317 miles of MOAB trails have been closed [ADMIN WARNING: NO POLITICS]

[Deleted member 57233]

And don't forget the idiots out there with no common sense. Two weeks ago we were doing the self guided tour of Monument Valley Park in the Navajo Nation. Signs said that "high clearance four wheel drive vehicle recommended." Saw lots of Unibody SUVs but the one that really stuck out was the 2022 Mustang convertible with three young twenty somethings bouncing and scraping along the trail. These are the type who just don't think about what they are doing.

Trust me, I know exactly what I'm doing when I rent a car with full insurance to enter the Gambler 500.

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[NOTJeepBeerSleep]

Driving on some rocks is worth a 10k fine? What's the fine for the damage your home has done to the native ecosystem? The road to your house? I think that perhaps your town should shut down motor vehicle usage and return the roads to the native plants and grasses.

 

[Blade1668]

I've not read though this whole thread, but from my past experience... Closure of Tellico and quite a few other Off-road areas east of Mississippi River during the last 25 years. The only 4wheeler trail now open in the N.F. I live at edge of was closed to 4wheelers for around a year or more. By a hail Mary it's been reopened, I've been out on it cleaning up stupid amounts of trash. I've found most of it at intersections of other trail users. Just going on drive through it I see roads and trails that have been closed permanently that were open just a few years back.
Some has been brought on by the users, special interest groups have been stabbing other users in the back then to even lose access there too. Tellico is a good example of it. That even caused severe damage to the local economy around the area.

Don't think that the people of agencies don't want to close every place from anyone's use. I went to the Ranger station to get info on when the 4wheeler trails (and unpaved plated vehicles) use would be reopened they were not to friendly with it or information about it.
There is large tracks of "public lands" closed to everyone across America but to special people or cases.

 

[BearFootSam]

Well... tax money could be going toward hiring more BLM officers, but instead, the govt sends it to other countries. So that could be an easy fix. Keep our tax money here, in America, and use it to help the tax paying citizens enjoy the freedom we all work so hard for.

If the BLM/NFS actually collected the royalties due from mineral/oil/gas leases they could fund a lot. I've spoken with folks at USGS trying to get mine data and they don't even have an accurate inventory of who is taking what out of our public lands.

 

[RacerAV]

If the BLM/NFS actually collected the royalties due from mineral/oil/gas leases they could fund a lot. I've spoken with folks at USGS trying to get mine data and they don't even have an accurate inventory of who is taking what out of our public lands.

Wouldn't it be cool if the Federal Govt. went after the big businesses taking advantage of the land and (We) The People (who it really belongs to), rather than going after The People who are just trying to get by?

 

[RacerAV]

Driving on some rocks is worth a 10k fine? What's the fine for the damage your home has done to the native ecosystem? The road to your house? I think that perhaps your town should shut down motor vehicle usage and return the roads to the native plants and grasses.

Okay bud... ? ?

 

[Orange01z28]

Don't think that the people of agencies don't want to close every place from anyone's use. I went to the Ranger station to get info on when the 4wheeler trails (and unpaved plated vehicles) use would be reopened they were not to friendly with it or information about it.
There is large tracks of "public lands" closed to everyone across America but to special people or cases.

That's the goal of all these closures. There are people that want public lands to be closed to the public

 

[Blade1668]

That's the goal of all these closures. There are people that want public lands to be closed to the public

I would add other things about this and other topics that are inline with this subject... but if I would I'd be flat out banned. The same reason why I don't participate in some of the other forums I'm a long time member of.

 

[RavensEyeOffroad]

Ive been digging into this and this looks like the next target... Not trying to be clickbait but this has lots of info.

 

[Jteakus]

SxS's are the jet skis of the jeepin world.

 

[Sweetums]

Driving on some rocks is worth a 10k fine? What's the fine for the damage your home has done to the native ecosystem? The road to your house? I think that perhaps your town should shut down motor vehicle usage and return the roads to the native plants and grasses.

This is absurdism at its finest. No one is proposing re-naturing urban centers, this is about remote off-road trails and how we access public lands, not your driveway or city park.

When you are ready to have a serious adult conversation, come on back.

 

[NOTJeepBeerSleep]

This is absurdism at its finest. No one is proposing re-naturing urban centers, this is about remote off-road trails and how we access public lands, not your driveway or city park.

When you are ready to have a serious adult conversation, come on back.

no man. you just dont get it.

 

[Sweetums]

no man. you just dont get it.

I'm not the one pushing a false equivalency or the insane idea that we should be able to damage or destroy whatever is considered "public" simply because other damage to the environment already exists.

Is there a scratch on your truck? Yes? I guess we should just set it on fire, after all, it's already damaged.
It's an absolutely stupid argument and you're just embarrassing yourself.

 

[wvyankee2]

WoW! Major bummer. Brings back bad memories of when the closed down Tellico. This is going to be a real economic hit for the town of Moab. Rules can always be reversed though. Let's hope.

 

[NOTJeepBeerSleep]

I'm not the one pushing a false equivalency or the insane idea that we should be able to damage or destroy whatever is considered "public" simply because other damage to the environment already exists.

Is there a scratch on your truck? Yes? I guess we should just set it on fire, after all, it's already damaged.
It's an absolutely stupid argument and you're just embarrassing yourself.

against my better judgement...

there are folks who would like to close all roads and trails to all uses. there are folks who would say its their land to do what they please. now there are also you and me. im pretty sure both you and i would actually agree that the trails should be the only place for jeeps in the backcountry, not off trail. and that there shouldn't be unwarranted closures to the routes roads and trails that we all enjoy.

others have made this point in this very thread, but ill make it again. if we cant come together and agree that the land and motorized usage of it is something we can share, then the folks that want to close it all down will eventually chip away the public access to public lands.

seems so often that 2 barely separate viewpoints will hate each other because of a 3rd far off viewpoint. we will point fingers and say that you are the reason that 3rd party did what they did. if my jeep drives over some grass did i destroy the whole area? am i the worse? not that i ever drive off trail (i dont)

"im embarrassing myself" the point i was making is that it is so crazy how much anger can be directed at someone whos doing quite little damage (just being off trail) compared to a frankly much more damaging act of installing a driveway. dude on the last page suggested that a $10k fine or impound is deserved for merely being off trail.

i like offroading. i like the trails in colorado. i like the trails in utah. i want them to stay open.

ill also add that its just like during the recent healthcare related government emergency where there were people saying dont close these businesses and there were others saying fall in like so they wont close the businesses.

also while we are at it. you are only embarrassing yourself

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