Analysis of Current Situation - Revelstoke Snowmobile Strategy

2.1 Regulatory Framework

Almost all snowmobiling activity in and around Revelstoke takes place on Crown land, which is under the jurisdiction of the provincial government. Since the commencement of this study, the regulatory framework has become less clear due to the changing policies of the Provincial Government.

At present (October, 2002), it is understood that the Memorandum of Agreement between the Ministry of Forests, representing the provincial government, and the Revelstoke Snowmobile Club and the Snowmobile Revelstoke Society for the operation of the Boulder Mountain and Frisby Ridge snowmobile trails (Appendix A) is still in effect. This Memorandum is for the period December 1, 2001 to November 30, 2002. A Memorandum renewal is currently being considered for a longer period of time to cover the period December 1, 2002 and beyond.

The Memorandum allows the Club and Society to operate recreational trails for snowmobile use on Boulder Mountain and Frisby Ridge and collect a user fee to help offset the costs incurred in operating the trails.

For commercial operators, the “Commercial Recreation Policy on Crown Land” outlines an application and approval (or denial) process to operate a commercial recreation (i.e. tourism) business on Crown Land. Since 1999, it has been mandatory for all tourism operators to have approved tenure (permit, license or lease) in order to legally transport tourists on Crown land.

2.2 Stakeholders

The following groups and organizations have been identified as stakeholders in this process:

Revelstoke Snowmobile Club and the Snowmobile Revelstoke Society
Local snowmobile operators
Local accommodation providers
Environmental groups
City of Revelstoke
Columbia-Shuswap Regional District
Provincial government representatives (Ministry of Forests and Ministry of Sustainable Resource Management)
Revelstoke Chamber of Commerce
Other users of the recreational land base
Other commercial users of the recreational land base

The Revelstoke Snowmobile Club is comprised of local snowmobilers, and of snowmobilers from outside the community who purchase club memberships, which permit them to enjoy lower trail fees. It should be noted that many out-of-town members are long-time members, and purchased club memberships before a trail user fee system was implemented. These snowmobilers are long-time supporters of the local snowmobile club.

The Snowmobile Revelstoke Society was established by the Revelstoke Snowmobile Club specifically to operate the snowmobile trails on Boulder Mountain and Frisby Ridge.

2.3 Visitation

For the purposes of this study, visitation is defined as a person-trip to Revelstoke which includes at least one overnight stay and where snowmobiling is the main reason for the trip. Two sets of data will be utilized to calculate visitation to Revelstoke for the purpose of snowmobiling. These are the voluntary trail registration information and the results of the Snowmobile Survey undertaken during 2001-02 as part of this project. In addition, informal surveys of local accommodation properties provide further information required to estimate total visitation.

Over the past decade, the Revelstoke Snowmobile Club has utilized a voluntary trail registration system to track the number of trail users on Boulder Mountain, the most popular snowmobile area adjacent to Revelstoke. The number of snowmobilers who registered as using these trails has increased from just over 2,000 in 1990-91 to just under 12,000 in 2001-02, an increase of almost 600% (see Figure 1). This number is not entirely accurate, as the methods used to count trail users have improved over the period. However, this should not overshadow the fact that trail use has greatly increased in the same period.

Figure 1
Snowmobiling Registrations at Boulder Mountain
1990/91 to 2001/02

For the past two years, 2000-02, a trail registration system was also used on Frisby Ridge. Approximately 4,450 snowmobilers registered as users during 2000-01 and 4,100 in 2001-02. During the 2001-2002 season, therefore, there were a total of 15,890 trail use registrations on Boulder and Frisby.

It is estimated that approximately 90% of trail users self-register. It is also estimated that approximately 1,500 of the total registrations are local residents. These two estimates roughly balance each other out, so the number of registered trail users can be considered an accurate indication of how many visitations there are to Revelstoke for the purpose of snowmobiling at Boulder or Frisby.

In addition, a large number of snowmobilers who come to Revelstoke snowmobile at other areas e.g. the Keystone-Standard Basin. As these areas are not groomed, there is no registration system for these locations and no accurate count can be made. The number of visitations generated by snowmobilers in these other areas is estimated by members of the local snowmobile club and by local accommodation owners as being between 6-8,000. If we use the conservative number of 6,000, and add this to the approximately 16,000 number of registered trail users noted above, the cumulative total of visitations generated by snowmobiling during the 2001-02 season equaled 22,000.

2.4 Economic Impacts

The Snowmobile Survey (Appendix B) undertaken as part of developing this strategy specifically asked snowmobilers how much they estimated they expended per day during their visit to Revelstoke. The average expenditure per person per day equaled $223.62. This is consistent with data collected on snowmobile expenditures in other studies.

