dodgefreak8
Well-Known Member
Agreed, and here the seasons seem very close together to me. There isn't much time for animals to rest.
CO Elk Hunting and Loss of Freedom
- Thread starter Derek01
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Thanks for your comments. Guess we were caught offguard by the changes. Our group of 4 and about 20 other friends we have made over the years were a little surprised. A lot of the seniors were upset and it affected the overall mood. I have mixed feelings because it was kind of nice once we hiked over the top to know we were not going to see an ATV come zipping by. That has happened more than a few times but since we try to get away from any road it's really just an annoyance. I really felt bad for our older guys who love it out there and feel they are being discriminated against and being pushed out. I realize there are many jerks out there hotdogging and tearing things up but these older guys just need a little help, drive slow and try to respect the land.
Colorado Cowboy
Well-Known Member
You've got to be kidding.....right. I just got back from a wilderness elk hunting trip in the Teton Wilderness area next to Yellowstone NP and the only way in there is a 30 mile horseback ride or walk. You propose to keep everyone out except hikers? Unreal! I've done about 30 of these trips in variour wilderness area in the western states. If the outfitters & horse/mule packers didn't maintain the trail system, there would be none. The USFS certain doesn't do it. The horse/mule packers are the ones that blazed these trails years & years ago. When the Sierra Club first started to use the backcountry (now wilderness) areas in California in the early 1900's, all their gear was packed in by these packers. Sounds like we got a Troll here...sure not a regular.
Get real!
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permaculture
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I understand what you mean but somewhere, someone or some group is saying, "personally, I want to see all ATVs, shooting and hunters banned from the forest".
I had a neighbor whom I called "a Fudd". He was an avid hunter whose guns included a 338 Magnum. He was all for banning handguns and tactical rifles just as long as no one touched his duck guns or his rifles. As we all know there are groups what want to ban all guns and will slowly chip away to get small victories towards their total goal. His 338 is looked at as a "sniper rifle" but the gun banning groups.
As much as I don't like the ATVs scaring the animals that I did not shoot, I could have chosen to hunt wilderness area instead. Maybe someday I will get an ATV but for now I walk.
I had a neighbor whom I called "a Fudd". He was an avid hunter whose guns included a 338 Magnum. He was all for banning handguns and tactical rifles just as long as no one touched his duck guns or his rifles. As we all know there are groups what want to ban all guns and will slowly chip away to get small victories towards their total goal. His 338 is looked at as a "sniper rifle" but the gun banning groups.
As much as I don't like the ATVs scaring the animals that I did not shoot, I could have chosen to hunt wilderness area instead. Maybe someday I will get an ATV but for now I walk.
I would rather not have ATVs out there at all but in most public land areas in New Mexico, you can use your ATV to retrieve your animal after you have killed and tagged it.
In my line of work, we use ATVs all the time. I have seen first hand what they do to the country and I am sorry to say (for the elderly folks) that the land is better off without ATVs going through it. We have access to all public land (anytime) and most private land (if we have to). We stay on roads though until circumstances take us off of established roads and then we will go off road.
After a while, ATVs do tear up land and it takes a while for the land to repair itself. At work, it is quite rare that we go over the same tracks over and over. But hunters all want to go to the same areas where the game is and it causes people to follow old ATV tracks which makes the ground worse and worse. New roads are made because one person rode their ATV through an area and now other people are trying to go the same way and see that trail and take it. So, it gets used over and over. I am sorry but ATVs are much more destructive than any horse. Horses have been going down those trails that you see for more than 100 years and the trail is not that wide. Just think if you had a 100 year old ATV trail going through an area. It would look much worse than the horse trail.
In my line of work, we use ATVs all the time. I have seen first hand what they do to the country and I am sorry to say (for the elderly folks) that the land is better off without ATVs going through it. We have access to all public land (anytime) and most private land (if we have to). We stay on roads though until circumstances take us off of established roads and then we will go off road.
