By SUSAN EVANS
PATTON — Snowmobilers still are not welcome at Rock Run recreation area, a 6,000-acre three-year-old former coal area funded with state snowmobile and ATV registration fees.
And some ATV riders, who use the area’s 50 trails, are unhappy that the grounds close Nov. 1 and do not reopen until April.
At a meeting Thursday night to consider a snowmobile event, a majority of Rock Run board members voiced concerns that there would be problems if snowmobiles were allowed on the trails, said state Rep. Gary Haluska, D-Patton, who chairs the nonprofit board.
“In some places you can see rocks popping up from the snow,” he said Friday, in explaining the board’s decision.
Haluska still insists that eventually the park will have snowmobile trails and will be able to accommodate both four-wheelers and snowmobiles.
Jeff Baxter of Mundys Corner, a self-described outdoors enthusiast and avid four-wheeler, said he would like Rock Run to be open all year. He also wishes as many areas were open to ATVs as are to snowmobiles.
“By my count there are more state forests open to snowmobiles than to quads,” he said.
“My wife and I are in our 50s, and along with our friends, we often go to West Virginia to ride. That’s people like us taking money out of Cambria County and spending it somewhere else,” he said.
“Not letting snowmobiles go in Rock Run is wrong. Not opening it year-round for four-wheelers is wrong. We have to pay registration and buy plates and have insurance,” he said.
“If I have to do that, why can’t I run on the trails?”
Baxter said there are only 18 ATV clubs in the state, and the closest one is in Indiana. He would like to see more state-owned land open for trails, such as logging roads in state forests.
The state does not specify that snowmobile/ATV fees be used for both recreational activities, but the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources encourages year-round use of the existing trails.
Snowmobiling and winter ATV-riding opened in late December in state forests and parks, and the state provides condition updates at (877) SNOMBLE (766-6253). DCNR also provides weather and condition reports online for state parks and forests.
And winter ATV riding, such as Baxter would like to see, is listed by the state as a tourism and recreation activity.
“Pennsylvania is recognized as a national leader in winter tourism and recreation, and for good reason,” DCNR acting Secretary John Quigley said in a message posted on the DCNR Web site.
“From sledding, late-season hunting and ice fishing, to skiing and riding snowmobiles and ATVs, our state parks and forestlands have it all,” the notice says.
Weather permitting, snowmobile enthusiasts soon could have access to as many as 1,900 miles of state forest roads and 870 miles of trails.
There are 160 miles of winter ATV trails in seven state forest districts, the DCNR Web site says.
But in this region, Baxter said, there are only 25 miles of ATV trails on state land.
“I want to use the state forests. Some say the ATVs would tear up the forest, but the clubs would take care of the trails,” he said.
“If I can’t run my quad, why do I pay the state a fee? If you can ride your snowmobile in state forests, why can’t I ride?”
Haluska said that progress is being made for both ATVs and snowmobiles, but there is still work to be done.
He would like to use the Rock Run land, plus Pennsylvania Game Commission land, to develop snowmobile trails.
