander]

The bears that were attacking people have been shot, so I am curious why they need to close the Hells Gate area until September.

Will the bears be less aggressive when September rolls around? There are black bears all over the state; like humans, there will always be some bad apples in the lot. The whole thing sounds fishy to me. It is more likely that the forest service found a huge supergrow in the closure area and have an ongoing investigation. It is kind of a pickle for them: they can either wait until the end of the season after a thorough surveillance (September), thus making a conviction more likely, or shut it down early with an eradication raid with no apprehensions. Good on them that they have decided to protect the public from walking into a potentially deadly situation.

[Nighthiker]

Last I was told the game and fish folks did not get the right bear, I offered to lend them a tent for a "stake out" but they were not amused nor take me up on my offer.

[Tough_Boots]

@Outlander

that's an interesting theory. That would be prime real estate for a grow operation.

[chumley]

The bears that were attacking people have been shot

Three bears have been shot, but they did not match the DNA of the most aggressive attack. The other two attacks did not result in enough DNA to verify if any of the three bears were involved. So at least the most aggressive bear is still out there. And possibly two more that have attacked people.

And while I admire your imagination, I think the fact that there are two closure areas on two sides of a major highway, and both include popular trails and frequently visited areas, not to mention the 6pm-6am closure (do grow sites disappear during the day?) makes this theory unlikely. Now if they had closed the Hellsgate Wilderness ... then I might be more inclined to entertain the thought. But I don't think anybody is hiding a grow site along the Horton Creek trail or the Tonto Fish Hatchery.