Spencer Mountain timber sale out for bids

The forest surrounding hiking and mountain biking trails on the north side of Spencer Mountain is on the precipice of major change. A 938-acre timber sale on mountain has been put out for bids, with work expected to begin this winter.

“Spencer is going to change,” said Heidi Van Everen, director of Whitefish Legacy Partners, the group that supports the Whitefish Trail. “It has not been managed for timber and now it will be. It needs to be manage, but change is always hard.”

The popular recreation area for mountain biking, hiking and horseback riding is about 4 miles west of Whitefish on public state school-trust lands managed by the Department of Natural Resources and Conservation.

Last summer, the State Land Board approved a recreational use license held by the city of Whitefish for 15 miles of established trails scattered across the mountain. Purchase of the license protects recreation in the project area while still allowing for some timber harvest activities.

As a condition of the timber sale, the purchaser is to make “reasonable efforts” to protect the recreation area by not depositing slash on trails, avoiding skidding along trail corridors, and locating landing and decking areas away from trail junctions and corridors.

Van Everen says about half of the established freeride trails are within in the timber sale area.

About 4.8 million board feet of Douglas-fir, western larch, lodgepole pine and spruce sawlogs is to be cut. The sale area contains no old growth.

A commercial thin will leave about 75 trees per acre to maintain the aesthetics of the area and allow for the improved health and growth of residual trees.

“They have planned for mosaics so you don’t have a hillside that looks clearcut,” Van Everen explained. She expects the forest to be similar to the thinned areas around Lion Mountain, and Beaver and Skyles lakes.

About 10.8 miles of road will be used to access the sale area, including 6.8 miles of new construction. All roads will be closed to motorized use but will stay open to non-motorized recreation.

The log landing will be converted into a trailhead and parking area for about 20 vehicles. The parking lot is expected to be opened by the summer of 2016.

School trust revenue is estimated to be at least $798,743.

Logging is to only occur between Nov. 1 and March 15 when soil conditions are dry, frozen or snow covered.

The sale contract is to end in August of 2017.