Last Sunday on the Goodman Creek trail I had to jump off the trail to avoid a speeding mountain biker. As they went by without a “sorry” or “excuse us,” I said, “Excuse me.” The lead biker yelled back, “It’s a bike trail!”
Speaking of “bike trails,” Middle Fork District – Willamette National Forest has plans to build a 15-mile mountain bike-only “race track” literally above Oakridge inside a several-thousand-acre old growth reserve. Equally as bad, they’ve approved a new two-mile trail to expedite access for mountain bikes to some of the most beautiful lakes in the Oregon Cascades Recreation Area.
Currently one can bike five miles to these nearly pristine lakes. Apparently that’s too difficult, and these wild lakes need to become “more useful.” This new trail will also cross the Pacific Crest Trail, thus allowing mountain bikers to illegally ride the PCT to complete a “track lap” to a parking lot. The Forest Service made this decision using a Categorical Exclusion to avoid completing an environmental analysis and responding to public comments. Based on my 45 years enjoying public lands, our national forests have become unregulated “Disneyland” amusement parks.
Shannon Wilson
Eugene
A Note From the Publisher
Dear Readers,
The last two years have been some of the hardest in Eugene Weekly’s 43 years. There were moments when keeping the paper alive felt uncertain. And yet, here we are — still publishing, still investigating, still showing up every week.
That’s because of you!
Not just because of financial support (though that matters enormously), but because of the emails, notes, conversations, encouragement and ideas you shared along the way. You reminded us why this paper exists and who it’s for.
Listening to readers has always been at the heart of Eugene Weekly. This year, that meant launching our popular weekly Activist Alert column, after many of you told us there was no single, reliable place to find information about rallies, meetings and ways to get involved. You asked. We responded.
We’ve also continued to deepen the coverage that sets Eugene Weekly apart, including our in-depth reporting on local real estate development through Bricks & Mortar — digging into what’s being built, who’s behind it and how those decisions shape our community.
And, of course, we’ve continued to bring you the stories and features many of you depend on: investigations and local government reporting, arts and culture coverage, sudoku and crossword puzzles, Savage Love, and our extensive community events calendar. We feature award-winning stories by University of Oregon student reporters getting real world journalism experience. All free. In print and online.
None of this happens by accident. It happens because readers step up and say: this matters.
As we head into a new year, please consider supporting Eugene Weekly if you’re able. Every dollar helps keep us digging, questioning, celebrating — and yes, occasionally annoying exactly the right people. We consider that a public service.
Thank you for standing with us!
Publisher
Eugene Weekly
P.S. If you’d like to talk about supporting EW, I’d love to hear from you!
jody@eugeneweekly.com
(541) 484-0519
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