Category Archives: Kaibab National Forest

Campgrounds scheduled to open for season on Williams and Tusayan Ranger Districts

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WILLIAMS – With summer recreation season rapidly approaching, Kaibab National Forest recreation facilities on the Williams and Tusayan Ranger Districts will soon be opening to the public for a variety of outside activities.

Williams Ranger District

Kaibab Lake – Kaibab Forest Service Photo

Kaibab Lake Campground –The lower loop will open on April 22 and sites will be available on a first come first served basis. The entire facility will be open on April 28.

Dogtown Lake – NAG Photo

Dogtown Lake Campground – Fully open April 28.
Whitehorse Lake Campground – Fully open April 28.
Cataract Lake Day Use Area – Effective April 15, this site will have a host and a schedule of hours open to vehicle access. The entrance gate will open daily at 7 a.m. and be closed at sunset each evening. Foot travel into the site is allowed.
Spring Valley Cabin – does not close seasonally and remains open throughout the year. Reservations can be made at www.recreation.gov.

Tusayan Ranger District

Ten-X Campground – Fully open May 26. The late opening is due to current improvements being made to the facilities and infrastructure. Two large group sites and a portion of single-family campsites are available by reservation at www.recreation.gov. Campers are encouraged to arrive early in the day for first come first served sites as this campground fills up quickly.

Russell Tank Day Use Area – Has been stocked with rainbow trout for the first time in many years providing excellent fishing opportunities this summer.

Hull Cabin – will open May 1 and is available by reservation only at www.recreation.gov.

General Information

Forest visitors are invited to camp year round at dispersed sites across the entire Kaibab National Forest, however motorized vehicle use is restricted in some areas, so visitors should be prepared by knowing the regulations.

Motorized Visitor Use Maps are available for free at any of the district offices or can be downloaded from www.fs.usda.gov/detail/kaibab/maps-pubs/?cid=fseprd490027

Additionally, camping corridors on the Motor Vehicle Use Maps have expanded to allow motor vehicles up to 100 feet off the center of designated roads for dispersed camping.

“Among many of the improvements you may see this summer is the reconstruction of the amphitheater at Kaibab Lake campground. New seating will replace the current benches,” said Recreation Program Staff Officer Lisa Jones. “Water levels are at a historic high this year which has made piers accessible, greatly enhancing boating and fishing activities at many of our locations.”

To obtain more information about recreational programs on the Kaibab National Forest contact Lisa Jones at (928) 635-5619 or Dutch Maatman at (928) 635-5661

For additional information on the Kaibab National Forest, visit www.fs.usda.gov/kaibab or call (928) 635-8200.

Kaibab to conduct Outfitter-Guide Needs Assessment, Capacity Study

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FREDONIA – Due to increasing demand and visitor use on the Rainbow Rim Trail continuing to trend upward, recreation planners on the North Kaibab Ranger District will immediately conduct an outfitter-guide needs assessment followed by a capacity analysis to determine use within the vicinity of this increasingly popular recreation site on the Kaibab National Forest.

On Feb. 1, the North Kaibab Ranger District determined the imminent need to place a hold on all “new” special-use permits for all commercial uses on the Rainbow Rim. Under the current Land and Resource Management Plan for the Kaibab National Forest, special-use permits are characterized as a partnership between the Forest Service and private businesses, academia, non-governmental organizations, or individuals in order to provide specific services to the public on forest lands. Authorization of these special-use permits supports the Forest Service mission, helps meet demonstrated public needs, and is consistent with the desired conditions for the use area.

“Our intent is to provide better service to our special-use permit holders and quality experiences for the public,” said North Kaibab Natural Resources Specialist Dan Gunn.

Under the direction of the Recreation Special Uses Handbook, Forest Service policy requires that a needs assessment be conducted to determine the public or agency need for authorized outfitting and guiding activities. The process is anticipated to take up to one year to complete. In the interim, district staff will not process any “new” outfitter-guide applications for use on the Rainbow Rim.

This will not impact operations for outfitters and guides with “existing” permit-use on the Rainbow Rim or any special-use permit holders for activities outside the Rainbow Rim vicinity, and applications for areas outside the Rainbow Rim vicinity will continue to be accepted.

“With a large increase in demand for outfitter and guide requests, we want to exercise our due diligence by re-assessing and identifying visitor needs, determining if current use for the area aligns with desired conditions and adjusting our business model accordingly,” said Gunn. “Upon completion of the capacity study, we will have the most recent data and analysis available, which will help identify a reasonable level of “use” specific to the Rainbow Rim, ensure that “use” aligns with desired conditions of the forest plan, and ensure our recreation partner’s and visitor’s needs are appropriately met while continuing to improve the overall visitor experience.”

