Heading into the Nakusp Seniors Hall on Wednesday, Feb. 26, to gauge public opinion on expanding local winter recreation trails, Catherine Newsome of the volunteer-run Arrow Lakes Cross Country Ski Club (ALCCSC) wasn't sure what to expect.
If able to get the community in agreement, interim president Newsome and her team at ALCCSC endeavour to tack on another 4.6 kilometres to the current 9.6-km cross-country skiing network, which lies off Highway 6 on the way to Nelson. This would include new half-kilometre connector trails to integrate the network with nearby roads.
The network overlaps partly with the village-owned Nakusp and Area Community Forest, and the prospect of its expansion brings appeal for longer routes and more accessible, lower-incline trails for children who can't currently access the forest cabin. Ambitions to widen the existing trails would also reduce risk and fear of "ice bombs" cascading onto skiers from overhead branches along tight paths.
However, nearby residents raised myriad concerns Feb. 26 for ALCCSC to chew on, including how more trails could box properties in along Upper Arrow Lake, and what environmental footprint motorized recreationists can have on local water supply.
"A lot of people live below (the trails) on the waterline," Newsome said, adding that while the current and planned trails fall on crown land, one man's property line would even have to be moved or adjusted to accommodate ALCCSC's blueprints.
Others are wary of the potential for increased recreation in the area by snowmobilers and (outside winter) quad riders to contaminate their residential water.
Then, there's the old-growth sites. While some don't want to see another towering, carbon-sequestering tree bite the sawdust, at least one resident voiced concerns over the amount of noise and trail disruption the necessary logging machinery would create.
"It's 0.28 of a hectare that we'd have to go through, which is smaller than a city lot," Newsome reasoned, noting that even this sliver of ancient forest grounds can become a point of contention.
Amid all these concerns, the solution for ALCCSC isn't straightforward. The trail network is already so extensive and well-trodden, that Newsome can't imagine installing gates would be effective. Furthermore, for the expansion project to go through, the alternative to infringing on a couple of old-growth trees would likely be chopping down a larger number and area of younger trees.
On the other hand, "we've had really good public support" for the expansion, she said.
Meanwhile, ALCCSC has seen about 300 drop-in trail users so far this season, a number Newsome isn't thrilled about. It's the second consecutive bad year for the club's network, with good snowfall desperately needed despite ALCCSC paying a groomer to come tidy up the trails once per week.
"Our biggest problem right now is climate change," she said.
Having moved to Nakusp from Calgary and grown up in southern Quebec, Newsome knows what a good winter looks like for cross-country skiers. Living in the Laurentians, she "could ski from one town to the next."
Here on Nakusp's trails, "our biggest wish is for more snow."
For now, the club's board will be reviewing community feedback from this winter to determine next steps.
Anyone wanting to access the ALCCSC trails can pay $5 per visit or $45 per season.
