In what may very well be the beginning of a long battle to keep public land open to the public, the Kisatchie National Forest has finalized a decision to restrict motorized vehicles to certain routes. Cross-country travel by ATVs (four-wheelers, motorcycles, trucks, etc.) has been eliminated.

Oh, sure, they kept a couple hundred roads open for ATV and motorcycle use, but not enough. You still have a year or so to ride there for hunting or what ever, but once the motorized vehicle use maps (MVUM) are available, that all stops.

They began planning this years ago. The areas will be closed to protect the water, soil and vegetation resources. Now that they've got a foot-hold, look for more and more action to try to get more areas closed as well.