Upon completion of the needs assessment and capacity analysis, the data collected will aid recreation planners in drafting a Rainbow Rim management plan intended to tailor a manageable pool of outfitter and guide permit holders specifically tied to the Rainbow Rim, improve management practices and public services local to the area and increase overall quality of the user experience.

For further information, please contact Dan Gunn at degunn@fs.fed.us.

Kaibab National Forest plans pile burn near Jacob Lake

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FREDONIA – North Zone fire managers plan to resume pile burning in the vicinity of the Arizona Department of Transportation Maintenance facility near Jacob Lake starting as early as Monday.

Pile burning is one piece of the ongoing hazardous fuels reduction efforts of the Plateau Facilities Fire Protection Project on approximately 5,000 acres surrounding 33 structures across the Kaibab Plateau. Fire managers plan to initially target 25 acres of piles and continue throughout the week as conditions allow.

As a reminder, all prescribed fire activity is dependent on the availability of personnel and equipment, weather and fuel conditions, including winds, temperature, humidity, vegetation moisture and ventilation conditions for dispersal of smoke. All prescribed fires are subject to approval by the Arizona Department of Environmental Quality. For additional information on the Smoke Management Division and to view prescribed burn authorizations for any given day, visit http://www.azdeq.gov/programs/air-quality-programs/smoke-management.

In the interest of safety, visitors are reminded to always use caution when traveling in the vicinity of prescribed fires, as firefighters, fire-related traffic and smoke may all be present. Although no significant smoke impacts are expected, visitors should always be cautious when driving in the vicinity of emergency vehicles operating in the area.

As the prescribed burn season continues through the spring, notifications of upcoming prescribed fires will be provided regularly through the following sources:

· Fire Information Recorded Hotline: 928-635-8311
· Twitter: www.twitter.com/KaibabNF (Text ‘follow kaibabnf’ to 40404 to receive text messages.)
· Kaibab website “Recent News”: www.fs.usda.gov/kaibab
· Kaibab Facebook: www.facebook.com/KaibabNF

Services for H.B. “Doc” Smith this Saturday

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H.B. “Doc” Smith

WILLIAMS – H.B. “Doc” Smith passed away on February 25, 2017 in Chandler, AZ.

“Doc” was born in Mississippi and grew up in southern New Mexico and west Texas. He graduated from high school in El Paso, Texas and then went in the Navy where he served during the tag end of the Korean War.

After service in the military, he went to Colorado and worked in mines for a year, before enrolling at Colorado A & M at the College of Forestry and Natural Resources in Fort Collins, CO. While in college he worked summers on the Coeur d’Alene National Forest in northern Idaho in 1958, and then in 1959, he was a smoke jumper out of Missoula, MT. After receiving his BS in Forestry in 1961 he started out on the San Juan National Forest at Dolores, Colorado as a timber sales forester.

While at Dolores he was very active in fire and became qualified as a sector boss, division boss, and trained as a line boss. After leaving Delores, he moved to Minturn, Colorado on the Holy Cross District of the White River Forest. From there he became district ranger at Lander on Shoshone National Forest in Wyoming for seven years and continued his involvement in fire, becoming fire boss qualified.

He moved on in 1975 to become a district ranger in Utah on the Wasatch National Forest; and then later on the Toiyabe National Forest in the Sierras. From there, “Doc” and his wife Kathy moved to Arizona on the Kaibab National Forest, where he was fire staff officer. He became an area commander on the fire side and served on at least seven national incidents across the West.

He retired from the Forest Service then in 1994 and enrolled at Northern Arizona University to work on an advanced degree. In addition to receiving his Master in Forestry, he also became part of the Ecological Restoration Institute where he worked until he finally retired for good. “Doc” and Kathy moved to Phoenix to be closer to their family.

“Doc” was very proud of his Forest Service career and remained involved with National Smokejumpers Association, National Museum of Forest Service History, National Association of Forest Service Retires, Rocky Mountaineers, Amigos, Society of American Foresters, and all the Forest Service Reunions

He is survived by his wife, Kathy and daughter, Kelli, and son, Ken, and their families all in the Phoenix area.

The service for Doc will be on Saturday, March 4th, from 13:00 until 16:00.  It will be held at the Flagstaff Elks Lodge, which is located at 2201 N. San Francisco St., in Flagstaff.

