The Alaska Outdoor Council represents thousands of Alaskans who because most
of our member are accessing public lands via motorized transportation are the
majority user group of federally recognized trails (RS2477) in the state. Access to
public lands in Alaska is of upmost importance to Alaska Outdoor Council’s
membership.
The route proposed by the Alaska Trails nonprofit 501(c)(3) from Seward to
Fairbanks, Alaska is an inappropriate location for establishment of a National
Scenic Trail (NST) under the National Trails System Act for numerous reasons.
The first 130 miles of the proposed Alaska Long Trail route already provides urban
access via the Seward Highway to the already established Iditarod National
Historic Trail. The Seward Highway is already a designated USDA Forest Service
Scenic Byway, Alaska Scenic Highway, and an All-American Road to the Iditarod
National Historic Trail, Section 5. [16USC1244].
The next 320 miles of the proposed Alaska Long Trail parallels the Parks Highway,
Interstate A-4 built in 1971. The majority of lands/waters along this +300 miles of
the proposed Alaska Long Trail are state, private, or ANCSA Native Corporation.
Establishing a NST on either side of the Parks Highway. This would dissect these
easily accessed lands for 3/4 of Alaska’s population making management that
much more cumbersome. Fifty years of public access along the Parks Highway has
provided numerous opportunities for hunting, trapping, fishing, wood gathering,
residential homes, resource development and year around outdoor recreation
access to state and private lands off the highway corridor. Any amount of oversight
by the U.S. Secretaries of the Interior and Agriculture would disrupt current use by
a majority of urban Alaskans who regularly access state public lands and waters
along the Alaska Long Trail proposed route.
Section 7.[16USC1246], Administration and Development. makes it clear that the
U.S. Secretary is in charge of the overall administration of a National Scenic Trail,
the state is only consulted on federal lands. The federal government already
restricts urban access to many areas of the 60% of Alaska managed by the
Secretary. Sec.7(c) states that “ the use of motorized vehicles by the general public
along any NST is prohibited unless permitted. BLM Resource Management Plans
repeatedly consider urban folks as a “casual use” and restrict their access to BLM
managed trails. Sec.7(j) states that potential trail uses allow; bicycles, cross-
country skiing, day, hiking, equestrian, activities, jogging, or similar fitness
activities, trail, hiking, overnight and long distance, backpacking, snowmobiling,
and surface water and underwater activities. While trail use by motorcycles,
bicycles, four-wheel-drive, or all terrain, off-road vehicles must be permitted.
(Which begs the question do bicycles need to be permitted or not? They are listed
in both categories) Currently the majority of use off the Parks Highway is by far
motorized. Is the Secretary ready to implement that much NST permitting? And
what about licensed trappers whose historical traplines would cross the NST
Alaska Long Trail? Would current trappers need to be permitted by the Secretary
also?
The Alaska Trails NGO have been far from forthright in their publications and
presentation as to what federal management of a National Trails System between
Wasilla and Fairbanks would do to complicate the activities of many Alaskans who
have accessed state public lands along the Parks Highway corridor since the
completion of the Alaska Railroad in 1923. Further more, for decades Alaskans
who filled out the Statewide Comprehensive Outdoor Recreation Program
(SCORP) required by NPS have stated that its trailhead parking with signage and
restrooms that they preferred spending federal dollars on not creating long,
interconnected trial systems. Backcountry hiking trails are for an elite group of
recreational trail users, not the majority of Alaskan trail users.
Had Alaska’s Senior Senator Lisa Murkowski taken the time and effort to reach out
to the Alaska Outdoor Council prior to introducing S.1354 to amend the National
Trails System Act in the 117th Congress to include a study of the Alaska Long
Trail the Alaska Outdoor Council could have suggested a number of possible
historical and scenic trails that would have met the requirements for establishing a
National Historic Trail. Trails that would not have disrupted the current patterns of
public use along the proposed Alaska Long Trail.
Both historic and scenic trail locations that already have Right-of-Way’s (ROW),
passed down to the State of Alaska at statehood, that are far more suitable for
Congress to designate as a Scenic Trail under the National Trails System Act than
the proposed route chosen for the Alaska Long Trail. The Copper River Highway
is but one example of a route worthy of being included in the National Trails
System. The old Kennecott Mine to the Port of Cordova railroad ROW (200 miles)
was donate to the United States “for use as a public highway” back in 1941. The
route has been on the NPS National Register of Historic Places inventory since the
early’70’s, making it a more reasonable choice.
Alaska has ROW trails that would have provided renewed public access for
outdoor recreation in areas that don’t have ground transportation. Alaska has ROW
trails that would have provided an opportunity for ANCSA Native Corporation to
implement Title 13 of ANILCA giving them a preference to provide revenue
producing visitor services along the refurbished route.
S. 1354, Alaska Trails Act of 2022 could have chosen a route in Alaska that
would have met the criteria Congress had in mind when they passed the National
Trails System Act of 2019 without dividing the most heavily used off-highway
access trails to state and private lands with a federal land designation National
Trail.
Please take the Alaska Outdoor Council’s concerns into consideration while
determining the feasibility of the Alaska Long Trail.