Of Horsepower and Horse apples

I don't know which topic is more likely to start a flame war--ATV's or Horses in the ONSR. I'm going to guess it would be the Horses.

I think I can take a guess at the horse owner/rider position. We love our horses, we don't make alot of noise, we don't get in trouble for throwing rocks at law enforcement, this is our opportunity to enjoy nature and our like minded friends, people urinate and defecate in the river--how is my horse any different. And like so many thorny problems--they have a point.

The "tree huggers" have a point also. One horse is one thing, even one trail ride is one thing, but legions of horses are another. And their urinating and defecating owners. And the noxious weed seeds in the hay. And the additional silt in the river from ground and plant disturbance. And the additional access to areas that large numbers of people would never walk. And staging areas.

The difficulty for the NPS is that the horses have a foot in the door, so to speak. Which is why I think the Horse discussion will cause more of an uproar than a ATV discussion.

Here is where I am on this issue. Permits. That screaming sound you hear is an incoming nuclear warhead. No one dare mention the word permits. And, first come first serve limits. Horrors.

Hunters deal with it all the time. Want to duck hunt on Duck Creek. Be there well before 4am--for the drawing--for a permit--to hunt. Same thing at Otter Slough. Oh, and bring your non lead shot--that is not exactly cheap. Dove hunting? Same thing, just you can get there a little later. If you think owning a horse is expensive--get into hunting. I have friends who drive 200 miles to duck hunt. Not duck kill, duck hunt. It is the same amount of gas, if you limit out by 8am or stand there all day and never see a bird.

Here is the perfect (ha, ha, ha) permit system. Horse permits AND tuber permits. It is a free flowing river, not a mobile cess pool. More horse permits during the "shoulder" seasons, spring and fall, fewer during summer. Tuber permits limited to summer and limited in number. The idea being to balance the e coli load--or any other indicator organism--something we can all count out loud--together. Number of permits limited to 80% of current estimated use. Round numbers--that would be about 20K tubers and I don't know how many horses. If you want to stay at Roosevelt lodge in Yellowstone--you make your reservations well in advance. Want to raft the Grand Canyon--plan on reservations.

The ONSR is just as important to future generations as the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem or the Grand Canyon.

This reminds me of a saying--an expert is a guy 50 miles from home carrying a briefcase. Why do we accept that simply because it is easily accessible we shouldn't preserve it?