Pioneer Museum in Flagstaff hosts Black History Month presentation Thursday

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FLAGSTAFF – On Thursday, February 23, the National Park Service, Kaibab National Forest, Arizona Historical Society Pioneer Museum and Flagstaff Arts Council are hosting presentations on the history of northern Arizona’s black community titled, Hidden and Revealed: Revisiting the African American Experience in Northern Arizona. Come learn the history of northern Arizona’s black pioneers and their settlement in the Flagstaff, Williams and Grand Canyon area.

Local scholars Margaret Hangan, Kaibab National Forest Heritage Program Manager, Public Lands Historian, Ben Carver, Ph. D and Historian, Jack Reid, Ph. D will present on the early history of African Americans in the southwestern United States, including migration and settlement in Flagstaff and Williams and working on public lands in northern Arizona.

This program is part of the Flagstaff Pioneer Museum, Night at the Museum production, Hidden and Revealed and includes a public reception with appetizers and drinks at 5:30 at the Pioneer Museum (2340 N Fort Valley Rd, Flagstaff), followed at 6:30 by presentations at the Coconino Center for the Arts (2300 N Fort Valley Rd – directly behind Pioneer Museum). This event is free and all ages are welcome.

March Archaeology Month schedule at Kaibab National Forest

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WILLIAMS – Here is our calendar of archaeology month programs beginning in March, with Thursday evening programs starting at 6:30 PM at the Williams Visitor Center. Please have folks call in advance at 928-635-5600 to give us an idea on how many will attend each event.Every Saturday in March, we will also lead interpretive hikes to Keyhole Sink Petroglyphs, meeting at the Oak Hill Snow Play area at 2 PM. The hike is 0.6 miles each way, and last about 2 hours. Participants should dress warmly and prepare to get wet and muddy, especially if the waterfall is running!

Thursday March 2: South Kaibab Heritage Accomplishment Report
South Kaibab Zone archaeologist Neil Weintraub will highlight how volunteers, contractors, and other partners helped Kaibab archaeologists document, protect, and preserve archaeological sites during Fiscal Year 2016.

Thursday March 9th: History of Williams Mountain Men
Alan Messimer, Volunteer for the Williams Historic Photo Project, will present a history of the Williams Mountain Men.

Thursday March 16th: History of Williams Baptist Church
Alan Messimer, Volunteer for the Williams Historic Photo Project, will present a history of the Williams Baptist Church.

Thursday March 23rd: 1928 Bunion Run across Northern Arizona
South Kaibab Zone Archaeologist will discuss the history of the First Transcontinental foot race as it went across Northern Arizona in 1928. Weintraub will discuss newspaper accounts and historic photos in the weeks and days surrounding the event in the Williams area.

Thursday March 30th: African Americans of Williams or other project (Hangan)
Forest Archaeologist Margaret Hangan will present her research on African Americans of the Williams area.

Kaibab National Forest seeks public input on proposed water pipeline extension project

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WILLIAMS – The Kaibab National Forest is seeking public input on a proposed project to construct an extension to an existing livestock water pipeline within the Ebert Allotment on the Williams Ranger District in order to improve livestock distribution in the area.

Specifically, a pipeline extension is being proposed that would extend north from the existing Miller Pasture Pipeline, which runs from east to west, and continue for one and a half miles. The proposed pipeline extension would be buried 30 to 36 inches below the ground to prevent freezing during cold periods and consist of a 1.5-inch diameter HDPE Polyethylene pipe.

The Ebert Allotment grazing permittee would provide all the labor and supplies for the proposed improvement and would assume the responsibility for maintenance of the pipeline extension upon completion.

The Ebert Allotment is located in the far northern portion of the Williams Ranger District southeast of Valle and is managed under a 10-year term grazing permit for 100 cow/calf and four horses from Nov. 1 to April 30. Ebert is made up of four pastures, Miller, Daves, White Hills and Fix, with livestock managed through a rest rotation system in order to meet desired conditions for the allotment.

Currently, cattle are not using the Miller pasture to its ability, which limits grazing management options on the allotment as a whole. The purpose of installing the livestock water pipeline extension is to allow for more drinkers to be available throughout the pasture, which would improve overall livestock distribution. Kaibab National Forest managers believe this greater water dispersal would allow control of grazing activities within a specific pasture while benefiting area wildlife species.

The Miller Pasture Livestock Water Pipeline Extension Proposed Action is available on the Kaibab National Forest website at www.fs.usda.gov/project/?project=50864. Members of the public are invited to provide their comments on the proposed project between Feb. 14 and Feb. 28. To submit e-comments, please email comments-southwestern-kaibab-williams@fs.fed.us. For hard copy mailed or hand delivered comments, please deliver them to the Williams Ranger District office at 742 S. Clover Road, Williams, AZ 86046 during office hours Monday through Friday 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. For more information on the project, please contact Cherie Owens, range management specialist, at (928) 635-5621.