After a while, ATVs do tear up land and it takes a while for the land to repair itself. At work, it is quite rare that we go over the same tracks over and over. But hunters all want to go to the same areas where the game is and it causes people to follow old ATV tracks which makes the ground worse and worse. New roads are made because one person rode their ATV through an area and now other people are trying to go the same way and see that trail and take it. So, it gets used over and over. I am sorry but ATVs are much more destructive than any horse. Horses have been going down those trails that you see for more than 100 years and the trail is not that wide. Just think if you had a 100 year old ATV trail going through an area. It would look much worse than the horse trail.
streetglideok
Well-Known Member
Like I said before, its the rejects that happen to own atv's and 4x4s, etc that ruin it for everyone, and its up to us to self police, and discourage behavior when possible. In some cases, the atv's are better suited to trails, etc. then vehicles. What annoys me, is the guys who seem to just cruise up and down the roads all day, and in some cases, speeding excessively over the unposted speed limit. I can certainly understand the OPs frustration, not knowing ahead of time that there has been closures. It sure puts a damper on things. Did you guys check the MVUM ahead of time? If you go to the national forest site, you can find a link to it. It should show what trails and roads are open and closed.
Well,I just got back from unit 67. Porcupine Gulch to the Old Agency was the bulk of our hunting. We were standing around camp one evening and I mentioned I thought it would be good to close the trails 200 yds off the main road. I got every kind of response from the 5 other fellas in camp. Now don't get me wrong,I'm asthmatic and 49. A flat lander to boot. I would be one of the ones to benefit the most from ATV access. My thoughts were with a little less pressure,maybe the elk would be more prone to bugle. We had to get up around 10,500 to 11,000 ft to find vocal elk. The few we encountered down between 9,000 and 10,000 would sneak in down wind for a look,then bust and run. Seems they have adapted like our eastern wild turkey. Every time they open their mouth, someone is calling to them or shooting at them. The bulls (3) up higher we worked were classic elk hunting. I personally didn't score,but another fella in camp managed a 4 X 5 Monday in the sleet and snow we were lucky to have. Hot and dry otherwise. Another side note. The road up on Porcupine sucked! Very few hunters back at the gulch the first couple days. We walked in for a mile ourselves. I guess they didn't like the rough ride,so they hunted someplace else. I personally liked the solitude. Just an observation on my part. No harm intended.
strombeckj
Well-Known Member
The biggest problem with ATV and off roading in general is that this occurs year round in Colorado's high country. This is not a seasonal problem here with JUST hunters causing the damage. My guess is that the GMU road was closed long before hunting season even started. They will go through and close roads/trails that are being overly used/abused or even for erosion. Many times these are not permanent closers but can be in affect for years.
As often times occurs a few bad apples ruin it for the good ones. I see it all the time ATV on trails/roads clearly marked that would not allow travel otherwise.
Jon
As often times occurs a few bad apples ruin it for the good ones. I see it all the time ATV on trails/roads clearly marked that would not allow travel otherwise.
Jon
GJgo
New Member
I'll chime in. I live & hunt in Western CO. I Elk hunt where I do specifically because there's no motorized travel permitted. Nothing ticks me off more than the sound of a truck or an ATV when I'm trying to hunt Elk! Does doing it on foot make it harder? Definitely. But, if I wanted it easy I'd go hunt deer...
I think what really ticked us off was the fact that we thought we had properly planned our annual trip and showed up and the rules changed. If you did that for a vacation and found out the beach was closed when you arrived, you'd be ticked too. Why must we accept incompetence because it's government. Maybe it's not DOW' fault but some other alphabet agency. There's so many and they are uncoordinated, how the hell can you keep up. How hard would it be to to place a notice of changes and a link to check them on the DOW website. How hard would it be to have all these agencies list their changes. People spend a lot of time and money planning their trip,and it's not just hunters. This stupidity causes people to be upset with the state and all these agencies.
streetglideok
Well-Known Member
Only thing I can suggest is hooking up with one of us that live here, and next year, we can make a swing by where you plan to hunt, and let you know if the roads are shutdown.
