Cascade Volcanoes • Entered by Laurie Kerr on November 5, 2024
DNR Outdoor Access and Responsible Recreation Strategic Plan
October 30, 2024 – November 5, 2024
Participants and Hours
| Pre Planning hours | |
| Post Admin hours | |
| Activity Hours | 4 |
| Participants | 1 |
| Total Hours | 4 |
Key Issue: Public Lands Health & Protection
Activity Type: Advocacy (rallies, lobbying, meeting decision makers, letters/calls/emails)
Key Partners: Washington Trails Association/Backcountry Horsemen/Chinook Trail Association/
Measurable Outcomes
Outcome 1: Advocacy actions (1 comments)
Short Description of Activity
DNR Outdoor Access and Responsible Recreation Strategic Plan
Reflection/Evaluation
The Washington Department of Natural Resources has published its first ever strategic plan for statewide recreation and access management. This plan was developed with planning from Tribes, statewide partners, other agencies and the public, and how it aspires to promote access to other underserved communities.
I attended the breakout session at the 2024 Washington State Trails Conference in Wenatchee on October 4 where DNR staff presented the overall strategy with a PowerPoint presentation.
I submitted my comments as well as the online survey to the OARSP from DNR. I had also listened in on the webinar on 10/30/24 provided by DNR. They went over the summary of the strategic plan and allowed for questions from the audience. We have also met with Steve Jones, president of the Chinook Trail Association, who is planning on speaking at our spring membership meeting.
Here are my comments that I submitted:
I would like to support the separation of motorized vs nonmotorized trails on DNR lands. This has been a win-win for SW Washington and I think it is time to continue this on a state-wide basis.
I would also like to suggest that grant money be established for partners to help with trail maintenance as well as for collecting baseline data for monitoring trail usage. Partners can help with many aspects of monitoring campsites as well as monitoring other protected resources. Grant money would go further if volunteers were reimbursed for travel rather than supporting paid DNR staff. This strategy has been highly successful in the Forest Service in supporting wilderness areas. The other suggestion that I have is to allow maybe 4 days per year for non Discovery-pass owners to park on DNR lands to encourage BIPOC communities to enjoy our state-owned lands.