The Pitkin County Open Space and Trails Board endorsed a plan Tuesday that will let the public walk through Filoha Meadows near Redstone. But not until the summer of 2010.
Until then, the 192-acre nature preserve will remain completely closed from Oct. 1 until June 30 and open for guided tours only in July, August and September.
Filoha Meadows is a former cattle ranch that has been acquired in several deals by Pitkin County since 1991 to prevent residential development there. The meadow is across the river from the popular Penny Hot Springs, just off of Highway 133.
Under the management plan, the area will continue to be closed in the fall, winter and spring so that bighorn sheep, elk and other wildlife in the meadow are not disturbed.
The hot water in the river helps keep grass available in the meadow year-round, making it popular with grazing animals. The meadow is also one of the few places in Colorado that is home to fireflies and “stream orchids.”
But the plan expected to be adopted next month by the open space board will allow people in 2010 to walk through the meadow along an old wagon road that used to connect Redstone and Carbondale.
The decision is against the wishes of some Redstone residents who think the meadow is too sensitive to allow the public to walk through without a guide. A county advisory group, the Crystal River Caucus, submitted a petition in the spring to the Pitkin County commissioners calling for guided tours only.
And people who live between Redstone and the meadow along a private road — that happens to have a public trail easement running down the center of it — are concerned that people will trespass on private land on their way to the meadow.
But other residents have argued that the public should be able to enjoy the open space during the summer months, especially as it was purchased with public tax money through the county’s open space program.
“The Filoha Meadows Nature Preserve has captured the public imagination as few other places have,” wrote open space land steward Gary Tennenbaum and open space director Dale Will in a memo to their board of directors. “The public debate on the draft plan has focused almost entirely on the question of whether guides should be required for all public access east of the Crystal River.”
Tennenbaum and Will concluded that “the natural features of the preserve would not be adversely impacted by seasonal unguided access along the old wagon road.”
So why wait until 2010?
Tennenbaum said his department needs this summer and next summer to prepare before opening up the area to public access.
Volunteer land stewards needed for public education must be recruited and trained. Signs to keep people on the trail and off private property need to be set up. And another open space and trails ranger needs to be hired to manage Filoha Meadows and other open space properties in the Crystal River Valley.
“We need a ranger for that whole valley,” said Tennenbaum, who plans to advocate for the new seasonal position in an upcoming strategic planning process.
One potential solution to the problem of access to the meadow was raised at Tuesday’s meeting by Jim Larson of Glenwood Springs. He owns nine acres of land across the river from Filoha Meadows with access off of Highway 133. He asked the open space board to consider buying his land.
If the board did so, and a bridge was built across the river, the public could get to the meadow without using the public trail that runs down the middle of Dorais Way.
“That would be beneficial for Dorais Way owners,” Larson said.
Mary Dorais, the namesake of the road and a homeowner concerned about trespassing, emphatically agreed.
The board said they were open to discussing the opportunity with Larson.
bgs@aspendailynews.com
