SailAway

Just received this...

Yes, she was on our side and no doubt that's why she's become such a target. I can only hope that when the rulings she was involved with are reviewed, it turns out that denying the protection was indeed the right thing to do. Lord knows there have been enough cases where the anti-access guys have interfered using false evidence, but of course none of that will be picked up by the media now as the road gets paved for the liberals. Vicki

I don't see hate for strippers... I see hate for strippers in public. Keep it in camp and you won't have to worry about negative reaction. Vicki

I completely understand the fact that dumpsters seem logical. Have a trash problem? Add a trashcan. But aside from the cost... how many sponsors would sign up to pay a share of 1.5 million every year for eternity and imagine the troubles if any outside funding dries up... there is the environmental issue. Dumont has enough ways for the anti-access crowd to target us without adding one more that takes less effort than most, just for the sake of convenience... in my opinion. Vicki

Speaking for myself, I focus on the dumpsters because it is something that some OHV leaders seem to really get stuck on and try to push at every opportunity they have with the BLM and/or TRT and I strongly object. The rest... increased law enforcement, concentrated attention on hot spots, etc., I do not strongly object to. VickiW

Thank you Bob, but I too will have to respectfully disagree. Just because the dumpsters are being used and/or maintained does not mean the trash problem has been eliminated or even substantially alleviated. There are still mounds of trash being left behind by uncaring Glamis visitors, trash blowing across the dunes, and don't even get me started on what Olds looks like on a Sunday morning. The people that are causing those continual problems never have and never will use the dumpsters. No, dumpsters have not solved the trash problems at Glamis. As I said before, show me an area with dumpsters that has ZERO trash anywhere else and I'll change my mind about using them as a solution. Until then, as far as I'm concerned they are an over-priced and underused item in our public land areas. And until the anti-access organizations stop trying to shut us down, dumpsters will always be one more tool for them to turn against us. No, I'm sorry, although I agree Glamis dumpsters are looking better so far than they have in the past, there is still far too much of a trash problem out there for me to use it as a model for Dumont. And for my money (and a doubling of fees), the minor potential benefits of having them in place do not outweigh the already proven dangers. VickiW

We each have the ability to decide what our idea of the perfect Dumont vacation is, but we also have to show respect for those around us when we make those choices. I have tremendous respect for anyone's form of recreation and if someone thinks the perfect Dumont vacation includes a stripper pole, openly lewd behavior, Girls Gone Wild tryouts and a party 'til you die atmosphere, fine. But keep it legal and if you insist on bringing it to Dumont, keep it in camp and to yourselves. Don't bring it to the community areas where you infringe on everyone else's perfect Dumont experience. VickiW

Me either! I personally think that providing dumpsters only promotes the attitude that "someone else will take care of whatever is left behind, so let's just leave it behind for mommy." Show me an area that has dumpsters and ZERO trash everywhere else and I may change my mind. Until then, I will continue to fight against installing them at Dumont. VickiW

In all of this discussion about adding dumpsters at Dumont, I just want to remind everyone to keep in mind that they don't come free. Adding dumpsters at Dumont would, literally, more than double the cost of managing the area. No kidding. Because of Dumont's remote location those dumpsters are going to be more expensive than they are at Oceano and/or Glamis. And that money has to come from somewhere. The fee to recreate at Dumont has already increased. Multiply that times two and that's what we would have to pay to recreate at Dumont once dumpsters are initiated. Now... also consider the environmental impact of the dumpsters. Because of the "sensitive species" in the area, those dumpsters have to be specially designed. The ones used once a year at the cleanup cannot be used on a permanent basis because of they do not have that special design. And because of the sensitive species, the dumpsters must be more stringently maintained. In my opinion, even aside from the ridiculous amount they would cost, Dumont already has enough issues to deal with. Adding dumpsters to the mix would open one more angle for the anti-access fools to use to close us down and as far as I'm concerned, that threat outweighs the minimal change dumpsters would make in the trash situation. VickiW

I'll put the question to them and let you know what I find out. I have always bought a season pass at both Glamis and Dumont so I have no personal experience with it, but I've heard that at both places we have always been able to "trade up" from weekly to yearly if we bought the weekly and then changed our minds, can't see how this would be any different. I'll pose the question and post what I learn. Vicki

Yep. And if Dumont received the funding from other sources the way Glamis does, Dumont wouldn't have to rely 100% on user fees to survive. This Saturday's Dumont Dunes TRT meeting is going to include a discussion on just where the Dumont money goes... come out out to the Barstow BLM office this Saturday to learn how things really work. Vicki

I just got word that yes indeed there is time for public comment and a new agenda will be sent out (tomorrow, I believe?) showing that opportunity. Also, another item has been added... a presentation of how last year's fees were spent. That will also show up on the amended agenda due out soon. Vicki

Excellent! Thank you. Vicki

Here's a refresher course on the new fee structure: $30 for a weekly pass for any non-holiday week $90 for an annual pass with holiday black-out dates $40 for a weekly pass that includes a holday $120 for an annual pass that includes holidays If you buy a non-holiday yearly pass at $90 and decide you want to include a holiday visit, you will be required to purchase a $10 'supplement' to your pass for each holiday appearance.

The committee meeting that was required before the suggested fee increase could go in has taken place and the Barstow BLM was given approval to move ahead. They are feverishly printing passes right now and I was assured they would be ready for the Thanksgiving rush. Vicki

This is a public meeting and they have to provide time for public discussion. I'm sure leaving it off the agenda was just an oversight. Vicki

Nothing we didn't know already but it's still good to see more people speaking out against this sham.

