No problem.
Posted on 08/22/2003 5:06:23 PM PDT by bicycle thug
Landowner says tall pine fell; agency reports it was moved with backhoe
Either God or Harold Honeycutt dropped a pine tree into the Kettle River this week.
The snag spans the river in front of Honeycutt's house, effectively stopping boaters from using the river.
Honeycutt, who has fought to keep boaters off the river, denied that he felled the tree.
"Let them prove it," the 72-year-old retired tavern owner said. "It makes no difference anyway. It's on my property."
The tree is the latest controversy in an ongoing battle over who owns the river -- and who can use it. Ferry County officials have received complaints that property owners shot over canoes, chased kayakers down the river and harassed and intimidated other river users.
In an attempt to settle the issue, the county prosecutor sided with the public last week, arguing that boaters have a right to use the water.
Honeycutt and others contend that a 1925 ruling gives them authority to ban floaters from using the water.
The Kettle River is one of Washington's most remote bodies of water, swerving back and forth across the Canadian border. In recent years, it has attracted a growing number of weekend visitors.
Honeycutt's property lies just south ofthe Canadian border, about two miles from the tiny town of Orient.
He blames boaters for trashing his land, blocking his driveway and frequently threatening him. For more heated confrontations, he has taken to wearing a .38-caliber revolver on his hip.
The fallen log, he said, was a fortuitous event. He tacked no-trespassing signs on the tree.
"All I'm doing is reacting to some of their actions," he said, adding "there's a possibility of a public land war."
According to the county sheriff, U.S. Fish and Wildlife reported that someone used a backhoe to move the tree. The federal agency investigated because the tree may have altered the flow of the river, an issue that falls under federal jurisdiction.
Sheriff Pete Warner said he planned to enforce the county prosecutor's decision. His office has received reports of Honeycutt threatening people with a handgun, but he has not been able to substantiate the complaints.
"It's a sad state of affairs that people can't use the public water," he said. "I haven't seen any evidence of garbage along the river."
But he said the law may be difficult to enforce. The sheriff's office has only five deputies, and its headquarters in Republic is 60 miles from Honeycutt's land. But as the issue becomes more visible and contentious, Warner said his office will be forced to deal with it.
"He's taken it another step now," Warner said about Honeycutt. "I don't know where this is all going to end up. But we have to take some action."
Boaters say that several property owners -- not just Honeycutt -- have chased them off the river.
Outside the town of Curlew, Doug Barnes also says another tree has fallen across the river. He warned that if boaters portage around the log, they will trespass on his land.
He strung two hangman's nooses on a cross in front of his property and took out a newspaper ad in the Republic News-Miner warning uninvited floaters that they would be treated as intruders.
The threats have scared many people off those stretches of the river, said Tim Coleman, a local conservation leader.
"Everybody's just a little worried about being the victim," he said. "A lot of people don't go down that stretch."
County prosecutor James von Sauer was unavailable for comment Thursday. His deputy, Michael Sandona, said his office is prepared to enforce the law. His office received several calls supporting the decision.
Honeycutt said he has only reluctantly taken on the role of river enforcer.
"The sheriff's department can't handle the public as it is," he said. "I'm sticking to my guns."
?Benjamin Shors can be reached at (509) 459-5484 or by e-mail at benjamins@spokesman.com.
No problem.
Quality bow or pruning saws could take out the tree as it looks in the picture. Then you could white water on downstream to make your get away. (I'd use a lookout too. I would bet he is well armed.)
Hey, I respect this guy's private property rights, but rivers have always been a travel easement. His piano is tuned way, way too tight IMHO.
I'd hate to see this guy get any handheld ground to air missles. If he is that irrational about river travel, he isn't likely to like airplanes flying over either.
Let me know if you wish to be added or removed from this list.
Along with the law, both natural and statutory.
In the lower 48, the only exception that I'm aware of is on lands that are part of old Spanish land grants here in Texas. In these cases, the landowner actually owns and can restrict traffic on the river.
Thus, in places, canoe travel on the Frio, e.g., is blocked by barbed wire fences.
The flip side of this perfectly legal right to use the waterway is a responsibility on the part of the canoist/kayaker to respect property rights of the landowners and at least pick up after themselves.
Canoeist yourself, I gather from the handle. Whereabouts?
Yeah right! We've got you kayakers out here droppin their little boaties in every little puddle they can find in August, tryin to claim "navigable" status in every little seasonal stream running through private property they can find.
That's only so's they can go running to the courthouse screaming "Waters of the United States... Waters of the United States... Waters of the United States!!! Reminds me of Gomer Pyle yellin at Barney Fife... "Citizen's Arrayest... Citezen's Arrayest... Citizen's Arrayest!!!
My favorite is a commercial whitewater rafting guide yelling at a riverfront property owner that put up a "Private Property-No Trespassing" sign... Saying disgustedly, "Your property's not PRIVATE!"
Let's face it. You recreational boaters are just another beligerent special interest group with a chip on your shoulder trying to hide behind an ancient shipping law, right?
Deliverance Bump!
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