In the spirit of supporting runners, environmental education, and kids' camps, please take one minute and write a letter (even a couple of sentences) to the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) on behalf of the Steens Mountain Running Camp. The running camp has been facing some difficult issues that threaten its future existence. The BLM is currently seeking comments from the public, due by Sept 3 (next Tuesday), as they prepare to determine the future of the camp. Please read on?
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The controversy surrounding the camp is this: For two days each year, the running camp bring kids on an all-day hike/run (the ?Big Day?) through the beautiful Big Indian and Blitzen Gorges, which became designated a wilderness area on Steens Mountain in 2000. As many of you know, we have not received a single complaint about the Big Day since its start in 1975, and many campers have found it to be a life-changing event. Wilderness Watch, an environmental watchdog group based out of Montana (they've never been to Steens Mountain) doesn't want our camp to be allowed to continue taking kids into the wilderness area because they believe it's "not an appropriate use of wilderness." Instead, they want us to adopt an alternative route on a rocky dirt road that is less scenic, longer, and less safe than our current historic route (7 miles longer, fewer sources of drinking water, and more exposed to lightning strikes [our camp bus driver was killed by lightning on the mountain in 1975-it's a major hazard and safety consideration for the kids]).
The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) grants our camp the permit that is necessary for us to do the Big Day each year. The BLM just completed a long-awaited Environmental Assessment of the camp that outlines our impact to the mountain, and also suggests some alternatives to the Big Day. Based on written public comments that they receive through September 3, the BLM will decide whether our camp can continue our historic hike through the canyons or whether we will have to adopt the new alternative route on dirt roads advocated by Wilderness Watch.
The greatest way people could help the camp is to write a letter to the BLM stating that the running camp should be allowed to continue its historic hike through the wilderness and canyons of Steens Mountain (referred to in the EA as the "proposed action"), and that we should not have to adopt an alternative route for the Big Day.
The letters can be mailed or e-mailed to the following address (must be post-marked by next Tuesday, Sept 3):
BLM
Burns District Office
28910 Highway 20 West
Hines, Oregon 97738
By the way, the BLM has only received about a dozen letters so far, and half of them have been from Wilderness Watch opposing the camp. Each letter makes a huge difference!
If you have any more questions (such as how to access the EA online), I've attached a more in-depth newsletter below. I may also send out some photos of the suggested alternative route for the Big Day. Please feel free to call or e-mail me if you have any other questions. Thanks so much for your support.
Sincerely,
Cliff Volpe
Asst Camp Director
Steens Mountain Running Camp