I just checked that page myself to make sure I hadn't missed a price increase but no, they are $20 and for the price of a postage stamp, that's what you'll pay through California Parks & Recreation directly. As I recall there is an 'internet handling fee' of $1.35 that is allowed, but I don't know anything about an additional $5. The only California OHV permit that I know of that costs $25 is the Sno-park permit. VickiW

Excellent! Sincity has taken on the task of getting the membership rolling but we do need things like flyers handed out... camp to camp or at various sand-related business, that kind of thing. If anyone's up for that, send me a PM and we'll get it going. VickiW

A little bird told me I'm starting to sound like a politician... that is absolutely not my intent, just my writing style. So here, let's get something straight. Bear with me here... yeah, I know I'm wordy. Friends of Dumont Dunes has not done some of the things that we should have been doing. Like acknowledging new members, for instance. We know this is a downfall of ours and we are working on the solution. I don't know what else I can say about that, other than it's something we should have been doing that we haven't been doing, we know it and we will fix it. There's been more movement on this in the last three days than in the last six months. There are other things we need to be doing, like getting more of the Dumont community involved. That's happening right here and now in this thread and has been happening on a (too) small scale in the background all along. FoDD can't represent a community that doesn't know it exists and we'll focus on our public presence more now than we have been. Fundraising, like it or not, is something else that we haven't been doing but must do. We need a lobbyist on retainer so we stay completely informed and involved in all legislative issues and there will no doubt be a time when we need an attorney. Can't have either of those without money so now FoDD is finally going to focus on fundraising, starting with flags and hopefully stickers and there has been talk of a raffle prize. What we have been doing is, staying on top of and deeply involved in Dumont issues at local, state and federal levels. We just signed an agreement with the BLM that will allow us to conduct cleanups and other FoDD business while at Dumont with more ease than before so that we can finally fully implement some of our education programs (Junior Duners, cleanups, dune-side meetings). FoDD leaders have attended meetings with local community leaders to alleviate their issues with our community. Our leaders have also attended meetings out-of-state involving improved use-pass systems. We also maintain consistent contact with various branches of the Fish & Wildlife Service in order to stay on top of the lizard threat, and of course we work very closely with the TRT on all Dumont issues. For most of the leadership, our weekends and evenings are taken up with Dumont business, more so now that the season has started but speaking for myself, there was minimal slowing even over the summer months. Phone calls, private messages, emails, even snail mail, with everything from minor informational inquiries to full-blown discussions on how new wilderness legislation will effect Dumont. All this while maintaining a primary focus of NOT allowing Dumont to become another Glamis. We have not been idle. But we have also not been public and that has to change. Again, thank you to everyone who has stepped up and is making this happen. VickiW

Yes, administrative items are lacking, no doubt about it. I sure wish I could say we've managed to get everything done to our own satisfaction since taking FoDD over, but we haven't. We have made damn sure that no pressing Dumont business has gone unanswered, but no... not all the administrative functions are running perfectly. Sincity, you're right... it would be ideal to take volunteers up on their offers of help immediately when it's offered. FoDD is in the same boat as literally every other user group out there and no one has come up with a cure for it yet. Very often (as in the case of the FoDD membership coordinator), actually doing the work can't take place until other dominoes fall and when we talked, I had counted my dominoes early. So, how to keep that from happening again? We think having someone take charge of networking the volunteers would be a good step in keeping this from happening again. Someone that would take the reins in matching offers to needs can help keep everything moving more smoothly and although other organizations have tried this and still there are complaints that "I volunteered but they had nothing for me to do," the situation has lessened with the help of a coordinator. Now, as for no action. There has been action and certainly more in the last two years than the previous history of FoDD. Has our action been flashy? Guess not. No time for press releases and blowing our horns. We've been working and keeping the fires that flare up under some kind of control instead. Is that good enough? Nope, and we're working on it. Maybe a little less time duning or spending time with our families or earning a living so we can use our vacation days to attend meetings would have been the ooooomf we needed to do it all but all we can do at this point is move forward the best we can. Thank you, sincerely, to those who are offering assistance and support to make FoDD the user organization we all want it to be. VickiW

Aw, it's not always that bad. Everything does have a process though, even writing the welcome letter. And sometimes skipping the process can cause more problems than just taking the time to work it through. Doesn't help (and sometimes hurts) that I have a background in the legal field so my mind goes through its own "what ifs" all by itself (thankfully the voices in my head usually drown them out ). The thing is for every one of those questions there are at least two answers... finding the right one is the key. We're getting there... with a little help from our friends. VickiW

Absolutely. Membership cards with periodic requests for informational updates (if we leave the membership open-ended) gets my vote. And you're right, those questions expend a lot of energy... and they come from all over the map, not just one or two people. Just wanted to give you a taste of what just one issue can raise. VickiW

Let me give you a sampling of some of the questions that have come our way concerning memberships and membership cards, just so you know it really is a thought-process… There’s more, but you get the drift… VickiW

I always do honey. I was only kidding about the tar and feathers part... and just wanted people to know that absolutely no one is saying it can't be done, but there are some that won't agree that it must be done. Somewhere I have some notes on conversations I've had with people inside and outside the FoDD leadership about memberships and membership cards... if I can scare that up I'll post some of what's already been talked about just so others can get some extra insight. VickiW