New Rules Announced for Fells, Public Input Sought

A public meeting to talk about Middlesex Fells Reservation will be held Wednesday for the first time

The meeting will run from 6:30 p.m. to 8 p.m. at the McGlynn School cafeteria in Medford. DCR staff members will share information about the resource management planning process and solicit public input, according to a release from the DCR.

Earlier this month, when the DCR finished a Draft Trail System Plan for the fells, DCR Commissioner Jack Murray announced in a letter on Jan. 4. several rule changes would be put in place at the reservation According to the letter, they include:

• Allowing off-leash dogs only in a designated area at the sheepfold, and better enforcement of leash laws elsewhere beginning in the Spring
• Changing the winter closure for mountain biking to month of March, or as conditions warrant, to protect the trail tread during “mud season,” and enforcing this restriction
• Affirming the regulation of no-off trail uses and enforcing this restriction

• Working with the Town of Winchester, MWRA and State Police to better enforce no trespassing on posted water supply lands. This past summer a man-made forest fire started near the water supply

The draft trail system plan describes a "culture of non-compliance" in the fells, Murray said. The rule and policy changes aim to make regulations more enforceable, he said.

There will be no expansion of mountain bike trails until at least July, when the resource management plan is completed, Murray said. He said that decision was made because of "public disagreement" over mountain biking in the area.

The changes were decided on after the DCR received a staggering 2,562 pieces of public input on the Fells trail system between Sep. 20 and Nov. 10, 2010.

Organizations including the New England Mountain Biking Association, Friends of the Fells, the Sierra Club and the Somerville Dog Owners Group have all involved themselves in the development of a management plan for the Fells.

Middlesex Fells spans about 2,500 acres over Malden, Medford, Melrose, Stoneham, Winchester. It has been a reservation since the late 19th century.