News

Highway 89A roadside cleanup at 8:00 am Thurs May 16 meeting at the turnoff from 89A at Oak Creek Valley Rd. Bring gloves. Bags and pickup tools will be provided.

Comments provided at the April 17th Budget meeting:

My name is Tracy Randall, I’m a Sedona Resident. And President of the Verde Valley Cyclists Coalition representing 300 cyclists, with the majority residing in Sedona.

I was also a member of the Citizens Budget Advisory Group last year.

I am here today to speak in support of the new Program Manager position being added to the Public Works Department for a growing need for parking and trails management.

Why is the position important for Sedona and VVCC members?

• Residents and tourists alike reside and visit Sedona due to the natural beauty.
• Few places have such incredible access to Trails from their front doors.
• Through the work and investment of volunteers, non-profits like VVCC & the Forest Service, a world-class Trail system of 425-miles has been built that residents and tourists enjoy.
• It’s a major factor in why I moved here.
• However, challenges have emerged, and we are here in Support of this Position.
• The city currently has limited or no representation at many of the meetings & working groups that focus on the Trails and connections resulting in delays. These delays result in Traffic & Safety issues, as the right trails & thoughtful trail connections can assist with our traffic problems & safety issues.
• The timing is right for this position, as many initiatives would benefit from having a person at the City focused on the Trails: 
• • Greater Sedona Recreation Collaborative
  • The Verde Front
  • Red Rock Ranger District Planning efforts
  • Tourisms Advisory Board
  • SIMs and the Shuttle
  • Cultural Park Master Planning

We spent some time searching for City’s with surrounding trail Networks.

Prescott, Hot Springs, AR, Boulder, Park City, Bonney Lake, WA, Breckenridge, Montrose, CO, Lake Tahoe, Jackson Hole all have FT City Trails positions

Please vote in support of this Program Manager, Sedona needs this position.

We encourage VVCC members to reach out to the Sedona City Council to express your support for the VVCC's position on adding  Program Manager position To the Public Works Department Budget for a growing need for parking and trails management , link here.

Construction on the Copper Chief Trail on the east face of Mingus Mountain in the Prescott National Forest slowed recently due to all the moisture on the saturated soil combined with the grind through some tough terrain, steep rock walls, bedrock and vegetation so thick we couldn't see more than 5 ft ahead of the machine. This was slow going at about 150ft per day. However the constructed trail is beautiful with changing views and surroundings at every turn.  

On April 9, 2024, youth conservation corps members from Conservation Legacy (AZCC) augmented the Copper Chief Trail machine construction. They’re working to finish almost 2 miles of new trail. Construction will continue until early May when the season wraps up. 

The VVCC and Verde Valley Trail Fund have applied for $270,000 in Recreational Trails Program and Heritage Fund Grants from Arizona State Parks & Trails for the 2024-2025 field season to finish (hopefully) the Copper Chief Trail and make good progress on the Quail Springs Trail which will connect the Copper Chief Trail to the Ogden Ranch Trailhead permitting a ~13 mile loop from that trailhead and completing the Blowout Wash Trail System.

The views from the Copper Chief Trail are amazing.

Jungle Before

Jungle After

Small Machine, Big Mountain

Drainage Before

Drainage After

Rock Face Before

Rock Face After

Steep Slide Slope Digging

Over 800 Verde Valley public school students are currently riding mountain bikes because of the efforts of Wheel Fun. You can help Wheel Fun increase to 1,000 plus students this fall by donating now. Wheel Fun will be adding new programs at Cottonwood Community and Dr. Daniel Bright Schools in Cottonwood this fall to go with its programming at the other 14 Verde Valley public schools. 

Donations to Wheel Fun earn you tax credits of up to $841 (joint filers) or $421(all other filing statuses) and donations made up through April 15th can be applied to your 2023 or 2024 tax return. That’s right, donate this month to Wheel Fun and Governor Katie Hobbs will send your donation right back to you. It’s one of life’s only freebies.

Thank you for your generosity and commitment to building a better Arizona for all. Together we can make a difference that creates the next generation of mountain bikers.

The City has agreed and will work with the Forest Service to utilize Forest Service style fencing to block access to the Forest, protecting Bottom Out, Outer Limits and the surrounding Forest from social paths developing from the Safe Place to Park to these nearby trails.

Additionally, due to the anticipated 3,000 gallons of potential graywater generated daily from showering, the City is working with the ADEQ to ensure that water does not impact the surrounding washes, specifically Bottom Out.

Finally, we raised concerns about trash during the meeting, as the Cultural Park TH is already one of the dirtier trail heads. The City indicated that they would ensure no environmental impact would occur due to this temporary usage of the property.

We encourage VVCC members to reach out to the Sedona City Council to express your support for the VVCC's position: support for the Forest Service style fencing protecting the nearby trails, concerns about the potential impact to Bottom Out and general concerns about trash at the Girdner TH and surrounding trails, link here.

We would also like to thank VVCC member and Sedona City Councilor Pete Furman for championing and supporting these efforts with the VVCC.

Letter to the City Council here.

When: Thursday, March 14 @ 9AM

Where: meet at Oak Creek Valley Rd and Highway 89A to clean up the section of highway between Milepost markers 360 and 361.

Updated Version 2: Sedona Riding - bad weather v2.pdf

Version 1: Sedona Riding - bad weather.pdf

Having a large returning crew and favorable weather have been a huge boost to this season’s program of work. This has been further complimented by the addition of Holly Cliché the new permanent Trails Foreman. She is a returning employee serving on the Red Rock Trail Crew last winter season and brings over 20 years of trail work experience to our program and community! The energy of this year’s crew has been amplified at our well attended volunteer events around the district during this first half of the season.

