North Cascade Heli - again

I wrote about this last winter and thought I'd update for those who might have an interest in the matter.

Over the last x number of years North Cascade Heli Ski has established ten unauthorized landings and runs. There is a process in the NCHS permit that allows for adding new landings and runs and the Forest Service seems intent on allowing NCHS to keep using these runs.

When the NCHS permit was renewed in 2007 the authorizing regulation was CFR 220.6(e)(15) and this presents a snag for officially authorizing these new runs. This regulation requires the permit holder to be in full compliance with the terms of their permit before any changes are made. Just the fact of establishing these landings and runs puts NCHS out of compliance with their permit.

Not to fear though as District Ranger Mike Liu chooses to extend the benefit of the doubt to NCHS and thinks that maybe there was some mapping confusion that was a problem or maybe they just didn't know where they were when they established these new runs. As an example – NCHS has long had a run down the south side of Mt Hardy ending at the highway with the upper landing just west of the summit. Somewhere in the area of the Open Fly Couloir the new map now shows a run down the north side into the headwaters of the Methow River. Apparently the thinking is that NCHS was confused or they couldn't read the map or whatever, and so they started using the north side of the mountain instead of the south side. Because confused.

I pointed out to Mr. Liu that in order to safely operate a helicopter in a mountain winter time environment, and in the very low visibility that NCHS sometimes operates in, that it's essential that the pilot and guides know where they are at all times. If you or I claimed the pilot and guides didn't know where they were they'd be indignant and pissed off, and rightly so. Those guys have been flying that landscape for many years, some of them for 25 years, and they know it very well. They darn sure know the south side of Mt Hardy as opposed to the north side.

District Ranger Liu's reasoning is completely illogical, likely putting him at odds with the Administrative Procedures Act which requires a clear rational connection between the known facts and the conclusion reached.

The known facts are: NCHS illegally established ten new landings and runs and is therefore not in compliance with the terms of their permit, CFR 220.6(e)(15) requires the permit holder to be in full compliance with the terms of their permit before changes are made and District Ranger Mike Liu wants to award NCHS these runs regardless of what the law says.

This not a public process sort of decision so if you send a comment Mike Liu's way it won't be “counted”. But – your opinion does matter.

District Ranger Mike Liu – This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Forest Supervisor Michael Balboni – This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Matt

For those of you who have interest in this and maybe submitted a comment.

Regarding the North Cascade Heli Ski unauthorized landing sites, the Methow Valley Ranger District issued a Supplmental Information Report that documented the process that allows NCHS to continue to use the unauthorized runs and landings that they've established over the past years. The NCHS permit allows the Forest Service to do this although I doubt that it was intended to be used after the fact. In the October 2012 letter outlining the terms of of probation for the NCHS permit District Ranger Mike Liu took NCHS to task for establishing unauthorized landings and runs, and cutting whitebark trees, and stated that "Any additional non-compliance with any terms and conditions of your permit for the remaining life of your permit will result in permit action". In this case "additional non compliance" and "further permit action" appears to mean rewarding NCHS for establishing and using these unauthorized runs and landings. I think I've finally gotten it through my thick head that NCHS will probably not comply with it's permit and the Forest Service has no real intention of requiring them to comply.

It needs to be said that NCHS has given up eight seldom used runs and landings and recieved these eight new (or old) runs for basically a wash as far as as the number of runs and landings.
Mike Liu made the decision to set aside four (or five depending on how you count them) closer in runs that NCHS has been using (unauthorized) for backcountry skiers. This is the first time that the Forest Service has acknowledged that backcountry skiers have a legitmate interest in how the Liberty Bell and Sawtooth roadless areas (Highway 20 corridor) are managed and set aside terrain for their specific use. No small thing and Mike gets credit where credit is due. These were runs that NCHS wasn't supposed to be using anyway but hey, for backcountry skiers, it's a start.

For wildlife mitigation it was words on paper.

Unfortunately this still hasn't led to a fully accurate NCHS map but it's getting close.

Much thanks to any who submitted comments.