Flew down to Monache Meadows for a day hike yesterday. The strip is getting no use and no vehicle traffic (it is behind a locked gate). At this rate I think it will be gone in the future. There is no way to taxi over by the river where the tie downs and camping used to be. Sad.
I don't think Fish and Game objects to its use. There is a sign that says no off road driving.
.

Is this the place west of Lone Pine in the Sierras?

Glidergeek wrote:Is this the place west of Lone Pine in the Sierras?

West of Olancha. So SW of Lone Pine.

36.224 -118.171

This ia an older pix of the airstrip from above (N of the strip).

So is that a hard pan it's on?

Glidergeek wrote:So is that a hard pan it's on?

Everything other than the strip and the road is VERY soft. It's hard to walk on. The turn around area as hard.

These air strips are in my back yard, I’m in Lake Isabella, the way I understand it when they created the Golden Trout Wilderness all airstrips in the Sierras south of Lake Tahoe were closed except for one just south east of Tahoe, I think that some of these rival many in Idaho and Montana.
It is my understanding that Kennedy Meadow, Tunnel Meadow, Templeton Meadow, and Monache Meadow were closed by the Forest Service as part of the Golden Trout Wilderness. I have contacted the RAF and made contact with several other pilots in the area that would also like to use these airstrips again. I have an old friend, 84 I think, that used to own my aircraft, calls it his daughter,so I’m his son in law, he used to fly in and camp at these airstrips and would love to see them again, I would love to take him there again. What can we do? Perhaps more interest on our part through the RAF might produce a direction?
I would love to hear back with ideas or facts about these airstrips.

Me too. Much as I'd love to fly up to Idaho it's not practical more than once a year. I'd love to have more strips to camp at in the Sierras. What can we do? Are we doomed because it's California?

CO seems to be in the same position as CA. Lots of great private strips, but very, very few public backcountry strips to camp at. A group of us in CO are trying to spark some interest and get that changed. I'll go down fighting.

I think that its more the old adage of the squeaky wheel gets the grease, I think that most pilots that were using these strips were blindsided and did not realize what was happening till it was too late, I do not see this as an impossible feat, but rather one that takes some organization and planning, there has been a movement to get the Forest Service to release some lands from the wilderness due to the fact that they are not deemed suitable by the Forest Service as wilderness, there are ranches, cattle, old mines, roads and fences on these lands, and therefore unfit for wilderness areas.
The other issue is handicapped access to public lands, by prohibiting air traffic and only allowing the strong and fit to access these areas of public land is also hypocritical. There are many elderly, disabled and handicapped child and adult alike that would like to access these public lands, they cannot withstand a four wheel drive trail, a horse ride or hike to get back into these areas. We as pilots may be in a unique position to help them and ourselves.
Would there be an issue if we started a list of supporters to reopen the airstrips in the southern Sierras for both pilots and the disabled?
I would like to start a round table on this issue both, positive and negative comments are welcome.

I volunteer my services and Kern Valley Airport as a center for organizing and supporting any effort to reopen these back country strips in the Sierras. I’ve been to Monache Meadows in my Jeep and would love to fly in there. The fly fishing there is great.

So anyone interested in making this happen you can e-mail me at [email protected] or call me at 760-376-2870. If I’m not at the airport please leave a message and I’ll get back to you. I will start a list of names in support of this effort to get these strips opened again. 172heavy, what can you do to get RAF to help us?

Rick

mountainmatt wrote:CO seems to be in the same position as CA. Lots of great private strips, but very, very few public backcountry strips to camp at. A group of us in CO are trying to spark some interest and get that changed. I'll go down fighting.

CA is hosed, and I stay away except for sneaking in from the NV side to fly or camp.

But in Nevada I've never even seen anyone, much less been yelled at by BLM or the forest service if I've been camping by airplane or the four-wheelers. We pretty much find nice places to play, go there, and camp or do whatever we want. If the regs allow for that, I have no clue. I'm of the "better to ask forgiveness" school for now. At least until I get caught.

If it's a decent road, it's a decent runway.





Gump

GumpAir wrote:CA is hosed, and I stay away except for sneaking in from the NV side to fly or camp.

But in Nevada I've never even seen anyone, much less been yelled at by BLM or the forest service if I've been camping by airplane or the four-wheelers. We pretty much find nice places to play, go there, and camp or do whatever we want. If the regs allow for that, I have no clue. I'm of the "better to ask forgiveness" school for now. At least until I get caught.

If it's a decent road, it's a decent runway.





Gump

Hey Gump, I'm a California Ex-pat. I was born there. In 1950. It is truly hosed now. So where do we fly in, camp, and fish on OUR side of the border? Up North? I'm not much interested in picking up a collection of Nevada Love Rocks.

Tons of great spots. I moved to Hawthorne from Kotzebue seven years ago when my medical went FUBAR for a few years. I had a ball on the four-wheeler exploring the nooks and crannies. Go west of Hawthorne into the country just north of Aurora, or south into the mountains in BLM's wild burro range at Marietta. It's huge, beautiful, and empty.