As the North Zone was tied up with the Soldiers Pass Reconstruction Project, South Zone took on all of the Volunteer events during that six-week period. The work their crew and volunteers completed was incredibly successful due to the time taken by volunteers to scout those events with the FS staff and provide different perspectives from long time users of our world class trail system. This intimate knowledge of use and changing conditions due to our dynamic ecosystem help us bridge the gap between effective trail management and maintenance and what the desired experience is for multiple types of users.

The North Zone Crew had an incredible time on the Soldiers Pass Reconstruction Project due to the great training they had, the phenomenal ACE crew support, and leadership from FS Crew Leader Meghan and Trails Foreman Holly. The construction of the rock check steps added up to 400 ft of linear rock work, with five drainage features constructed. The project was also successful in closing off a highly erosive area adjacent to the trailhead that had been denuded due to accidental off trail use due to poor trailhead infrastructure. Six hundred feet of fencing was installed to add in the restoration of 9,000 square feet reducing the sedimentation into Soldiers was. Seed balls and hydro mulching of this area will help to reestablish the native seed bank and further reduce soil loss.

Maintenance accomplished this season:

• Drains Maintained or Constructed- 1375
• Miles Brushed/Lopped- 120
• Linear Feet of Rock Work Constructed or Maintained- 1723
• Signs/Cairns Installed- 18
• Trees Logged Out- 98 
• Tread work (ft)- 5000
• Square feet of Rehab/Restoration- 17,630
• Social Trail Closed (ft)- 882
• Volunteer Events - 32
• Volunteers- 333
• Volunteer Hours- 1156

UPDATES:

• The Red Rock District is still working on the initial conceptual design for the Verde Valley Circle Trail. This is being assisted by funding and project support from the Verde Valley Cycling Coalition and the Verde Front Trails Working Group. Summit to Sea contractors will be back in the Verde Valley assessing the final connection from Rimrock to Camp Verde and then present this recommendation to the group. Once our current Red Rock Trails Access Plan NEPA package receives a signed Decision Memo we plan to introduce the project to our Red Rock RD Staff.
• Public Scoping closed for the Red Rock Trails Access Plan in late December with over 500 comments. The majority of these comments were related to the Turkey Creek project area. Due to the nature of the comments District and Forest leadership have committed to breaking the project into two separate projects and to an additional round of scoping a later date once some of the initial concerns can be mitigated related to Turkey Creek project area. This public scoping process was fairly favorable regarding the rest of the proposed projects and will look to make decision on this portion of the project in Spring 2024.

A pending bill before the AZ Assembly, SB1184, proposes to eliminate access to bicyclists on Rural area “controlled access highways” (i.e., Freeways in rural AZ areas) . SB1184 would normally be a routine bill re-authorizing the function of ADOT for another four years. Unfortunately, part 28-733A has been tacked onto it to prohibit bicyclists from using rural freeways. For more info about the proposed bill go to https://www.azleg.gov/ars/28/00733.htm and  https://azbikelaw.org/freeway/ 

Bicycles are (already) currently prohibited on all freeways (the colloquial term for a ‘controlled access highway’) in metro areas; but are allowed on the shoulder in most rural areas — otherwise travel by bicycle would become impractical or impossible in these areas. Safety has not historically been a particular problem, with fewer than ONE incident per year statewide over the course of 11 years.  In comparison, there are 28 bicycling FATALITIES alone on State, County, and urban roads (one of the highest state per capita rates in the nation.) 

Letters, phone calls, and meeting from riders to elected officials in Sedona and Cottonwood to voice opposition is helpful in getting ACZ Legislators and senators to withhold support for this bill.  The VVCC Board of Directors will discuss this issue at the March Board meeting to determine the most appropriate course of action. For long distance bicycle tourists trying to traverse the State and also to connect with other Western US there are areas where to get from point A to point B requires traveling on a freeway. 

The Coalition of AZ Bicyclists has concerns about this pending legislature and you may read about it at https://www.cazbike.org/bill-to-prohibit-bicycling-on-rural-freeways-moves-forward/

Complete Streets is a descriptor for the concept of designing and operating streets in a manner that makes them safe for ALL users, including bicyclists. The concept is implemented at the local, state and regional levels. Implementation is addressed with a wide range of elements including sidewalks, signage, street markings, bike lanes, marked shoulders, medians, pedestrians signals, modified vehicle travel lanes among others. 

To sum it up, it’s an approach to make streets more friendly to ALL users, including bicyclists. Now, to take it further, The Active Transportation Infrastructure Investment Program is part of the Infrastruture Investment and Jobs Act that was passed by the US Congress. It grants funds to state Departments of Transportation. When a state DOT is granted these funds they are mandated to use 2.5% of them to create a Complete Streets grant program and Complete Streets design standards. If you followed the recent attempt in the Arizona legislature to prevent the AZ DOT from using highway funds to construct bicycle and pedestrian infrastructure you can understand why, if this were to become law, these federal funds may not then be available to the AZ DOT. Outwardly, an apparent foolish move. Apparently others thought so as well and it appears at this point that this legislative attempt has been defeated for the time being. Unfortunately, there is another legislative attempt affecting bicyclists. Which would outlaw the use of AZ rural freeways by bicyclists. The Adventure Cycling Association, which publishes long distance bicycle touring routes nationwide, has three routes in Arizona that use our rural freeways. This legislative effort has failed in the AZ senate.