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Thursday, June 17, 2004

Mount Hood wilderness gets unexpected visits

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

PORTLAND -- A new survey says that almost 140,000 people a year venture into the wilderness areas of the Mount Hood National Forest, about twice as many as previous estimates.

Survey results are not yet public, but were reported in yesterday's edition of The Oregonian newspaper. The data are part of a U.S. Forest Service effort to measure recreational uses of federal forests and help decide whether more acreage should be set aside as wilderness.

Overall, the Mount Hood National Forest had an estimated 4.1 million visitors during the survey period, which ran from October 2002 to September 2003.

The higher-than-expected number of wilderness visitors has prompted Forest Supervisor Gary Larsen to reassess his wilderness management strategy.

"In the grand scheme of things, that's not a big piece of the 4.1 million," he said. "But it's a particularly important piece."

Interviews with 207 visitors during the 12-month survey period indicated that people still consider Mount Hood trails and primitive areas to be relatively uncrowded.

But Larsen said he worries about maintaining the promise of solitude in wilderness areas. In the next few months, Larsen said, his staff will look at the most highly trafficked areas and determine whether they are at their limits.

Although he has not ruled out a backcountry permit system, he said he'll first look at ways to disperse hikers to less crowded areas.

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