It is fall again the weather is cooling down, the leaves are changing, and hunters are back, hoping that this will be the year to get the big one. Hunting season and off-highway vehicle use often go hand in hand, and so should an awareness of some basic guidelines to help one travel responsibly.
Motorized travel on U.S. Forest Service and U.S. Bureau of Land Management lands is limited to a designated system of roads and trails. Check in with one of your local San Juan Public Lands offices in Durango, Bayfield, Pagosa Springs or Dolores to educate yourself about travel regulations as you plan your area to hunt. As changes occur, designated routes are displayed on a Motor Vehicle Use Map. MVUMs are free and available from the Columbine and Pagosa ranger districts of the San Juan National Forest. A free landscape map is available for the Mancos-Cortez area, as well as for the HD Mountain and Lakes areas. Maps also indicate where dispersed camping is permitted.
When using an off-road vehicle, remember to Tread Lightly by avoiding sensitive areas such as meadows, lake shores, wetlands and streams, unless on designated routes. Off-road or cross country travel by motorized vehicles on the San Juan is not permitted to retrieve game. All-terrain vehicles that are 50 inches or less in width can extend their travels on designated trails available as indicated on the MVUMs.
Firearms must be fully unloaded (in both the magazine and the chamber) and enclosed in a hard or soft case with no open ends when transported on an off-highway vehicle.
Colorado residents and nonresidents who operate an OHV on public lands must be registered annually with Colorado Division of Parks and Wildlife for $25.25. As a customer service, you can register at most public land offices on the San Juan. Registrations are also available at Colorado State Park Offices and local OHV dealers. Nonresident hunters can also purchase their registration permit sticker where they obtain their hunting license.
Respect the rights of other hunters, property owners and all recreational trail users to allow them to enjoy their recreational activities undisturbed. And remember to Stay the Trail and protect your public lands by driving only on open roads and trails. For more information, phone the public lands office and San Juan Mountains Association at 247-4874 or email us at [email protected].
Alan Peterson is Director of Visitor Services and Bookstore Operations for San Juan Mountains Association.
