This is exactly why I support federal land acquisitions. Private lands can and do get closed wholesale without any need to discuss with anybody; which is the basis of this thread. I know lots of private land that's been closed to snowmobiles and ATVs due to all the usual reasons (trash, destruction, protest, insurance, not staying on trails, etc.) Paper companies is Maine could decide at any time they're not opening the trails to ATVs and come up with a host of reasons. Federal lands require NEPA to close permanently where you can speak your mind. The lands are owned by "us" and you have a say in what happens. You can organize and usually get "them" to open new trails in exchange for the ones that are being closed. It's also mostly paid for by them and the work is done by them -I'd rather have the opportunity to be part of the process, then find a POSTED KEEP OUT sign one day.

193 million total USFS lands
36 million acres in Wilderness status (18%)
256 million acres of BLM
9 million acres of BLM Wilderness (3.5%)
Assorted others, but nobody cares because you can't ride on them (i.e. National Parks).

 

I have seen people band together and get ATV trails reopened. All it takes is enough pressure and it can and will happen. If it is state or local trails they can be opened or closed rather quickly, without lengthy debates and often seemingly at the whim of people who live hundreds of miles away.

 

it is a shame that people do no respect the enviroment regardless of who's land it is

 

I try to pick up trash whenever I find it along the trails in my area, it just takes a little time and a trash bag.
I have tried to get people interested in doing clean up's in the past and most people are willing to talk the talk but not walk the walk!
Fortunately this isn't a huge problem in my area but there are areas around here that need attention!
IMO the ATV community would get a big boost from a little effort to clean up problem area's and have the local paper do a small write up about it. It seems to me this would be a good way to meet some new people,have some fun and do something worthwhile at the same time!

 

As a couple of other postings have indicated, it isn't just ATV'ers who leave that kind of trash along the trails. I got some inisght recently when I took an old dish washer to the local landfil. I was charged $40 to leave it there! No wonder so many people are dumping stuff along roads and trails. We all need to encourage our towns to have cleanup days when people can leave stuff for free or a small fee. I took a microwave to my town's cleanup day and was charged $5. I was glad to pay that after my experience with the dishwasher.

 

We've had trails closed because the landowners say that they aren't being kept up. We have cleanups, rebuild broken bridges, and try to police our trails. Sometimes even that is not enough.

 

Well, I may have some bad news on the trails nearest to my house ( the pics of the ones in this thread ) Last time I was home, someone was fencing in the land where those pics were taken. At a couple of square miles thats a serious undertaking, and costly. I'm not sure if ATVs will be allowed to use the land or not, but the fence they had completed so far didn't have any access points to the trails. I'll know for sure the next time I get home and go for a ride. Till then I'm just going to have to keep my fingers crossed it's only to keep trucks ( midnight dumpers ) off the land.

 

Sad indeed I have always packed more out than I packed in. Just good moral values passed down from my parents I guess.
I see a lot of bottles on the trails that more than likely have fallen from a riders bag or tossed by a disrespectful rider. I does not take much effort to pick these things up wile riding, and I don't mind doing it. It is the jerks trying to save money at the dump, by dumping on our trails.
I have had a hard time trying to convince my friends to spend the time and money it would take to remove the trash properly. Can't blame my friends for felling this way work all week just to get to the weekend and have to pick up after some lazy rednecks.
There has got to be a better way to keep our trails clean. Most private OHV areas have clubs in place that do this already. But it is the public lands that are the problem, and seem to get closed at a moments notice.