New Motor Vehicle Use Maps available for Williams and Tusayan districts

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WILLIAMS/TUSAYAN – New Motor Vehicle Use Maps are now available for the Williams and Tusayan ranger districts of the Kaibab National Forest. The maps, which show what roads are open to motor vehicle travel, are the result of years of monitoring public feedback following implementation of the Travel Management Rule on the forest.

The maps, which are available for free at any Kaibab National Forest office, implement the decisions of the South Zone Travel Management Revision Project, signed in December by Williams and Tusayan Districts Ranger Danelle D. Harrison. The biggest change stemming from that project and reflected on the new Motor Vehicle Use Maps is the authorization of motorized dispersed camping along 276 miles of designated National Forest System roads.

Motorized dispersed camping is now authorized for 100 feet from the centerline of designated roads. Motorized dispersed camping is allowed only for ingress and egress following the most direct route from and to a designated road and for parking a recreational vehicle. In years to come, motorized dispersed camping will be authorized for 300 feet from the centerline of these designated roads. However, additional natural and cultural resource surveys will be undertaken over the next three years before the motorized dispersed camping distance is extended from 100 to 300 feet. This is to ensure forest managers can identify forest resources that may require further protection within that zone.

Prior to this new travel management decision, motorized dispersed camping was restricted to within 30 feet of forest roads open to motor vehicle use. That eliminated access for motor vehicles to many historically used and already impacted dispersed camping sites. It also created safety hazards by restricting motorized dispersed camping to within close proximity of traffic on roadways, and it negatively affected people’s camping experience by exposing them to dust, exhaust and noise. Finally, it exposed previously undisturbed portions of the Kaibab National Forest to the effects of dispersed camping-related motor vehicle traffic because people couldn’t access many historically used sites and instead starting creating new motorized dispersed camping sites in order to comply with the 30-foot regulations.

“Something needed to change,” Harrison said. “The South Zone Travel Management Revision Project was directly responsive to the hundreds to thousands of comments we received from our local community members and other forest users. We heard over and over again that our visitors were dissatisfied with their recreation experiences. It was incumbent upon us to find a better way to protect forest resources while also providing a quality motorized dispersed camping experience. We believe we’ve found that balance.”

Also as part of the new travel management decision, the following changes are being implemented:

· 14 spur roads designated for motor vehicle use have been added in the Tusayan Ranger District. These designated spur roads total approximately 1.1 miles and provide access to sites historically used for motorized dispersed camping.

· About 9 miles of National Forest System roads have been closed to motor vehicle use in the Williams and Tusayan districts to mitigate resource impacts caused by motor vehicle use on these roads.

· Approximately 24 miles of National Forest System roads have been added to the road system open to motor vehicle use in the Williams and Tusayan districts. This includes 17 miles of roads that were previously closed to motor vehicle use, 4 miles of user-created routes that were found to have no resource concerns but that provided important access to portions of the Williams Ranger District, and 3 miles of roads in the Tusayan Ranger District needed to provide access to water tanks.

· An adaptive management strategy has been established that will allow for future, limited changes to the South Zone road system.

Motorized big game retrieval was not addressed in the new travel management decision, which means the rules governing it have not changed. Within 1 mile of all open roads, except where explicitly prohibited, hunters can drive off the road to retrieve a legally killed elk using the most direct and least ground-disturbing route in and out (one trip in, one trip out) during all elk hunting seasons as designated by the Arizona Game and Fish Department, and for 24 hours following the end of each season.

“We made a commitment to the public to be responsive to the feedback we received and to refine our transportation system over time,” Harrison said. “We took our monitoring role seriously, and we have worked hard to make changes that we believe our local community members and other forest users will be pleased to see implemented. And, we plan to continue monitoring and improving over time by being open to what our communities and visitors are telling us.”

The Kaibab National Forest undertook the South Zone Travel Management Revision Project with the goal of improving implementation of the Travel Management Rule within the Williams and Tusayan ranger districts. The need for this effort was revealed through public and internal feedback received by the Kaibab National Forest over the years since the original travel management decisions were implemented. The Arizona Game and Fish Department has been an exceptional partner to the Forest Service during this effort by providing critical data and by advocating for improved consistency among Arizona’s National Forests to assist visitors in understanding motor vehicle travel regulations.

Besides hard copy Motor Vehicle Use Maps being available for free at Kaibab National Forest offices, there are several other motorized travel aid options that can be accessed on the “Motor Vehicle Use Maps & Motorized Travel Aids” page on the Kaibab National Forest website.

