The 1.4 million acres of Sierra National Forest land proposed for a national monument would make the land between Yosemite and Sequoia national parks into a contiguous swath, all managed by the National Park Service.

Called the Range of Light proposal — environmentalist John Muir’s name for the Sierra Nevadas — the new monument would be nearly as big as Yosemite, Sequoia, and Kings Canyon combined.

A letter from 52 California legislators in August called on Gov. Gavin Newsom to urge President Joe Biden to use his executive authority to unilaterally declare the land a national monument.

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A failed attempt to create the designation in 2022 through congressional action gives some idea of what changes could be in store for the area.

How the park service would treat in-season and out-of-season visits remains unclear. But plan legislation would severely restrict 4-wheeling. Some 4-wheelers say the plan comes at the cost of some of the best off-road trails in the U.S.

“The entire foothills and mountain residents would be forever impacted by this,” said Mike McGarity, president of the California Off-Road Vehicle Association. “This is the most populated and heavily used area to ever be proposed to be a national monument. The locals will not and should not lay down and allow this land grab to just happen with the swipe of a pen.”

Sierra Nevada Offers Range of Designated, Off-Road Trails

The legislation from 2022 limits vehicles to only street-legal ones and only on paved or maintained roads, a change from the 2,024 miles of roads now open to all vehicles, said McGarity.

That means quads, dirt bikes, and snowmobiles could be banned.

“The wintertime offers 72,800 acres open to cross-country travel and 234 miles of snowmobile trails,” McGarity said. “These winter trails range from easy to most difficult. The difficult OSV trails access amazing vistas of the San Joaquin Valley, lakes, and snowcapped ridges.”

During the other parts of the year, the 190 miles of motorized trails take four-wheelers or bike riders to Miami Trails, Devil’s Peak, or Bald Mountain. The forest also has 209 acres designated for recreational motor vehicle use.

On Saturday, Reedley City Manager Nicole Zieba 4-wheeled up to Dinkey Creek Wilderness. She said the national monument designation would hurt access.

“The proposal will harm the forest and will make it inaccessible to people like me who live and recreate there,” Zieba said. “It’s terrible. I think the 52 state legislators who signed on to the idea are completely unaware of what it would actually do.”

National Monument Could Mean Park Fees, Limited Dogs

The 1906 Antiquities Act allows a president to declare an area a national monument without requiring public comment. Congressman Tom McClintock, R-Modesto, said approving the new designation would be an abuse of the intention of the act, which was to protect archeological sites from looting. He also said it would “drastically curtail public use.”

“The designation of 1.4 million acres between Yosemite and Kings Canyon as a national monument is a breathtakingly bad idea that would drastically curtail public use, resort, and recreation on these public lands and make forest management and fire prevention even more difficult than they are today,” McClintock said.

The 2022 legislation outlines how the park service should expand and repair trail networks to connect the Yosemite and Sequoia/Kings Canyon parks. A visitor services plan would “provide enhanced visitor experiences and resource protection.”

The plan would increase access for local populations, especially nonwhite, underserved groups.

“In recent years, (the Park Service’s) failure to attract proportionate numbers of nonwhite visitors has become an increasing issue for the Park Service,” states the economic report for the Range of Light proposal from the advocacy group Unite the Park. The Mariposa-based nonprofit Unite the Park is behind the proposal.

Zieba, however, thinks a national monument designation would decrease access.

“For me, my access right now means I get in my car, I drive for an hour … I can get out, I can park wherever I want, I can walk wherever I want, lots of trail options, I can take my dog, my dog does not have to be on a leash, I can take my gun in most cases, I have unfettered access to brilliant nature,” Zieba said.

When Pinnacles in San Benito County became a national park — after first being designated a national monument — she said parking became harder, dogs were more restricted, and she had to pay for access.

Many critics of the current reservation systems for national parks, including Zieba, have said Yosemite’s hurts locals looking for a quick trip than visitors coming from farther away. The Range of Light’s executive plan, however, says it would increase access for nonwhite locals.

“What happens to me when this becomes or if this becomes a monument, all of a sudden it costs me money to get it where I go every single week,” Zieba said. “I can’t bring my dog with me, I can’t access trailheads, I have to get a reservation. No, no, no, no. Leave it the way it is.”

‘We Treat It as If It’s Our Second Home’: Enthusiast

Unite the Park cites “inadequate control of human damage from off-road vehicles?” as a threat to the Range of Light region. Attempts to reach Unite the Park or its founder, Deanna Wulff, were unsuccessful.

The plan did not specify about motorized boats. Some national monuments allow motorized boats by permit. The legislation says it would defer to national park rules. Yosemite — with far fewer lakes than the Sierra forest — does not allow motorized boats.

The group, in its executive summary to Biden, points out the biodiversity of the Sierra Nevadas, including trees, wildlife, and Native American and European heritage sites.

“These objects remain under threat of loss, damage, and destruction without the preservation and restoration that a national monument would provide,” the summary states.

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Outdoor enthusiast Michael Crayne, who works at Valley Rod & Gun in Clovis, says the people he travels with care greatly for the mountain.

“We treat it as if it’s our second home,” Crayne said. He often fishes, hikes, or 4-wheels.

He acknowledges that some riders do not always stick to the trails, but Crayne and people he knows go out of their way to clean up after themselves and others.

Zieba said she and others often report 4-wheelers who go where they shouldn’t. They also help fix damaged trails. Zieba feared the designation wouldn’t stop bad off-roaders but would block the ones who abide by the rules.

Off-road volunteer group Hill Hoppers clears fallen trees, repairs washouts, and maintains campsites in collaboration with the forest service.

“The bad ones are going to be out there regardless of ‘monument’ status,” Zieba said. “It’s just the good ones won’t be able to get back there to turn them in.”

These Local Legislators Support Range of Light Monument

Several local legislators signed the letter to Newsom.

• Assemblyman Joaquin Arambula (D-Fresno
• Assemblywoman Esmeralda Soria (D-Merced)
• State Senator Anna Caballero (D-Merced)

Calls made to Assemblymember Jim Patterson (R-Fresno), whose district includes portions of the land, were not returned. Patterson did not sign the letter. State Senator Marie Alvarado-Gil (R-Modesto) also did not sign the letter, but could not be reached by GV Wire.

The million-plus acres of land between Yosemite and Sequoia national parks are a popular destination for Fresno residents.

Congressman Jim Costa’s office (D-Fresno) told GV Wire’s Nancy Price he needs to study the proposal more. He said getting kids up to see the national parks is important.

“That’s an issue that has merit,” Costa said. “I think we have to sit down and work on it. There are concerns or issues that have been raised on it, but I mean, we all love our Sierra Nevada, from when I was a kid learning to fish and to hike and to sail at Huntington Lake.”

Letter to Gov. Newsom