Taos Mountain Bike Association sent a letter to the Carson National Forest advocating for mountain bikes to retain their continued access to the Miranda Canyon area on the Camino Real Ranger District.
In order to address the issues with Miranda Canyon (illegal dumping, wood gathering, illegal road development) the established advisory committee proposed that the area be closed to motorized use and mountain bikes, but remain open to hiking and horse-back riding.
TMBA strongly objected to this suggestion, pointing out that mountain bikers are likely not the ones responsible for the illegal activities, and that to lump mountain bikes into the same category as motorized users makes no logical sense. Not only have multiple studies shown that mountain bikes have less impact on trails than horses, but including mountain bikes in the same category as motorized users sets a dangerous precedent for future management decisions.
It is our understanding that in response to our letter, the Miranda Canyon advisory committee is no longer advocating to close the area to mountain bikes.
We will update this post as we learn more about the official plans for this area.
Concern About MTB Exclusion In Miranda Canyon – Final – Sent