There are two major government players in the Richmond Ridge story, whose next chapter will likely be shaped by the Forest Service's draft travel-management plan due out this spring.
The Forest Service is perhaps the biggest player, as it owns most of the land on the east side of the ridge, along with scattered parcels of land on the west side in Little Annie Basin.
And then there is Pitkin County, which has jurisdiction over the three major public roads in the area: Little Annie, Midnight Mine and Richmond Ridge roads. Pitkin County also manages private development in the area through its Rural and Remote policy, which restricts landowners to building 1,000-square-foot "cabins."
The Forest Service's biggest stick is its "travel management plan," which establishes rules for which types of uses are allowed in different areas of the White River National Forest.
However, the federal agency's stick has been whittled away significantly by budget cuts that prevent it from enforcing its own regulations.
The Forest Service is now planning to issue its draft travel-management plan in the spring with an "open motorized" designation for the Richmond Ridge area. That would allow unrestricted use of snowmobiles and snowcats on public lands - and allow the Forest Service to stop playing the role of mediator for battling powder hounds.
The current situation does not allow for motorized use off county roads except for the snowcats of Aspen Mountain Powder Tours, and, for the past two seasons, the use of a winter-only road near McFarlane's gulch by snowmobile skiers.
Pitkin County does not want the Forest Service to open up the whole area to motorized use, but it does support the position of Powder to the People, a local non-profit group advocating for equal access to public lands on the east side of the ridge within the Powder Tours permit area.
In October 2006, Pitkin County commissioners sent formal comments to the Forest Service about its draft travel-management plan. The county "...supports more public (winter) access than exists today, but not unlimited access.
"We do not support a new winter motorized play area in the vicinity of Richmond Ridge, because this would potentially result in an increase in recreational use, which may further exacerbate illegal parking and trespass issues," the county wrote.
But it went on to say, "We do support a cooperative effort on the part of the U.S. Forest Service, the interested public and the Aspen Skiing Company to further modify the existing Powder Tours Permit to allow for more general public access to the snowcat routes established by Powder Tours during the winter."
That's a bit of a mixed message, given that a larger area on the east side of Richmond Ridge for snowmobiling-skiing might well exacerbate some of the current challenges in the area.
"There is little to no parking available for people who want to park snowmobiles and trailers," said Ellen Sassano, a long-range planner for Pitkin County. "That is a factor that has to be considered."
Brian Pettit, the county's director of public works, disagrees with the direction the Forest Service appears to be heading.
"I think it would be a flaw to open it and let people have at it," Pettit said. "That's not going to benefit anyone, and it could be a dangerous situation."
Tim Lamb, a recreation specialist with the Forest Service's Aspen-Sopris Ranger District, who is working on the travel-management plan, is also well aware that there are more entities than the Forest Service with cards to play in the Richmond Ridge game.
Pitkin County could decide to exercise its rights to ban winter motorized use of its roads in the area - an option the county has not suggested they are inclined to activate.
Private landowners in the area could move past signing their property and demand that the Pitkin County Sheriff's Office enforce the law against trespassing on private land by people on either snowmobiles or skis.
And SkiCo could flex its muscles and ban the parking of snowmobiles on its private land behind the gondola building in what is currently known as "the yacht basin" or "the marina." That would force snowmobiles to park on the county roads. The county could then, in theory, ticket and tow them. Each of those actions would increase tension on Richmond Ridge, and most parties agree it would be best to work together to avoid such drastic measures.
"It's a conundrum up there with these overlapping situations," Lamb said.
The Forest Service remains open to comments from the public about potential changes to Richmond Ridge, especially after the draft plan is released in the spring.
"There is a lot of conflicts there now," Lamb said. "If it was all open, the conflicts would still be there. But we would have less conflicts about access."
bgs@aspendailynews.com 
