[2full]

I don't even drive my truck across the top any more. I just go down and through Virgin. Oil the whole way.

(Cedar Mountain is turning into a zoo)

I don't have any choice.......from Kolob to my place is quite a ways. And would mean even more dirt roads than I have now. Once I turn off the "scenic byway" it cuts about 95% off the traffic for me.

And yes, Cedar mountain is turning into a zoo.

Up on top around Midway and Cedar Breaks is a whole lot worse.
I know a couple of you will be upset, but ........
About 80% of the lisc plates are Nevada.

 

[backcountry]

There's no doubt Nevadans love Cedar Mountain.

The last time I was up at Yankee Meadow a group of 10+ side by sides had taken up the entire boat ramp by parking on it. They did so while two of us had boats we were prepping and a third trying to get out of the water. Come to think of it most of them were also drinking.

I actually enjoy ATVs and could see getting a used one way in the future. But a minority of the users leave a bad impression on other people sharing the land. .

 

[Vanilla]

But a minority of the users leave a bad impression on other people sharing the land. .

Insert any group of people into this and it would be equally applicable. We as people are mostly good and mostly do the right things. But there is a minority of us out there that are not good and do not do the right things, regardless of what groups or labels we attach to them.

 

[MooseMeat]

Or if they've completed the online education course that EVERY single person operating an OHV on public lands will have had to complete to operate that OHV starting in January...

This world is getting so stupid…

more hands out, wanting your money is all this equates to IMO. Like any hunting ethics course we take on line… idiots will always be idiots. Nothing will stop that. Not even a new license plate and registration on an OHV vehicle

 

[Vanilla]

This world is getting so stupid…

more hands out, wanting your money is all this equates to IMO. Like any hunting ethics course we take on line… idiots will always be idiots. Nothing will stop that. Not even a new license plate and registration on an OHV vehicle

While I agree this law is stupid, the course will be free. So it's hard to argue it's all about the money. I envision this being a lot like the shed gathering course. It won't fix the people the are stupid and just won't follow the rules, but it may help some that are a bit ignorant and willing to learn and do the right thing.

 

[PBH]

I know a couple of you will be upset, but ........
About 80% of the lisc plates are Nevada.

Upset or not, it's the truth.

Some additional truths:
Las Vegas population is larger than Salt Lake City.
Los Angeles population is larger than the entire Wasatch Front.
Cedar City is closer to Las Vegas than SLC.

Where do you think the closest mountain getaway for Las Vegas is? Yep -- Cedar Mountain. In fact, it's closer to LV than SLC.
And, if you want legitimate trout fishing, the closest answer for Los Angeles? Southern Utah.

We are LV and southern California's playground. We reap the rewards from the money spent -- I'd love to see the numbers of licenses sold to Nevadans compared to Utahns.

No matter if we like it or not -- Nevada isn't going home any time soon.

 

[MrShane]

Or if they've completed the online education course that EVERY single person operating an OHV on public lands will have had to complete to operate that OHV starting in January...

I wish there was a ‘boat ramp etiquette’ course required of all watercraft users.

 

[TPrawitt91]

I wish there was a ‘boat ramp etiquette’ course required of all watercraft users.

Should be part of registering them lol

 

[Catherder]

Upset or not, it's the truth.

Some additional truths:
Las Vegas population is larger than Salt Lake City.
Los Angeles population is larger than the entire Wasatch Front.
Cedar City is closer to Las Vegas than SLC.

Where do you think the closest mountain getaway for Las Vegas is? Yep -- Cedar Mountain. In fact, it's closer to LV than SLC.
And, if you want legitimate trout fishing, the closest answer for Los Angeles? Southern Utah.

We are LV and southern California's playground. We reap the rewards from the money spent -- I'd love to see the numbers of licenses sold to Nevadans compared to Utahns.

No matter if we like it or not -- Nevada isn't going home any time soon.

It is nothing to get upset about and the truth. In that period of life when I was one of them, I came up too. (although I didn't own an ATV and diversified my fishing a fair bit ) With population growth in both Clark County and Southern Utah, along with the ever present SoCal, it isn't a surprise that these areas are getting more crowded. And there are more problems. So what is to be done?

As I see it, you guys living down there can have a significant influence in management, or can just go on complaining about it. If more enforcement is allowed, and rules enacted, some sanity may prevail but it is obvious that the local county sheriffs are undermanned and not the answer. That means allowing the Forest Service to do more enforcement. And historically, that means an outcry of oppressive gubmint overreach from the local politicians. It is fine if liburl Louie and Vegas Vinny get ticketed, but what about when some good ol' boys from town get written up by the FS? We all know what has happened in the past.

Is the problem bad enough to change folks mind?

 

[middlefork]

I see a lot of checking going on for registrations and licenses and helmets for those under 16. Almost more than I see on the highway getting to the trail head. Without an outright incident involving bodily injury or property damage I'm not sure how they would enforce a reckless driving or driving too fast for conditions type of situation.

