I love the outdoors. I love being on the trails, feeling free, and taking in the beauty of nature. I am definitely not alone in this either. Every weekend, holiday, planned vacation, or free moment in the lives of the OHV community we think, let’s hit the trails. That means on any given day you’ll find thousands of people from all walks of life out enjoying our public lands and trails, and in order to keep them open for use we need to be responsible while using them.
There’s a term the U.S. Forest Service likes to use for a practice far to common on our trails. The term is UA or Unauthorized Access. UA’s are used anytime an OHV leaves the designated route and creates an unauthorized access point into the forest or desert that ultimately becomes an unauthorized route. These routes are very damaging to the environment. Here’s why…
The Impact of Unauthorized Access Points
- Environmental impact. Not only do UAs destroy plant and vegetation life, that includes a verity of endangered species.
- UAs turn into unauthorized routes which will impact and change our landscapes forever
- Potential fire risk. When the hot parts of your vehicles motor and exhaust come in contact dry plant life and/or vegetation the potential for fire exists.
- Monkey see, monkey do. When a driver comes across an unauthorized access point they often assume it is a legitimate and follow suit. That behavior repeated over time creates an unauthorized route that damages and changes the environment forever.
The answer is very simple. Let’s all stay on authorized routes, keep each other accountable to do the same, stay safe, and have fun. Taking care of the trails we love will only help in keeping our public lands open for all of us to enjoy.
