Yes. We all know how much the Marines care about collateral damage.

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Scum on a Bike

Thank you for your e-mail regarding the Stowe Trail. I appreciate your sharing your thoughts with me on this matter.

I appreciate the opportunity to let you know my efforts on this issue. I have been working on securing this trail connection since being elected into office in 1993, with significant progress and discussion with the Marines beginning in 2002. Since then I have been involved in several meetings with the Marine Corps and have brought forward multiple board actions to the Board of Supervisors, including allocating funds to pay for costs associated with this trail, securing Federal legislation, approving a Memorandum of Agreement between the County and the Navy, and seeking funds for the acquisition of the trail. In May of this year, I flew to Washington, D.C. to discuss this matter with Major General Kessler, who oversees all Marine Corp installations. Despite the local Marine leadership’s decision in 2010 to reject the County’s proposal for access to Stowe Trail, Major General Kessler agreed to reopen discussions and expressed his sincere interest to try to find a solution. Just this week I met with the commanding General for Marine Corps Installations West to continue our discussions and we agreed to have our respective staffs work together to determine if a solution can be reached.

I want to stress that I have not stopped working on this issue. I am as frustrated as many others but will not give up. Again, thank you for contacting me. If I can be of further assistance, please feel free to contact me or Janice Downs of my staff at (619) 531-5522 or via e-mail at www.diannejacob.com.

Sincerely,

Dianne Jacob
County Supervisor

I'll be selling wrist bands to ride the canyons.........

I havent ridden there in a while waiting for things to cool off. So just to confirm - the switchbacks at the south end of Sycamore are off limits? That pretty much kills the loop from the Poway side!

Unfortunately yes, it's on military property.

If you look at the "slalom course" of signs posted by KotH, that's near the creek crossing just to the South of the switchbacks, under the power lines that run E-W next to Santee Lakes.

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"Those skilled at the unorthodox are infinite as heaven and earth, inexhaustible as the great rivers."
— Tzun Tzu

Hey there, new here, But i've had the pleasure of being stopped by the gestapo out there as well.
Couldn't believe that they actually asked me to leave. I've been riding there for more than 30 years. Back in the day on my motorcycle and for the last 15 years, on mountain bikes.
Sucks. But it is what it is.
Not gonna fight the government.

When I lived down in El Cajon and rode Mission Trails, I would ride North until I came across a sign that said Live Fire area. I felt that was far enough. Not sure exactly where that was, but I dont care for getting shot by a random bullet.

This thread makes me sick to my stomach! The fact that it has to exist is utter BS!!!! It wasn't the Marines out there fighting the fire when that area burned a couple years ago! It was the county and cal-fire. This is a serious black eye for the Marines. They have a great opportunity to show some stewardship and be ambassadors to the community but instead they send out their version of mall security to attempt to regulate on something that has no need to be regulated.
"MP's" or whatever they're calling them are the bottom feeders who weren't smart enough, couldn't be trusted to do anything else or are being processed out. What do you do with the wash outs and problem children you don't want around? Give them a radio and tell them to walk around in the heat in a canyon all day. In other news, unless you got a fence completely surrounding it, you got nothing and a few scattered signs means absolutely zero in court.

I feel like I need to take a lawyer out to ride with me these days! I HATE the mentality of these people who shut down trails that people have enjoyed for decades. There's no reason for it!!!!!!!
Where is the sdmba on this one?

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"To protect these sensitive habitats, we must first destroy them with bulldozers, trucks, and signs so people understand how important it is that we manage them" - Chris Zirkle

"Nothing dollarable is safe, however guarded" - John Muir

Guy, you are just wrong...about almost everything you said. Marines were out in east Miramar during the fire digging ditches trying to get it to stop. I know cause I was stationed on Miramar at the time and I could see the fire coming down the Poway hills. On top of that, some of these Marines are probably your friends and neighbors who have families and needed to worry about them and evacuate as Im sure others on this forum did.

Dont blame the military police for enforcing their orders. They are just doing what they are told to do. They definitely arent "bottom feeders", kids that "werent smart enough to be trusted with other responsibilities", or being "processed out." They are kids that wanted to get a step up in life and better themselves and probably transition to law enforcement after they get out.

The Marines out there are trying to protect you...regardless of whether you want it or not. You should also know that the military does huge things for the community on many different levels. Its unfortunate that its mostly just the bad stuff that gets placed in the spotlight.

This post wasnt about placing blame on the Marines. It was about advocacy and spreading the news that we are riding on private property and its being enforced that we arent wanted there.

You really should blame a select few of douche MTBers who ride out there and push the boundary limits onto the rifle range causing cease fires for extended amounts of time or fall and get hurt and raise lawsuits against the government because some scoundrel lawyer (who you are probably thinking of riding with) is looking for an easy commission.

Your have made the most ignorant and off topic statements that I have read in quite awhile.

OK "Guy", you have no idea who I am or what my background is and I'm not going to get deep into it. Let's just go with I know a great deal about the military since I'm a very senior member of it. Thanks for hipping me to who I'm serving with though.
I'm sorry if you are/were and MP and I hurt your feelings but in my world we send the guys who suck at life to do those kind of jobs. I'm not slamming real Marines one bit so don't start down that road with me. I know every aspect of physical security and who gets placed where.
We are also talking about two different fires. The one I'm talking about was about two years ago and was contained to the area just past the power lines and into the grove where the log rolls were at. I know it was cal-fire and the county out there because I was out there and witnessed them mopping it up and talked to them about it. Nobody from the base anywhere.
The base wanted nothing to do with that land until they figured out that they could potentially muscle the county for money to gain right of easement on the established trails.
The ONE thing you are right about is that people who ride the ridge tops above Spring/Three Barrels are effing up. If I was running the range and saw people on the ridge top, it would be a cease fire and send the goon squad out to jack them up and for good reason. In that situation, they would be smarter to put up fencing along that ridgline.

I only know one lawyer, but he only rides road bikes...
Maybe we can meet up at Mast and Medina, go for a ride and talk about it?

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"To protect these sensitive habitats, we must first destroy them with bulldozers, trucks, and signs so people understand how important it is that we manage them" - Chris Zirkle

"Nothing dollarable is safe, however guarded" - John Muir

F'in' MPs and lawyers are ruining it for everyone.

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A bicycle is a splendid thing.
~Ernest Hemingway

As a former Marine, I've wondered why someone with key resources doesnt get in touch with MWR (morale, welfare, and relief) and turn it into a marine recreation area that is open to all as well. Fitness is key to the organization, utilize it as such, and keep it the playground that it is.

I did aviation electronics when I was in and I was working as a contractor out of the country when the fire you talked about happened. You just sounded like you jumped off the deep end before posting and getting mad without reason is just a waste in my opinion.

I'd be down for a ride. In east county though, I pretty much stay in the rancho San Diego area though. The marines took my info so a 5000 ticket isn't a good trade off if I have alternative trails to ride. I haven't been out to spring canyon for a couple months. Kinda miss it.

I used to ride Mission Trails all the time when I lived down in North Park. After I picked up my new bike a month ago I hit it up again for the first time in over a year. I was very disappointed to see the big 'CLOSED' sign out past the 52. Also, hit up Sycamore Canyon for the first time in a while and once again, 'CLOSED' signs all over the place. A bit more confusing though, as there were no signs facing east, so I didn't even notice the signs until we were headed back to where we started from at the end of Poway Rd. Spoke to another biker up at the parking lot and he thought the signs were confusing as well.

Not sure why it's necessary to close these places down, as they should be public land