Gump

GumpAir wrote:Tons of great spots. I moved to Hawthorne from Kotzebue seven years ago when my medical went FUBAR for a few years. I had a ball on the four-wheeler exploring the nooks and crannies. Go west of Hawthorne into the country just north of Aurora, or south into the mountains in BLM's wild burro range at Marietta. It's huge, beautiful, and empty.

Gump

Nevada is pretty amazing!! Like Gump said, there's lot's of great places to play. I don't mean to litter up this thread for another area, and there's been lot's of discussion on other threads above flying in Nevada. But, some of my favorite area's are in and around the Monitor Valley (I've only explored this area in my 4x4 pick up, but lot's of great landing spots on the dirt roads). And around and south of Austin (Pops can help you with that area).

I've added a few officially closed airstrips to shortfied.com with the thought that (1) they may have emergency value, (2) they have some navigational value, (3) people should also know where NOT to land if it will get us in trouble. That's has been my "official" justification, but [cue inspirational music] deep down I hate that idea that some of these great old strips are disappearing from the maps and the collective pilot memory. Somehow, hoping that if people are reminded of them, learn their histories, and see pictures (etc), we can bring them back into the conversation, and eventually get them re-opened with help from the RAF and/or other pilots associations. Its hard to appreciate what we have (and want) without knowing what we've lost. [stop music]

So, my question is: should I add Monache Meadows to the database as a 'closed' strip?

58Skylane wrote:

GumpAir wrote:Tons of great spots. I moved to Hawthorne from Kotzebue seven years ago when my medical went FUBAR for a few years. I had a ball on the four-wheeler exploring the nooks and crannies. Go west of Hawthorne into the country just north of Aurora, or south into the mountains in BLM's wild burro range at Marietta. It's huge, beautiful, and empty.

Gump

Nevada is pretty amazing!! Like Gump said, there's lot's of great places to play. I don't mean to litter up this thread for another area, and there's been lot's of discussion on other threads above flying in Nevada. But, some of my favorite area's are in and around the Monitor Valley (I've only explored this area in my 4x4 pick up, but lot's of great landing spots on the dirt roads). And around and south of Austin (Pops can help you with that area).

So where in Nevada can I fly into camp and fish in the back country?

172heavy wrote:

58Skylane wrote:

GumpAir wrote:Tons of great spots. I moved to Hawthorne from Kotzebue seven years ago when my medical went FUBAR for a few years. I had a ball on the four-wheeler exploring the nooks and crannies. Go west of Hawthorne into the country just north of Aurora, or south into the mountains in BLM's wild burro range at Marietta. It's huge, beautiful, and empty.

Gump

Nevada is pretty amazing!! Like Gump said, there's lot's of great places to play. I don't mean to litter up this thread for another area, and there's been lot's of discussion on other threads above flying in Nevada. But, some of my favorite area's are in and around the Monitor Valley (I've only explored this area in my 4x4 pick up, but lot's of great landing spots on the dirt roads). And around and south of Austin (Pops can help you with that area).

So where in Nevada can I fly into camp and fish in the back country?

Thats almost a top secret question....Our south circuit has several landings (legal BLM land) along several streams. I will give you one and research will find you the others. Have a look at the Carson River dumping out of Lake Lahonton. Ever heard of the Lahonton Cutthroat?

I'll try to post a photo here soon.

AKT

Get away from the cities and ranches, and it's pretty much anywhere you want to. I'm partial to Western/Central just because that's the area I know the best and it seems the most open. Hawthorne, Mina, Gabbs are the towns in that area to center your search on.

West of Hawthorne you have the east fork of the Walker River and some big mountain ranges. South and east is a bit more parched, but you still have beautiful mountains, water and trees in the canyons, and tons of easy landing sites. No one seems to care if or where you camp, and places like Mina are airplane friendly, so you can get car gas.

Gump

chrisg wrote:I've added a few officially closed airstrips to shortfied.com with the thought that (1) they may have emergency value, (2) they have some navigational value, (3) people should also know where NOT to land if it will get us in trouble. That's has been my "official" justification, but [cue inspirational music] deep down I hate that idea that some of these great old strips are disappearing from the maps and the collective pilot memory. Somehow, hoping that if people are reminded of them, learn their histories, and see pictures (etc), we can bring them back into the conversation, and eventually get them re-opened with help from the RAF and/or other pilots associations. Its hard to appreciate what we have (and want) without knowing what we've lost. [stop music]

So, my question is: should I add Monache Meadows to the database as a 'closed' strip?

Contrary to what seems to be a popular opinion Monache is NOT in a wilderness area. The fact that you can drive there might tell you that.
Fish and Game fenced the area around the airstrip to protect the stream from cattle. (I think)
I would suspect that getting access to any airstrips like Tempelton or Tunnel (which ar in Wilderness) is a lost cause. They are still usable but I would only do it late in the year when people wouldn't come over from Horseshoe.