Presentation on the Royal Gorge Public Outreach process. As of 7/21 this is a non-final summary of the public meetings, focus groups, online survey, and various public comments.

1. Public Outreach
summary thus far…
July 21, 2013

2. Royal Gorge Outreach:
Multiple Ways to Provide Input
 Public Meetings
 Focus Groups
 Online Survey
 Hikes & Property Tours
 Personal Communication

3. Public Meetings
June 15 @ Donner Trails School –
Outreach Kick-off Meeting
126 participants + 17 table hosts
June 17 @ Truckee Cedar House –
Outreach Kick-off Meeting
46 participants + 10 table hosts
July 6 @ Serene Lakes Firehouse –
Forestry Management
87 participants + 2 presenters
July 21 @ Serene Lakes Firehouse-
Neighbors Meeting
July 29 @ Mt. Judah Lodge –
Van Norden Meadow and the Dam at
Lake Van Norden. 9:00 – 11:00 AM
August 31 @ Mt. Judah Lodge –
Final Outreach Wrap-up
9:00 – 11:00 AM

4. Focus Groups
 Selected experts and professionals
in focus groups
 July 9th, Summit Station:
Representatives from mountain
biking, hiking, and equestrian
groups
 July 9th, Summit Station:
Representatives from advocacy
and environmental groups.
 July 11th, Supervisor
Montgomery’s Home:
Government & Regulatory
Agencies
 August 5th, Mt. Judah Lodge:
Donner Summit Business Groups

5. Online Survey
• Opened May 2013
• Closing Mid-August 2013

6. Public Hikes &
Property Tours
 June 15: Driving tour
for non-hikers
 June 23: Van Norden
Meadow
 June 30: Snow
Mountain
 July 14: Lyle’s Lookout
 July 20: Mt. Rowton
 August 4: Point Mariah
 August 11: Palisade
Peak
Photo: George Lamson

7. Personal
Communication
Personal communication
to the Land Trust
throughout the process.

8. Public Meeting
Takeaways
RESOURCE MANAGEMENT
 Encourage and educate everyone to be
good stewards of land.
 Obtain a thorough understanding of the
ecological values of the property.
 Participants favor preservation &
conservation over recreation but
understand the need for balance.
 Want low-impact recreation trail network
for all users.
FORESTRY
 Have healthy, fire-safe forests.
 Strong support for Land Trust forestry
plans including the fuel break around
Serene Lakes.

9. Public Meeting Takeaways
INFRASTRUCTURE
 Support basic picnic areas at
trail heads and at scenic view
areas.
 Support backcountry camping
in appropriate areas.
 No fires, grills or fire pits to
address large concern about
fires.
 Mixed opinions regarding
campgrounds
FACILITIES
 Want facilities to be subtle and
low impact.
 Want information booths or
kiosks.

10. Public Meeting Takeaways
TRAIL HEADS
 “Improved” trailheads –
decomposed granite for parking.
 Separate staging area or
designated trailer spaces for
horses.
 Neighborhood access points / no
parking
 Clear signage especially for
mountain bikes / equestrian --
OK and off limits trails.
 Dog waste stations at trail heads.
TRAILS
 Want more trails, especially
loop trails and trails that have
regional connections.
 Favor a combination of
multiple use and single use
trails.
 Want good signage and maps.
 Use sustainable trail building
techniques.
 Design trails for safety and
reduced conflict
 Dogs OK with mix of leash &
voice command

11. Focus Groups Key Takeaways
TRAIL ORGANIZATIONS
 Favor a network of multi-use trails with
some single-use trails
 Spirit of “howdy”; multiple user groups
can get along
ADVOCACY GROUPS
 Science and research to be most
important factor in development of land
management plan
 Forest fuels management for the
protection of habitat and old growth
forest
 Improve water quality and quantity for
downstream users
 No consensus on Van Norden
Dam, awaiting assessment
GOVERNMENTAL AGENCIES
 Do minimal improvements; stay
under the radar
 Multiple regulatory agencies (Fish
& Wildlife, Army Corps, Nevada &
Placer Co., USFS, SLCWD)
 Slow response time from law
enforcement

12. Survey Key Takeaways
 600 respondents to date
 Top four summer Sierra activities of survey takers in order: mountain bike, hike,
walk, trail run
 Top activities/amenities survey takers would like to see at Royal Gorge, in order:
hiking trails, mountain bike trails, camping, fishing, picnic areas, disabled use
trails
 Survey respondents are concerned about: conflicts with other users, increased
wear & tear, general safety, unfriendly dogs
 92% of respondents have participated in summer recreation in the Donner
Summit / Lake Van Norden / Royal Gorge / Serene Lakes area.
 Dogs kept under voice command is OK by a wide majority
 Forestry Management is important to a wide majority
*Our apologies: Survey data on question 6 regarding summer use trails on the Royal
Gorge Property inadvertently left out an option for equestrian & hiker only trails.

13. Hikes & property tours
 Very popular and successful; 20-40 participants per hike/tour on average
 Brings awareness of the natural environment at Royal Gorge (forest,
wildflowers, wildlife, ecosystem, geology)
 Confirms this a great summer place to recreate
 Property “shows well.”
 Thank you to our hike leaders (stand-up and take a bow!)

14. Personal Communication
 23 Emails & letters received by the Land Trust
 All correspondence responded to and added to the
public record.
 Most correspondence expressing opinions
regarding Lake Van Norden Dam and mountain bike
/ equestrian use of trails.

15. Thank you for your input, it is valued!