Having never driven on the beaches, or gone clamming, perhaps my opinion won't mean diddly......but I would like to share it all the same.

Is there a possibility of some happy medium? Sometimes a compromise stinks, but it is far better than having everyone go away with nothing.

Protected beaches should be just that...protected. Motorized vehilcles don't belong there, IMO. I hear the same about closed access forest areas. Some guys want to run their 4-wheel ATV's into closed areas to hunt and assist with removing downed game (like elk), but, rules are rules and they are there for a reason. But open beaches and forest areas are a definate need, as well.

Some areas of forest have the "green dot" system. Perhaps they could engage something along those lines with the beaches, with enforced speed regualtions, etc. and allowed access at differing times of the year?

If the currently [vehicle] accessible beaches get closed to vehicle access, then parking is going to be the next major issue for those homeowners. Those willing to walk must park somewhere, and then the issue of tresspassing though private property to gain easier access (walking) to the better areas is going to rear its head.

It's a slippery slope...property owners controlling access to public beaches, strictly by right of land ownership that locks users out of the "public" areas.

One thought is to get the interested parties together and hammer out a negotiated settlement is a good one...but sadly, with the jillion levels of bureaucracy in our most liberal of states, that will never happen. Could it?

People that own the property have rights..and so does the public that foots the bill for the maintenance of those lands. In order to "keep the peace" the courts will side with the private property owners and the "public" will get double screwed...

WE (us) will no longer have access to the areas (tresspassing, no parking, etc) AND we will still be paying the taxes to manage the no longer accessible public land.

If it can be done, my suggestion is to find a way (somewhere over the rainbow?) to get a negotiated settlement that can partially satisfy all parties.

Mike (the ultimate optimist) B