Based on the number of visitations calculated above, the total economic impact to Revelstoke, in terms of money from outside the community expended in the community during 2001-02 and which can be attributed to snowmobile visits, is estimated at $4.9 million (22,000 visitations X $223.62).

Additionally, it is estimated that that the value of snowmobile sales to visitors equaled approximately $400,000 during 2000-01, for total expenditures of $5.3 million.

2.5 Trail System Management

The Snowmobile Revelstoke Society and the Revelstoke Snowmobile Club are responsible for the management of the snowmobile trail systems on Boulder Mountain and Frisby Ridge. The Society maintains approximately 100 kilometres of trails and uses two trail grooming machines. The Society employs both paid and volunteer staff to operate the groomers. Typically, the trails are groomed five days per week. The Society hires staff to collect trail fees at the bottom of the trails, and the Club maintains two cabins, one on Boulder and one on Frisby Ridge. The Society and the Club have also been involved in developing and installing signage and in managing voluntarily closures of areas in which wildlife may be at risk.

As the numbers of snowmobilers has dramatically increased over the last decade, so the time required and the cost of grooming the trails have also gone up. In 1990-91, grooming costs totaled just over $3,000. By the 2001-02 season, these costs had increased to almost $74,000 (Figure 2).

Figure 2
Snowmobile Revelstoke Society Grooming Costs
1990/92 – 2001/02

2.6 Marketing

Snowmobiling marketing activities are currently undertaken by the Snowmobile Revelstoke Society and the Revelstoke Chamber of Commerce. These activities include attendance at trade shows, advertisements in snowmobile journals and magazines, and promotion of snowmobiling on the Chamber of Commerce website. During 2001-02 the Society spent $4,442 on advertising, and the Chamber of Commerce directly expended $5,022, for a total of $9,464. The main thrust of the Snowmobile Club’s “marketing” efforts is to provide information on snowmobile areas around Revelstoke, particularly as it relates to trail closures.

The primary market for advertising is in Alberta, Saskatchewan and the Pacific northwest, particularly Washington State. The deep powder and steep terrain make the area appealing to snowmobilers seeking a mountain adventure experience.

2.7 Carrying Capacity

In this section of the study, the term carrying capacity refers to social carrying capacity, or the maximum number of people who could snowmobile in certain areas without impacting the quality of the experience.. The popularity of an activity can, in some cases, detrimentally affect the experience of participants in that activity. For example, hikers must now register with Parks Canada to hike the West Coast Trail on Vancouver Island. Parks Canada restricts the number of hikers so that the hiking trail is not too busy, and the experience remains a positive one for participants.

As indicated by the statistics generated by the trail user registration system, there has been a dramatic increase in the number of snowmobilers who visit Revelstoke to snowmobile, particularly on Boulder Mountain and Frisby Ridge.

Based on the response to the Revelstoke Snowmobile survey and to informal discussions with snowmobile tour operators and Snowmobile Club members, there does not appear to be a problem with social carrying capacity at this time. No respondents to the survey indicated that they thought the trails were too crowded, and local club members and tour operators suggested there was still capacity for another 50% of riders to use existing areas.

In terms of accommodation for snowmobilers in the community, there are still sufficient hotel and motel rooms available for additional visitors during the busiest times of the season.

2.8 Other Issues

The following issues related to snowmobiling were identified in the terms of reference and are addressed as part of the strategy.

Conflict with other recreational users

Conflict with snowmobilers has not been identified as an issue for other recreational users of the land base. Given the unregulated nature of crown land, there will always be incidents where snowmobilers come into contact with other users which may cause some concern. However, other recreational users interviewed as part of this study have stated that snowmobilers, particularly local residents, are generally very respectful of other users and take active measures to prevent potential conflicts. Local Snowmobile Club members also do a good job of informing visiting snowmobilers of areas where there is the potential for conflict.

Policing

The RCMP note no special policing considerations in dealing with snowmobilers. There have been incidents of snowmobiles and trucks being stolen or vandalized, but these incidents have been isolated, and may be occasionally expected in communities where snowmobiling is an important tourist activity. Theft and vandalism were not identified as a major concern by snowmobilers who completed the snowmobile survey. Some of the accommodation properties in the community hire security companies to provide some security coverage of their parking areas. While there may be some advantages to having a secure area specifically for snowmobiles, this would not seem to be a high priority at the present time.

Search and Rescue

In terms of search and rescue, volunteers involved with this program indicate that they are officially called out 2-3 times per month between November and March to bring snowmobilers off the mountains safely. There is an adequate number of volunteers to deal with this, and the search and rescue program is presently funded by the provincial government. Search and rescue could potentially become an issue if the provincial funding was discontinued, or if the number of people prepared to volunteer for the program declined. There is no indication that either of these events will occur.