Speak Up Now for Recreation Roads Near Mount Baker

The Mt. Baker-Snoqulamie National Forest has been engaged in a Sustainable Roads process for the past few years. As we reported recently, the forest published their Sustainable Roads Analysis and Public Engagement Report. Those two documents are now helping to inform how the forest will manage its roads in the future.

The road to the Welcome Pass and High Divide trailhead in summer of 2015. Photo by bproctor

Shape the future of roads leading to your favorite Mount Baker trails

The first area of the forest to analyze its road network in more details through an Access and Travel Management Project plan is the North Fork Nooksack on the Mount Baker Ranger District. The North Fork Nooksack region has some of the greatest recreational road access on the district, including roads to Church Mountain, Heliotrope Ridge, Welcome Pass, Skyline Divide, Damfino Lakes, Canyon Ridge and Hannegan Pass.

The Access and Travel Management Plan will determine which roads are no longer needed and roads that should stay open and how they will be maintained for hikers, mountain bikers, horseback riders, hunters, climbers and others. The Forest Service is proposing three alternatives for how to manage the North Fork Nooksack's road system in the future.

Speak up for the roads that matter for you

You can comment on each alternative or provide your thoughts about the importance of specific roads in the area.

Comment by March 7 on the roads that matter to you in the North Fork Nooksack area. Let the Forest Service know which roads you use to access trails and other recreation spots in the area.

Roads that provide access to trails

• Welcome Pass Road (#3060) to High Divide Trailhead, including High Divide Trail and Welcome Pass
• East Church Road (#3040) to Church Mountain trailhead
• Twin Lakes Road (#3065) to Winchester Mountain, High Pass and Silesia Creek trailhead including Tomyhoi Lake and Yellow Aster Butte Trails
• Canyon Creek Road (#3100) to Damfino Lakes Trailhead including access to Boundary Way and Canyon Ridge trails
• Hannegan Road (#32) to road end including Hannegan Pass and Goat Mountain trails
• Wells Creek Road (#33) to Nooksack Falls trailhead
• North Fork Nooksack Road (#34) to the Nooksack Cirque trailhead
• Deadhorse Road (#37) to Skyline Divide Trailhead with access to Boyd Creek trail
• Middle Fork Nooksack Road (#38) to Ridley Creek Trailhead including Elbow Lake and Bell Pass trails
• Glacier Creek Road (#39) to Mt. Baker Vista including Heliotrope Ridge trail

Damfino Lakes. Photo by wolfwoman