To provide feedback on the implementation of the Travel Management Rule on the Kaibab National Forest and associated Motor Vehicle Use Maps, visit the Travel Management Feedback Implementation Comment Form online.

Fire Managers Urge Public Not To Fly Drones Over or Near Wildland Fire Operations

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WILLIAMS – Kaibab National Forest officials along with all federal, state, and local wildland fire agencies are reminding members of the public not to fly “Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS)” or drones over or near wildfire or prescribed fire operations at any time.

With fire season rapidly approaching, land managers are taking a proactive approach to alert recreationalists and forest users of the inherent dangers of flying drones near fire management activities. Unauthorized UAS flights can potentially cause serious accidents, disrupt aerial firefighting operations, and pose significant safety hazards to both the public and personnel working in the air and on the ground.

Air tankers and helicopters are valuable resources used to rapidly curtail the spread of unwanted wildfires that can often be very difficult to suppress. They are sometimes the deciding factor in successfully stopping a fast moving wildfire. These aircraft typically fly at very low altitudes and UAS interference can instantly stop operations requiring air resources to be grounded due to the potential for a midair collision. Unforeseen intrusions of this nature impede suppression efforts and compromise the safety of firefighting personnel. The impending consequences have the potential to threaten communities and endanger lives.

With interest and popularity rising steadily in this recreational activity, documented incidents of drone incursions on wildland fire incidents have doubled over the last two years and trends are indicating more of the same as the numbers of UAS sales continue to climb.

A number of websites are available to the public to obtain more information about UAS safe practices and Federal Aviation Administration requirements. For guidance see http://www.faa.gov/uas/model_aircraft/

Also, available is a UAS awareness campaign called “If You Fly, We Can’t” designed to keep UAS pilots away from airspace used by firefighters. See: https://www.fs.fed.us/fire/aviation/uas.html.

To learn more or to report a safety-related UAS event, got to the FAA’s Aviation Safety Hotline website at https://www.faa.gov/about/office_org/headquarters_offices/aae/programs_services/faa_hotlines/

Kaibab National Forest plans pile burns on Tusayan and Williams districts

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WILLIAMS – Fire managers plan to burn piles on the Tusayan and Williams ranger districts of the Kaibab National Forest tomorrow and Friday. The piles are the result of forest restoration efforts, and the goal of burning them is to further reduce fuels that could feed high-intensity wildfire.

Tusayan Ranger District

Tusayan Ranger District fire managers plan to burn piles scattered within a 100-acre area tomorrow and Friday just west of the Town of Tusayan and Grand Canyon Airport. The piles have cured over the last two years and are expected to consume quickly. Winds on Thursday are expected to be from the southwest, which would push any smoke produced toward the northeast. However, fire managers anticipate that any smoke impacts to Tusayan or the airport would be very light. At night, downslope wind is expected to move smoke west away from Tusayan and the airport. On Friday, winds are predicted to be from the northeast, which should push any smoke produced southwest away from developed areas. No smoke impacts are anticipated for Tusayan or the airport Friday. No road or trail closures are expected.

Williams Ranger District

Williams Ranger District fire managers plan to burn piles scattered within a 52-acre area tomorrow and Friday near Kunde Knoll, about 8 miles south of Williams. Smoke is expected to drift to the north and northeast during the day and will be most noticeable in the immediate area surrounding the pile burn during ignitions and for a few hours afterward. Smoke impacts to any developed areas or nearby communities are expected to be light.

Also on Thursday and Friday, Williams fire managers plan to burn the single, large natural debris pile at Three Sisters Cinder Pit, located north of Cataract Lake about two miles northwest of Williams. Smoke is expected to be pushed north and northeast during daytime hours, away from Williams. However, light smoke may be noticeable in the northern portions of Williams during overnight hours.

No road or trail closures are expected with either pile burn on the Williams Ranger District.

General Information

Implementation of any particular prescribed fire, including a pile burn, is dependent on weather and fuel conditions including winds, temperature, humidity, moisture of the vegetation and ventilation conditions for dispersal of smoke. All prescribed fires are subject to approval by the Arizona Department of Environmental Quality. For additional information on the Smoke Management Division and to view prescribed burn authorizations for any given day, visit http://www.azdeq.gov/programs/air-quality-programs/smoke-management.

In the interest of safety, visitors are always reminded to use caution when traveling in the vicinity of prescribed fires, as firefighters, fire-related traffic and smoke may all be present.

Notifications of upcoming prescribed fires are provided regularly throughout the year. Members of the public can find this information through the following sources: