Two off-roaders fined, sentenced to probation for Lake Tahoe damage

[RHINO]

i think i'm just spoiled here in the desert with the wide open areas and seemingly endless playground. i am all about tread lightly and responsibly off roading but i firmly believe there should be areas set aside for pretty much total destruction by off road community, its just plain fun and doesnt do any worse than pavement and a mall. we have a few of those areas around here, or at least a few areas treated like that, doesnt do any harm in my opinion as long as it stays in a designated area and does not spread. the local municipalities have been pretty good about closing and curbing the spread of such areas, but they also have to close down some trails and access that i truly miss.

 

[Dendy Jarrett]

As a Tread Lightly! Trainer, I can say with complete confidence, that if folks don't get on the Tread Lightly band wagon, we are going to loose all OHV access. The places where we can go are shrinking by the month.
Forging new trails is a complete no-no. If an area is impassable, you should turn around and go back the way you came. (I know ... the thought goes against every grain in your natural desire to see what your truck is made up of and can do, but that is why we are loosing these resources.)

There are simply too many LARGE activist groups looking for just this type of story to add fuel to their fire.
A couple of bad apples to spoil the entire bunch for the rest of us.

Many of those activist groups have very legitimate claims against "us" as well.

The ole "hey watch this" mentality is doing a lot of damage for Overlanders, Folks that practice Tread Lightly Principles, and responsible off-roaders.

I am not preaching ... just sayin'!

D

PS: there are folks working as we speak, to get MOAB shut down to all vehicle traffic and some trails have already closed there since last year.

 

[Ursidae69]

National Parks were catered towards automobiles when they were first built.

I love revisionist history. Yeah, totally RR1, definitely that is what John Muir wanted when he helped get several national parks created. :coffeedrink:

 

[WoldD90]

These are just political games... One group of people not allowing other people to use our own land, yes as taxpayers it is our land. Why does the US government need to own 90% of Nevada?

I am all for responsible land use and I am not condoning irresponsible land use, but the extremes have to stop.

Why is not OK to drive on dirt and rocks, but it is just fine to put a gas or diesel propelled boat on our lakes, rivers and oceans?

Here in Georgia, they are closing every trail they can find, but people are allowed to boat, fish, jet ski, sail and litter on our drinking water. Nothing more than politics.

What does more environmental damage an ORV trail, a Golf Course or a large strip mall?

 

[Dendy Jarrett]

These are just political games... One group of people not allowing other people to use our own land, yes as taxpayers it is our land. Why does the US government need to own 90% of Nevada?

I am all for responsible land use and I am not condoning irresponsible land use, but the extremes have to stop.

Why is not OK to drive on dirt and rocks, but it is just fine to put a gas or diesel propelled boat on our lakes, rivers and oceans?

Here in Georgia, they are closing every trail they can find, but people are allowed to boat, fish, jet ski, sail and litter on our drinking water. Nothing more than politics.

What does more environmental damage an ORV trail, a Golf Course or a large strip mall?

Scott, you make good points. My point was not that it is right or wrong, but that Tread Lightly! is an organization that is trying to ensure that we do retain the trails intended for off-road use.
As with anything and everything, there are those that are responsible and those that are irresponsible!

D

 

[WoldD90]

Scott, you make good points. My point was not that it is right or wrong, but that Tread Lightly! is an organization that is trying to ensure that we do retain the trails intended for off-road use.
As with anything and everything, there are those that are responsible and those that are irresponsible!

D

Dendy, it's been a long day and I understand this very well. I am just tired of the politics of it all. They close Telico, because of the trout. Which is just an excuse, since they stock the river with farm raised fish that eat the native trout all in the name of sport fisherman. These guys have to be so proud to catch a fish that was put in the river on Wednesday and pulled out on the weekend, and probably had not been fed prior to release.

Then the property next to the Telico ORV park is logged, but they are very concerned about erosion. More than likely, they will build big, expensive cabins on the cleared land. And the real push was for tax revenue from the expensive cabins.

Rant over.

 

[Dendy Jarrett]

Dendy, it's been a long day and I understand this very well. I am just tired of the politics of it all. They close Telico, because of the trout. Which is just an excuse, since they stock the river with farm raised fish that eat the native trout all in the name of sport fisherman. These guys have to be so proud to catch a fish that was put in the river on Wednesday and pulled out on the weekend, and probably had not been fed prior to release.

Then the property next to the Telico ORV park is logged, but they are very concerned about erosion. More than likely, they will build big, expensive cabins on the cleared land. And the real push was for tax revenue from the expensive cabins.

Rant over.

You are preachin' to the choir brother! Especially after this week! geesh! Chin up! D

 

[jcbrandon]

...One group of people not allowing other people to use our own land, yes as taxpayers it is our land. Why does the US government need to own 90% of Nevada?

I am all for responsible land use and I am not condoning irresponsible land use, but the extremes have to stop...

I also feel very strongly that we own this land and have the rights to use it. With those rights come responsibilities. Unfortunately, I see ample evidence that many of our fellow landowners feel they have unlimited rights to dump old washing machines and tires, drive over living plants, shoot up road signs, leave oil spills, and destroy or steal historical artifacts.

The majority (about 87 percent) of the land in Nevada is owned by the people of the United States. It is mostly managed by the federal government through a variety of agencies. The two biggest are the US Forest Service and the Bureau of Land Management.

Another land management agency is the Department of Defense. As a taxpayer and a resident of Nevada, I think it is prudent to have the government keep civilians from wandering into military bases, bombing ranges, and a nuclear test site.

I'm also glad that such a large expanse of my home state is managed by agencies that promote and are required to accommodate public recreation. If that land was privately owned most of it would be fenced and I would not have access to it.

The little valley I live in is just about surrounded by public lands managed by the Forest Service and the BLM. Forest Service lands are more tightly regulated than BLM lands. And it shows. On BLM lands I see a lot more illegal dumping, more litter, more illegal trails, more erosion, more abuse, and more evidence of people who just don't care about the land that belongs to all of us. Nearly all the privately owned land is not accessible so I don't get to see any of that.

 

[GaryMc]

Moab and Grand Junction

FYI, the Grand Junction Field Office is in the beginning stage of a new RMP. We will still have extensive 'open areas' but the boundaries will most likely be shifting to the west a bit to accommodate user requests and current use.