Utilities proposal would allow public access to the peak's south slope

Colorado Springs Utilities has proposed to allow hiking, picnicking and limited fishing and bicycling in the south slope watershed on Pikes Peak, a remote and scenic area that has been off-limits to the public for more than a century.

Monday, the city-owned utility released its long-awaited “concept plan” for public access to the area, which is home to several reservoirs built from 1878 to 1912. A public meeting will be held tonight , and Utilities is taking comments through Feb. 26.

Under the proposal, Utilities would not allow camping, ATVs, hunting, rock climbing, fishing in streams or ice-fishing in the south slope watershed.

At the urging of outdoors enthusiasts, Utilities has been studying how to allow public access to the 15,000-acre area for a decade. A 1999 study recommended building four hiking trails, and in 2007 Utilities issued a plan to move forward with the trails, after public meetings and a recommendation from a citizens advisory group.

But officials, with the agreement of the citizens panel, decided to hire a consultant to study all forms of recreation, at a cost of $262,000. The concept plan released Monday represented the consultant’s recommendations.

“This is the conceptual plan. It is not final. This is just what we’re putting out there to get public feedback on,” said Kirsta Scherff-Norris, a Utilities wildlife biologist.

The area is mostly pristine, with one road in, and Utilities aims to keep it that way. Under the proposal, Utilities would not allow camping, ATVs, hunting, rock climbing, fishing in streams or ice-fishing in the south slope watershed. The main access would be from a trail head at Mason Reservoir, a half-mile past what is now a locked gate on Forest Service Road 376.

The proposal calls for the construction of two trails, a 5.6-mile trail along the west side of Mason Reservoir, to Boehmer Reservoir and back, for foot and equestrian use only, with a parking lot and bathrooms, and a trail from where the national forest trail 667 currently ends to Lake Moraine, for foot, horse and bicycle traffic. The Lake Moraine Trail would also connect with an existing trail that runs to the Cog Railway, but it would not have its own trail head, meaning long approaches would be required to reach the lake.

A picnic area would be built at McReynolds Reservoir, and non-motorized boats would be allowed in the reservoir.

The plans is noticeably different from that put forward in 2007, in that Utilities no longer proposes a trail that runs across the entire watershed, linking the east and west sides of the area.

It may seem a minor difference, but not to Eric Swab, a member of the advisory group and of the Friends of the Peak non-profit that has been building the Ring the Peak Trail for a decade. The trail network is envisioned to one day let people hike a complete loop around Pikes Peak, but the south slope has been “the biggest stumbling block,” he said.

With only two separate, non-connecting trails proposed for the watershed, Swab worries it will remain a missing link.

“I am very disappointed that there was no discussion, no mention of the Ring the Peak connection through the south slope,” Swab said.

“I think we can really appreciate the fact there’s a real sensitivity to the environment up there, but it would seem there might be a chance to make those trails connect,” said Susan Davies, executive director of the non-profit Trails and Open Space Coalition.

She is also concerned the proposal makes no mention of a timetable or how the improvements will be funded.

Utilities officials say changes to the plan are likely, but the consultant recommended avoiding that part of the watershed to not impact the area’s bighorn sheep.

Construction could begin in 2011, though officials have not determined how it will be funded. While new trails and expanded uses are possible in the future, for now Utilities is being cautious.

“It’s been closed for 100 years and we want to make sure we open it in a responsible way that protects our infrastructure and also the environment,” said Scherff-Norris.

Public open house

Utilities will hold a public open house on the south slope proposal at 5:30 p.m. today, at the Leon Young Service Center, 1521 Hancock Expressway in Colorado Springs. Comments can also be submitted through Feb. 26 at csu.org.