There’s a place for roads. There’s a place for ATVs. It’s just not everywhere, it’s not all the time, and it’s certainly not everywhere all the time. 

But we risk being dismissed when we don’t fess up to the fact that most of us still take a vehicle to get to the end of the road. There’s a place for roads. There’s a place for ATVs. It’s just not everywhere, it’s not all the time, and it’s certainly not everywhere all the time.

When efforts are made to remove many off-road vehicle restrictions on federal public lands and build more roads into the last remaining roadless areas, it’s easy for our gut reaction to be a series of expletives and “you can’ts” as we envision what this could mean for the future of the backcountry hunting and angling we love. And while that’s an understandable and warranted reaction, it’s also important we measure our response as an organization; emotions don’t win these battles, but sound facts and logic just might.

The facts are: Building more roads, along with the “expanded opportunities” touted by the administration in removing barriers to off-road travel, will come at a grave cost: the loss of future hunting opportunity — and not just our backcountry opportunity, but all hunting opportunity across U.S. Forest Service lands. If motorized access were to run roughshod over our public lands without restriction, wildlife populations would undoubtedly suffer, because these wild, backcountry roadless lands are the wellsprings that also support the frontcountry. Loss of hunting opportunity will follow suit.

Responsible use. 

Respecting the landscape. 

Sustainable opportunity. 

These principles have guided hunters and anglers for generations. They are also the foundation of modern wildlife management in North America.

The science and data of motorized travel are not ambiguous. Decades of wildlife research has consistently shown that increased motorized access displaces animals, reduces the amount of secure habitat available, fragments migration and movement corridors, and can reduce a landscape’s carrying capacity for species like elk, mule deer and other big game.

Secure habitat means places where motorized access is limited and animals can avoid constant disturbance. Research across the West has demonstrated that elk abandon otherwise suitable habitat when road densities increase and motorized activity expands. Similar findings exist for mule deer, pronghorn, sage grouse, bears and numerous other species.

The consequences extend beyond individual animals. Roads and motorized routes alter entire ecosystems. They accelerate erosion, increase sediment in streams, damage wetlands, fragment migration corridors and create pathways for invasive plants that can leach the soil dry and permanently alter landscapes.

This isn’t conjecture. It’s decades of proven wildlife research.

And that science points to a simple reality: if we want abundant wildlife populations tomorrow, there must be places where wildlife can safely be wildlife today. 

That’s why we need to show up armed with facts and reason above all else. Backcountry Hunters & Anglers isn’t going to win this fight by shouting the loudest. We will stand united and show up the same way we’ve won countless public lands and conservation battles before—by bringing the facts, actively engaging in the process, and building broad coalitions around sound wildlife management.

We need to advocate for roadless and backcountry areas that provide irreplaceable hunting and angling opportunities. We will work alongside state wildlife agencies, conservation partners, sportsmen and women, and anyone willing to stand up for healthy wildlife populations and responsible public land management.

Most importantly, we will continue making the case that recreationalists must not be merely consumers of opportunity. We must all be stewards of our shared resources.

The question before us isn’t whether public lands should be accessible. They should be. The question before us is how we balance motorized and non-motorized access, and keep public wildlife on public lands. And how we make sure there is excellent habitat, wildlife and adventure waiting for us when we get there.

Join me in speaking up today in support of the Roadless Rule and the Travel Management Rule.

Cal