Ongoing damage to Gill Road costs City over $40,000 alone in 2022; Councillor Kloot says city leaders want a regional park near there

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Griffin Security has been able to respond within 30 minutes of being contacted about vandalism and after-hours mischief, the Gill Road resident reported.

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“There are benefits of the current temporary closure,” the Gill road resident said. “People have been able to walk their dogs rock hunt, do nature walks, fish, stargaze, and tent camp since the gates went up. I agree with the comments on Facebook about peace and solitude. It’s always the few that ruin it for everyone else. The hardest hit, I think, will be families training their kids to ride ATVs and dirt bikes. There are very few places to go that are kid and family-friendly. As for 4×4 and muddying, I’m sure it just shifts the problem elsewhere.”

Councillor Chris Kloot indicated in a Facebook statement, “City is moving blocks today so pedestrians and cyclists can access the dike. And to be clear, the city didn’t block the Gill access, the Department of Fisheries and Oceans did this as this is Crown land. The city is advocating for a regional park at Gill but remain at the mercy of senior levels of government to work with us.”

Image: Supplied by Councillor Chris Kloot / Councillor Chris Kloot says the City of Chilliwack has been advocating for a regional park near the northern end of Gill Road but is at the mercy of senior levels of government.

Some comments on a Chilliwack-area Facebook page from the Mud Brothers seemed to encourage the ongoing vandalism. Although the post containing pro-vandalism comments has been removed, it previously included comments like “[I] hope it keeps happening” and “Good, should leave the gate a melted blob.”

Public access to Gill Bar via foot traffic or small boat remains unaffected, at least that was the intention of DFO. However, the roadblocks and locked gate will remain in place until the long-term management planning process currently underway concludes.

For years, Gill Bar and its gravel bar and side channels have been a popular destination offering a range of recreational opportunities consisting of camping, motorbikes, and four-wheel adventures, just to name a few.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, DFO says there’s been a surge of activity in the area, including off-road trucks driving through the gravel side channels. Unfortunately, enforcement and various measures like public education, media outreach, coordination with off-road organizations and investigations into possible illegal activities, did not produce optimal results in protecting the area’s sensitive habitat.

An anonymous resident of Gill Road who spoke to Fraser Valley Today back in July said she and her family have repeatedly heard and witnessed burnouts on the narrow country road, loud trucks, fireworks from October onward, and heard illegal gunshots fired at trees in the area. She welcomed the roadblocks and gate because people have wandered onto her property not far from Gill Bar. On a few occasions, stragglers have entered their dairy barn without permission, even to the point one woman tried to pet a cow by entering a dairy stall.

“There have been big parties at the river and drunks doing burnouts on the road,” the Gill Road resident said. “I’m sure there’s been an environmental impact. It’ll be better [with this]. They’ve left behind garbage. A select few people ruin it for the rest. We’ve had ambulances and fire engines respond. I’ve seen oil or gas mixing with sitting water near the river. These trucks keep pushing further into salmon beds and destroying amphibious beds.”

DFO pinpoints Gill Bar as the “heart of the Fraser,” a critical stretch of the Fraser River between Hope and Mission, where numerous fish species inhabit the area, including all five Pacific salmon species. Side channels adjacent to the bar represent a critical spawning habitat for salmon as well as white sturgeon, which have been assessed as threatened by the Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada. White sturgeon are currently under consideration for listing under the Species at Risk Act.

The side channels also support rearing juvenile salmon, including Chinook stocks emigrating from upstream areas of the Fraser River such as the Bridge, Nechako, Stuart and South Thompson Rivers, and are an important habitat for eulachon, a culturally significant species to B.C. First Nations.