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Show 4 I ( c;y-v --it VJ : Lee Wangsgard guides the BLM raft through the rapids of trips through the canyon approximately three times a week to Westwater Canyon on a routine check. John Thomas, Westwater check camp sites for litter and to be sure boating and permit river ranger, sits in the rear of the raft. BLM personnel make regulations are being followed. VJeshvater White Water Experience All Part of River Management Study The scenery begins to change. The canyon walls take on an almost frightening appearance as they straighten up and reach for the sky. The gentle ripples start to rise. Suddenly you feel as if you are on a roller coaster, not a river. You grab for the ropes and hold tight. Water crashes over the sides of the raft, dousing you. It's a wild ride but then, the water begins to smooth. You know you've made it through the rapids. Because of experiences like this and others on the river, the popularity of river running is increasing at an almost unbelievable rate. And with the popularity come increasing increas-ing people and management problems. Utah State University alumni alum-ni and faculty are finding themselves highly involved in the heart of the matter-river management. One particular area of focus is the Westwater Canyon stretch of the Colorado River outside of Moab, Utah. "I see river running today at the point skiing was 10 to 12 years ago," comments Lee Wangsgard, USU alumnus and Grand County area manager man-ager for the Bureau of Land Management. Wangsgard's office is responsible for the management of the Westwater area. Other BLM employees with degrees from USU involved in river management are Larry Lee, outdoor recreation planner, plan-ner, state office; Darwin Snell, assistant district manager, Moab; Scott Packer, river management specialist, Moab; and Ron Montagna, lead river ranger. Officials cite one example of the increased popularity of river running: More people floated the Colorado through the Grand Canyon in 1972 than did in the 100 years after 1869, when the river was first floated. Other rivers are seeing a similar increase in use. "Around 1972, attention was drawn to the potential of rivers as a natural recreation area. Many commercial river runners were seeing increased activity and concern arose over the protection of the environment. environ-ment. The BLM immediately recognized the potential recreational recre-ational use and in 1973 we hired our first river ranger for Westwater to enforce state boating laws and safety regulations," Wangsgard ex plains. "We also began issuing permits to commercial runners already on the river. These were based on the number of passengers they had carried in previous years," he continues. In 1974, private use beganf to pick up. Wangsgard attributes attrib-utes this to better equipment; and more people acquiring expertise. Unfortunately some of the results were sloppy camping, poor sanitation conditions con-ditions and overcrowding on particular days such as weekends. week-ends. The BLM initiated a reservation reser-vation system on Westwater in 1975. This limited the number of trips allowed on the river each day to five with a maximum group size of 25. Other regulations are stipulated stipula-ted such as carrying a portable toilet for overnight trips. "We want to manage for the best experience. What we are aiming for is to accommodate the maximum number of people without degradation to the canyon environment md without destroying the sociological soci-ological experience of those on the river," Wangsgard explains. ex-plains. "Obviously 200 people will enjoy the river more and have a better experience than if 3,000 floated the stretch at one time. But we must remember, there would then be 2,800 that did not enjoy the experience at all. We have to weigh these things. This is a public river, and we have to accommodate as many as possible, somewhat some-what at the expense of others," Wangsgard says. The Westwater Canyon area stands out from some other rivers that are popular for river runners. This presents some problems and eases others. "Westwater is unique because be-cause it can be a one-day experience. Not too many people want to commit the time and money to more than one five-day river trip a year. Westwater takes no more personal a commitment than a day of golf. So, lots of people want multiple trips a year. That makes competition for reservations great," Wangsgard Wangs-gard says. "But, with the one-day trip and the elimination of overnight over-night camping, the impact on the environment is lessened. Also, we can get more people down the river if groups are only on one day," he continues. "This also makes the river very popular for kayaking since there is no need to take a support boat to carry supplies." sup-plies." Just what kind of experiences experien-ces are river runners looking for? The answer to this question is being researched by Richard Schreyer, USU Forestry and Outdoor Recreation Recrea-tion Department. Schreyer and two graduate students are conducting a user expectation survey on Westwater. "We are interviewing people peo-ple when they put in on the river to see what they expect of the trip and why they are taking it. Then, at the take out point, we interview other runners to see what experiences experi-ences they had during their trip," Schreyer explains. "What a person thinks will happen on a river trip often differs from what does happen. hap-pen. In studies we have conducted condu-cted on other rivers, we have found that most river runners are first timers. If they have never been down a river, it is hard to realistically have a picture of your expectations," he continues. "We hope the USU study will help provide the guidelines we need to establish river management man-agement policies. We hope it will tell us what kind of experience people come for so we can manage for the best " possible experience," Wangsgard Wangs-gard concludes. |
