Last week during my grandsons cow elk hunt in 5BN I was talking with one of the owners of the Flying M Ranch. I was advised that Coconino National Forest is considering a lot more closures in 5BN. Most of the area north of the 125 road is being considered for a Wilderness area. The idea is to close it off to all motorized vehicle use. A decision is going to be made in the next 3-4 months at the local level and then forwarded up the chain.
The grandson was sucessful and shot a very large cow. I can tell you that the no off road retrieval of elk in 5BN is a bunch of crap. I am 70 years old and he is 17. It was almost impossible for he and I to retrieve the elk by ourselves. I've hunted this area for the past 25 years and after his hunt, I went to 6 areas that I have driven off road in the past to retrieve elk. There was absolutly no sign that I had driven in these areas. Careful driving off road to retrieve an elk does not cause any permanent damage to the area like the treehuggers are stating!!
Hunters and other forest users need to be aware that our rights to use the land is slowly being taken away from us. We need to stand up and make our voices heard over the treehuggers, anti hunting groups and animal rights groups before its too late. I may not have too many years left, however my grandson does and he needs to have the same rights on public lands in the future as I have had in the past.
