Feds Closing 317 Miles of Truck Trails Around Moab, and Off-Roaders Are Livid

The Bureau of Land Management has approved a plan to close hundreds of miles of off-road driving trails outside Moab, Utah, capping a yearslong fight between environmental groups, off-roaders, and the federal government over trail access in the region. The new plan will shutter 317 miles of OHV routes across the spectacular Labyrinth Canyon and Gemini Bridges area just west of Moab, including a handful used during the annual Easter Jeep Safari event, to protect the sensitive desert landscape. With the closures scheduled to take effect this Saturday, October 28, the off-road community is in an uproar and gearing up for a protracted legal battle to keep the trails open as long as possible.

The BLM's decision, announced at the end of September after a long and contentious public comment period, stems from a 2008 lawsuit filed by the Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance against the BLM for improperly managing public access to federal lands in Utah. As part of a 2017 settlement, the BLM has to revise and enforce new travel plans for 11 areas with an eye on protecting wildlife habitats, sensitive ecosystems, and cultural resources. But few places hold the significance Moab does for off-roaders, who claim the new Labyrinth/Gemini plan is overly restrictive and could have huge economic consequences in an region that depends on tourism.

"The new plan provides predictability and clarity for users, minimizes user conflicts and damage to natural and cultural resources, meets access needs, increases public safety, and addresses law enforcement issues within the area," reads a BLM press release.

Currently, there are 1,057 miles of drivable "off-highway" routes—everything from dirt roads to rough two-tracks to extreme rock-crawling trails—across the 300,000-acre area, and another 71 miles open to smaller motorized vehicles. The BLM plan, which is a blend of a number of scenarios it publicly considered, would shift that balance dramatically.