TABLE III-19 - ESTIMATED VALUE FOR TOTAL CURRENT STANDING TIMBER INVENTORY 

 IN THE BEAVER LAKE PROJECT AREA BASED ON NET ACRES FROM SLI 



CURRENT ASSET VALUE 

 RELATED TO GENERAL 

 RECREATIONAL USE 



The Beaver Lake Project area, containing trails, 

 old logging roads, lakes, and forests, is a prime 

 area for recreation. Hunters, hikers, mountain 

 bikers, horseback riders, and motorized 

 recreational vehicles have created trails 

 throughout the area. For the most part, these 

 trails were established without the knowledge 

 of, or input from, DNRC management. The 

 only portions of this area not available to the 

 general recreationist are the cabinsite leases, 

 which are, basically, private lands when it 

 comes to the general recreationist. DFWP 

 leases 2 acres as a public fishing access site and 

 parking area on the south side of Beaver Lake. 

 The lease carries an annual payment of $760.20 

 and expires March 1, 2001. Until the late 1980s 

 there was a boat ramp on private land to 

 access Beaver Lake. Once this access was 

 closed, a substantial drop (70%) occurred in 

 the number of people using the Beaver Lake 

 area for fishing and boating. 



Historically, there has been environmental 

 damage (human waste, litter, and vegetation 

 trampled) to some of the areas around the 

 lakes from unregulated human use. There 

 have, historically and presently, been places in 

 Montana that are free and unregulated for 

 camping and recreating. This philosophy is 



applied to areas in the Beaver Lake area. 

 Based on the 1996 survey done on Stillwater 

 Forest from Upper Whitefish Lake Camp- 

 ground, 70% of the recreationists did not have 

 a general Recreational Use License, though 

 40% of these same recreationists were familiar 

 with the requirements to buy this license. 



The gross revenue generated Statewide from 

 the general Recreational Use Licenses for the 

 fiscal year 1997 was $306,775 ( Annual Report. 

 1997, page 57). The amount of trust acres 

 Statewide equals 5,856,720 ( Annual Report for 

 Fiscal Year 1997. page 53). Approximately 

 two-thirds (.667) of these acres are legally 

 accessible (personal communication with Jeff 

 Hagener, Administrator, Trust Land Manage- 

 ment Division). The average annual gross 

 revenue from the general Recreational Use 

 Licenses from trust land is approxinaately 

 $0.08 per acre per year ($306,775/ 

 (5,856,720*.667)). Using this average times the 

 approximate project area of 4,000 acres yields 

 an estimated annual gross revenue from the 

 project area of $320 per year. 



CURRENT ASSET VALUE 

 RELATED TO CABINSITE 

 OR HOMESITE LEASES 



Currently, we have 20 cabinsite leases on 

 Beaver Lake. The lease sites range in size from 

 .42 to 5.0 acres. Lease payments on the sites 



HflM2r 



Stillwater State Forest • Beaver Lake Timber Sale Project 



