Hunting with E-bikes

[CONatureBoy]

I have seen plenty of them, not to mention noise issues/pollution, but yet to see damages caused by e-bikes.

E-bikes will produce ruts on a trail as fast as mountain bikes. I have lived in Colorado for 25 years, and have seen ruts grow to a foot in depth over four or five years on hiking trails where mountain bikes were introduced. I run trails as well as hiking, hunting, and mountain biking. The ruts made by mountain bikes are often narrow enough that I can't run or hike in them comfortably. I see parallel hiking trails growing alongside the ruts in these places. The steeper the hill, the quicker erosion exacerbates the ruts. I wouldn't want to see wheeled vehicles of any kind in primitive or wilderness areas. Humans have used horses for a long time. They're primitive, and while they certainly chew up a trail, they don't rut the trail like wheels do. I say this while acknowledging that E-bikes are a sort of "poor person's horse" or "old person's horse." I'm about 60, and would probably enjoy saving my old knees by hunting off an E-bike. I'd rather contribute to keeping primitive areas primitive.

 

[406muley]

If you were a disabled person such as myself and denied access to many places you might have a difference of opinion

No, I wouldn't. 406muley

 

[mslman]

Motor. Key word. I bust my *** hiking 3 and 1/2 miles on a closed road to motorized vehicles just to get to where I elk hunt. Then another mile or two hunting. Then killing a bull. No way I want electric motorcycles where I am. 406muley

So your position really isn't about whether eBikes hould or shouldn't be allowed; rather you just don't want them in your hunting area?

 

[406muley]

So your position really isn't about whether eBikes hould or shouldn't be allowed; rather you just don't want them in your hunting area?

Nope. I don't want them anywhere closed to motorized vehicle travel. 406muley

 

[corcrazy]

Morning fella hunters ,, I'm here to reply on the e bikes and just some knowledge over the years . Don't anyone take this as directed towards anyone in general!!!! I believe that we all have to deal with modern technology and adjust state laws trails and wildernesses and the people that use them correctly or incorrectly... trust me 2 years ago I seen a group of 12 horses packing in where I elk hunt and after a 2 inch snow fall and a warm up they destroyed the trail but then again if 24 hunters were walking the same trail with 70 pounds on there *** the trail again would have been pounded ... I think e bikes have there places I don't beta 500 ah bike can do much harm I road one that my buddy has here in wis and yeah it does like 20 mph ,, but anyone trying to use one of them at that speed with zero Suspenision will likely not be doing much elk hunting that week but rather tending to hemorrhoids!!!!! With that Brit said I think the states are gonna have to start looking into there trail systems both motorized and non as well as hiking/biking .. I've seen some serious crap left behind a few horse camps on my hikes ,, unless there's a few more rugged back packers carrying beer cans and toilet seats and big blue traps 4 miles back !! If any backpackers figured out how to carry a 12 pack and ice pleas let me know I think e bikes gps cell phns with mapping systems all are affecting the back country some of us have learned over there years .... it's no different then the sonar systems on boats and the flashers and sonars now used by **** near every fisher person,, again guns don't kill,,, stupid people do,,, horses don't leave beer cans in the woods stupid people do ,, we can never take the stupid out of people !!! Take care all I love reading the forum many of you leave great knowledge for us !!!

 

[Tom_C]

Motor. Key word. I bust my *** hiking 3 and 1/2 miles on a closed road to motorized vehicles just to get to where I elk hunt. Then another mile or two hunting. Then killing a bull. No way I want electric motorcycles where I am. 406muley

You don't want another hunter on an eBike sharing YOUR forest -- not because the ebike does any damage, not because the ebike is any more or less approriate than you, but entirely because you don't want to share YOUR forest and you are afraid that someone a little less physically able might happen to use that chunk of forest if they were allowed to us an ebike.

You just made it 100% clear why we are having this conversation and you have 100% identified The Problem.

And that problem is selfish egotists who want to keep everyone else out of THEIR woods.

 

[MTmils]

Interesting topic. My personal feeling is that the more motorized- or mechanically-assisted travel we allow in the woods, the less true wilderness we will have. And, wilderness is a fragile and vanishing resource that deserves the utmost protection. Accordingly, motorized/mechanical travel needs to be severely limited.

E-bikes, being relatively quiet and (mostly) pollution-free, have generally the same impact on the resource as horses, and thus, horse access is used as justification for e-bike access. My thought is that, while horses have similar impacts, horses are "grandfathered-in" because they were so widely used for so long before motorized/mechanical back-country travel became possible. In other words, the "horse access train" left the station 500 years ago, and it is unrealistic to say horse travel now justifies recently invented motorized/mechanical travel. Especially considering how inexpensive such modern means are in conjunction with the massive population we now have. Carrying capacity of the wilderness is the true issue, not the relative environmental impacts of the mode of transportation, themselves.

JMHO

Wilderness is just that, wilderness! This the the forest not the wilderness to big differences for sure. We can compare apples to Oranges.

 

[406muley]

You don't want another hunter on an eBike sharing YOUR forest -- not because the ebike does any damage, not because the ebike is any more or less approriate than you, but entirely because you don't want to share YOUR forest and you are afraid that someone a little less physically able might happen to use that chunk of forest if they were allowed to us an ebike.

You just made it 100% clear why we are having this conversation and you have 100% identified The Problem.

And that problem is selfish egotists who want to keep everyone else out of THEIR woods.

Not true. Non- motorized means just that. Once E-bikes are in, the floodgates will open. FYI, disabled hunters can drive into the area I hunt, so your arguement is weak. 406muley

 

[338 dude]

No, I wouldn't. 406muley

Back that up and never go back to those areas and see how that works for you

 

[Tom_C]

So your position really isn't about whether eBikes hould or shouldn't be allowed; rather you just don't want them in your hunting area?

It's not that he doesn't want ebikes in HIS hunting area -- it's that he doesn't want ANYONE ELSE in HIS hunting area and whining about "motorized" vehicles makes it easy to keep some people out.

These are exactly the people who you CANNOT have any dialogue with on the subject because they aren't interested in any rational discussion. They want what they want and don't give a **** if it makes any real sense.

 

[338 dude]

It's not that he doesn't want ebikes in HIS hunting area -- it's that he doesn't want ANYONE ELSE in HIS hunting area and whining about "motorized" vehicles makes it easy to keep some people out.

These are exactly the people who you CANNOT have any dialogue with on the subject because they aren't interested in any rational discussion. They want what they want and don't give a **** if it makes any real sense.

In the interest of fairness if we cannot include E bikes let's just ban horses and make it foot travel only!

 

[406muley]

It's not that he doesn't want ebikes in HIS hunting area -- it's that he doesn't want ANYONE ELSE in HIS hunting area and whining about "motorized" vehicles makes it easy to keep some people out.

These are exactly the people who you CANNOT have any dialogue with on the subject because they aren't interested in any rational discussion. They want what they want and don't give a **** if it makes any real sense.

Mellow out. You are way off base. 406muley

 

[WahooYahoo]

Non motorized should stay just that. Why do these bikes need to be included? They have a MOTOR. 406muley

The non motorized rules are to reduce the impact, not to make the access more difficult. I see it like lakes that allow trolling motors and pedal boats in a lake that allows only non-motorized boating. It's about the impact. E-bikes have no more impact than pedal bikes and frankly much less impact than a horse.

 

[406muley]

Back that up and never go back to those areas and see how that works for you

Once I can't walk in, I'm done hunting there. 406muley