Article courtesy of the American River Conservancy www.arconservancy.org
Mt. Murphy Protected!
Inside ARC... : ARC Lands
March 7, 2007- Mt. Murphy protected from development
By Roger Phelps, Democrat staff writer
When James Marshall viewed the face of Mt. Murphy in Coloma in January 1848, it had yet to turn the golden color it wore summer and fall that year as miners sought the mythic metal that bore the same hue.As claims got worked, the mountain stood unchanged save for the etching of a miner's pack-trail over its northern shoulder. It's stood largely unchanged since - and will remain so.
Conservation groups American River Conservancy and Trust for Public Land have bought and deeded to the state some 246 acres of the 1,929-foot peak in a move that will preserve - virtually as the miners knew it as they toiled with picks and pans - the view of the landmark mountainside, a strong visual link to the birth of the California Gold Rush.
Years of negotiations with longtime landowners, the Mt. Murphy Partnership, went into the deal, with the Coloma-based river conservancy and the San Francisco-based land trust urging partners to reach a price. The price arrived at was approximately $1.6 million on a two-piece land deal.
“I first started this project back in 1990,” said Alan Ehrgott, conservancy executive director. “(Until now) there was no time when partners could agree. We only buy from willing sellers.”
Transferring the larger of two pieces from the conservancy to the state Department of Parks, escrow closed last year on 226 acres, while close of escrow is expected early next month on 20 acres on the mountain's lower slopes. A grant under state Prop. 40 bought the upper land chunk and grant money under state Prop. 50 bought the lower, said Mark Gibson, superintendent of Marshall Gold Discovery State Historic Park. The lower piece extends down to Mt. Murphy Road, just above the town of Coloma.
The larger of the grants was earmarked for cultural preservation, in this case an historical viewshed, and the other was marked for habitat protection, Gibson said.
“On that ridgeline, it's very visible from the sawmill replica site,” Gibson said. “The idea is to keep the valley as close as possible to when Marshall was here. And where two creeks come in, it's habitat for the California red-legged frog.”
The parks department will manage the land as open space. The acquired swath extends over a shoulder of Mt. Murphy to some acreage on its eastern, or “back” side, Ehrgott said.
Gibson said the parks department will maintain existing fencing on the mountaintop to prevent motorcycle off-roading.
Other typical state park rules will govern the area as well, Gibson said. Eventually, Ehrgott said, a trail or trails could be installed for hiking.
“No open fires, no picking (for example of wildflowers), dogs not permitted on posted trails,” Gibson said. “Where there are no trails, and it's not posted, people can have dogs.”
Getting the land into public hands, permanently, prevents development from marring it, Ehrgott and Gibson said.
“After 16 years, success,” Ehrgott said.
By Roger Phelps, Democrat staff writer
When James Marshall viewed the face of Mt. Murphy in Coloma in January 1848, it had yet to turn the golden color it wore summer and fall that year as miners sought the mythic metal that bore the same hue.As claims got worked, the mountain stood unchanged save for the etching of a miner's pack-trail over its northern shoulder. It's stood largely unchanged since - and will remain so.
Conservation groups American River Conservancy and Trust for Public Land have bought and deeded to the state some 246 acres of the 1,929-foot peak in a move that will preserve - virtually as the miners knew it as they toiled with picks and pans - the view of the landmark mountainside, a strong visual link to the birth of the California Gold Rush.
Years of negotiations with longtime landowners, the Mt. Murphy Partnership, went into the deal, with the Coloma-based river conservancy and the San Francisco-based land trust urging partners to reach a price. The price arrived at was approximately $1.6 million on a two-piece land deal.
“I first started this project back in 1990,” said Alan Ehrgott, conservancy executive director. “(Until now) there was no time when partners could agree. We only buy from willing sellers.”
Transferring the larger of two pieces from the conservancy to the state Department of Parks, escrow closed last year on 226 acres, while close of escrow is expected early next month on 20 acres on the mountain's lower slopes. A grant under state Prop. 40 bought the upper land chunk and grant money under state Prop. 50 bought the lower, said Mark Gibson, superintendent of Marshall Gold Discovery State Historic Park. The lower piece extends down to Mt. Murphy Road, just above the town of Coloma.
The larger of the grants was earmarked for cultural preservation, in this case an historical viewshed, and the other was marked for habitat protection, Gibson said.
“On that ridgeline, it's very visible from the sawmill replica site,” Gibson said. “The idea is to keep the valley as close as possible to when Marshall was here. And where two creeks come in, it's habitat for the California red-legged frog.”
The parks department will manage the land as open space. The acquired swath extends over a shoulder of Mt. Murphy to some acreage on its eastern, or “back” side, Ehrgott said.
Gibson said the parks department will maintain existing fencing on the mountaintop to prevent motorcycle off-roading.
Other typical state park rules will govern the area as well, Gibson said. Eventually, Ehrgott said, a trail or trails could be installed for hiking.
“No open fires, no picking (for example of wildflowers), dogs not permitted on posted trails,” Gibson said. “Where there are no trails, and it's not posted, people can have dogs.”
Getting the land into public hands, permanently, prevents development from marring it, Ehrgott and Gibson said.
“After 16 years, success,” Ehrgott said.