But in some cases response times can be measured in hours when cell phone coverage is non existent for medical. I imagine an officer making a DUI arrest would be using up a lot of time and resources if the location is remote.

 

[backcountry]

It is nothing to get upset about and the truth. In that period of life when I was one of them, I came up too. (although I didn't own an ATV and diversified my fishing a fair bit ) With population growth in both Clark County and Southern Utah, along with the ever present SoCal, it isn't a surprise that these areas are getting more crowded. And there are more problems. So what is to be done?

As I see it, you guys living down there can have a significant influence in management, or can just go on complaining about it. If more enforcement is allowed, and rules enacted, some sanity may prevail but it is obvious that the local county sheriffs are undermanned and not the answer. That means allowing the Forest Service to do more enforcement. And historically, that means an outcry of oppressive gubmint overreach from the local politicians. It is fine if liburl Louie and Vegas Vinny get ticketed, but what about when some good ol' boys from town get written up by the FS? We all know what has happened in the past.

Is the problem bad enough to change folks mind?

I'd expect this incident to cause a sort of USFS, and possibly county, show of force in the next few weeks, especially Labor Day weekend. It doesn't reflect well on any of them for incidents like this to happen.

A lot of my friends in the Dixie have retired or moved on. The old rec manager spent a lot of social capital developing the current ATV trails to reduce conflict (riding across meadows, etc). Always pros and cons to such choices, ie more trails = attract more people. But it was inevitable. The mountain is more crowded but I tend to see less questionable ATV behavior away from the primary trails now.

The Dixie has been getting some negative national attention with the trail/road spraying program so I wonder if an incident like this could catalyze some long term changes because of bad optics?

 

[Vanilla]

Who exactly do you want to patrol these hundreds and thousands of miles of off-road trails in that one national forest boundary alone? The county isn’t going to send their resources up to patrol OHV use on federal land when they can barely keep up down off the mountain.

How big of areas do you think forest service rangers cover? And how effective could one be proactively looking for driving violations in that big of an area? Do we really want “traffic enforcement” in the hills? I know how much people gripe about getting a speeding ticket on I-15, think about if the feds started enforcing those in the hills. In southern Utah.

Yeah, good luck!

 

[Catherder]

Who exactly do you want to patrol these hundreds and thousands of miles of off-road trails in that one national forest boundary alone? The county isn’t going to send their resources up to patrol OHV use on federal land when they can barely keep up down off the mountain.

How big of areas do you think forest service rangers cover? And how effective could one be proactively looking for driving violations in that big of an area? Do we really want “traffic enforcement” in the hills? I know how much people gripe about getting a speeding ticket on I-15, think about if the feds started enforcing those in the hills. In southern Utah.

Yeah, good luck!

That is another way to ask the question I posed. I believe I said the exact same thing about county resources. However, Federal resources at least potentially could be enhanced. Yes, it still wouldn't be robust, but it could at least be an improvement. As you know however, what has been the consistent local response to any assertion of Federal power/enforcement in the "435"? It hasn't been favorable, to put it mildly.

"Do we really want "traffic enforcement" in the hills? " It seems like the original complaints/comments on this thread are asking for something to be done, whatever that may entail. So maybe so.
Or maybe we all just like to grumble. 🤷‍♂️

 

[Vanilla]

We all want “something” done, until we don’t.

 

[backcountry]

Ideally, we'd have laws and policy that were enforced. I'd prefer to see egregious insults to both punished and the average person interested in cooperating to keep our mountains enjoyable let off with a warning.

But ideals aren't reality. Our agencies are underfunded and understaffed. Some people know this and reek havoc.

I'd ultimately like to see the USFS funded and staffed well enough to be a real presence on our hills. The same way I like seeing COs making a presence on boat ramps or the hard deck. Most of us are legit and are fine talking with them for 5 minutes if it means less waste, trash or in this case accidents. I'd really love to see the meadow drivers and fish poachers have to at least consider looking over their shoulder before proceeding.

 

[Critter]

For enforcement with the number of officers that the Forest Service and BLM have on hand all they need to do is to pick a popular area when a event is going on, then just set up a roadblock on one of the routs. After a few warnings or tickets are handed out others will start to get the message. Same with the DWR/State Parks officers. If they don't have enough to do the job correctly just start doing spot checks, they don't have to be running all over the mountain looking for where the problems are.

 

[Vanilla]

Most of us are legit and are fine talking with them for 5 minutes if it means less waste, trash or in this case accidents.

I agree with this...until we're not.

For enforcement with the number of officers that the Forest Service and BLM have on hand all they need to do is to pick a popular area when a event is going on, then just set up a roadblock on one of the routs.

Checkpoints are not as easy to set up as just deciding to do one, but they can be done. They have moderate deterrent effect. High visibility saturation patrols are more impactful on behavior, but that is where resources come in.