Hey, Idaman.....please contact Bret Bush at the Lake George Ranger Station.  He's looking forward to talking with you and is very pleased about the cleanup.....

I can't say again how much we appreciate what you all did last weekend.  I spoke last night (Thursday) with  one of the local residents who usually is up in arms about Rodman riders.  He specifically told me that there were some people running in the pit area until 4:30 a.m. on Sunday/Monday morning, but he knew it was the 10%, not the "folks who did such a good job of cleaning up the area."

Grizz...sorry we missed you.  You probably saw us while we were trying to figure out how to get out of there!  That place is huge!  We did find GS cookies in South Carolina, though, so all is forgiven. I just didn't get any of my favprote lemon ones!  Maybe next year.  Thanks again for organizing the cleanup.....

Take care all...we'll see you next fall.  Have a good summer and keep the wheels down.

 

Thanks to all of you who showed up at Rodman area today....the area has not looked that good since we arrived in November!  You'e made a big contribution to keeping your forest beautiful and it is very much appreciated.  Plus, it was fun to see you all again!

I suggested today to some that you designate a spokesperson who can liaison with the National Forest.  That will keep you all aware of things that are happening in the forest, and it will also keep the forest aware of the positive presence you are bringing here.  

Again, thanks for all you did today.  The forest is a better place because of your visit.

We're really looking forward to seeing you all there.  Please plan to come early; with all the activities going on, parking will be at a premium.

One of our OHV Volunteer hosts told us she met some of you today who are coming up next weekend.  Unfortunately, she met you while you were on your ATVs on a numbered road.  I need to let you know that we are desperately fighting to keep this forest open for your use, and activities like that will make this a losing battle for you.  She didn't get the names, but please know that we're depending on you to keep your groups within the regulations.  We all lose if you don't.

We will be at the dam at 7:30 a.m.  If you have any questions, need any directions or maps, please find us.  Dan and I will be in a grey Jeep Cherokee with California plates and a roof rack.  The rest of the group will be in Forest Service green.  

Grizz, if you're coming out, I would love to talk to you about your route into 88 Store.  I still can't find how you get through the restricted area, so if you could bring your map, I'd appreciate it.

Marla

I was down at the 31 dump area.....there's not a lot of stuff, but it's dumped alongside 31 past the dumpster site.  Most of it appears to be mostly household trash, but there's a mattress, a couple of small appliance type things as well, so if someone has access to a dump and a pickup, it would all go in the back.  If not, oh well.....

Thanks, all.

I only heard about the ecology fair thing yesterday.....so don't have any idea, but apparently it has to do with the future of the dam itself.  Don't know when the media will be there, but I'll be calling over to Greenways to try and arrange the parking for you and I'll ask if they know.  


we are going to try and get down to the dump area in Hog Valley this weekend, so may have more information on that for you, too.  I'll be in a 2WD truck on Friday, but that should still work if it's on 31.  Thanks for your enthusiasm!

You are the best!  Thanks for being so proactive on this.  I just found out something that may be a real bonus for you.  I mentioned before that there were lots of other activities going on that weekend.....well, one of them is a press day/ecology fair at Rodman on the Greenways side.  I understand that  media will be there, along with some visiting dignitaries.  I certainly think if the press finds out what you're doing, there will be some who will stop by with their cameras and provide some hot publicity for atvflorida.com!  You might want to see if you can designate someone to talk with the media, should that occur.

If any of you have any identifying t-shirts, you might want to wear them for the cleanup.

Also, if you don't fill your trucks and stuff with the Rodman trash, I've been advised there's an area on 31 near Hog Valley that's being used as an illegal dump.  If, on your way out, you wanted to take your licensed vehicles by and toss in some of that, the Forest Service would be grateful.

We're looking forward to seeing you that morning.  We'll be there with the rules/regs/map handouts for anyone that doesn't have one or needs another, and to be of help anyway we can.

Good evening all.  I'm one of the Off Highway Vehicle Volunteer Hosts that you met at the MLK weekend ride here on the Ocala NF.  I today met with the folks in the Lake George Ranger District about your proposed cleanup and I have good news and bad news.

First, the bad news:  The Forest Service will not be able to provide a dumpster for you for these days for several reasons, nor can it officially sanction this event.  The most important thing to know is that government agencies move slowly;  if you want to reschedule for mid-April, we can probably work things out.  Let's just say that there are a lot of things that happened (not with the volunteers) the last time a group tried a clean-up, and there are lots of details that need to be worked out.

THE GOOD NEWS:  While the FS can not officially sanction or participate in that President's weekend cleanup, if each of you that rides in the forest that day takes a trash bag, picks up along your ride, and takes that bag home with you, that would be great!  The FS just can not provide a dumpster or trash disposal area in February, nor does it have sufficient lead time to work out the details of any official event that weekend.

For your planning pleasures, you should probably plan a lead time of at least three months to permit an event, such as a ride;  it would probably be best if you run the date by the USFS before you broadcast it formally, as there may be other conflicting activities going on in the forest.

Hope this helps clarify things.