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Off-Road Vehicle Trail Discussion

 

The ORV Working Group has developed a set of Recommendations for ORV Management and has delivered these to the Yukon Government.  Review the ORV Recommendations (here).

The ORV Working Group has also developed a set of educational tools including text for brochures and media, and a School Presentation targeted for grade seven students.  See the School Presentation (here). 

Watch for educational brochures and other media now under development and coming out this year.

 

The Yukon Conservation Society conducted five guided hikes this summer to bring community members together to discuss trail planning and Off Road Vehicle environmental issues.  Hikes were conducted in three Whitehorse locations (Paddy’s Pond/Ice Lake Park, the Middle McIntyre Creek area and Crestview), the Carcross Dunes, and Haines Junction at the location of the Lions Club Jorg Schneider Memorial event. 

Get Informed and You Decide! When it comes to traveling by off-road motor vehicle, where you travel and how you use your machine are important considerations not only for safety, but also for protecting Yukon’s fish and wildlife habitat. Making the best choices for traveling requires knowledge and experience. For more information on ORV questions, call 668-5678 or ycswild@ycs.yk.ca.

Off-Road Vehicles Information

YCS believes that education paired with infrastructure, regulation and enforcement will reduce the environmental impacts of Off-Road Vehicles.

YCS has received funding from the Yukon Fish and Wildlife Enhancement Trust and the Yukon Environmental Awareness Fund to conduct a project on Off Road Vehicle (ORV) use in the Yukon.  ORVs play an important role in recreation, hunting, trapping, outfitting, resource industry and tourism activities; however, as the use of ORVs in the Yukon increases, so will associated safety and environmental issues.  Much work has already been done in the Yukon to gather people’s opinions on the safety and environmental issues surrounding ORV use.  YCS will build on this work in three ways:

• Research and collect information on ecologically sensitive areas in the Yukon.
• Develop public educational material for all ages that describes the impacts of different ORVs on the environment and wildlife and how to minimize these impacts.
• Bring interested stakeholders together on a Working Group in order to share information and to reach a consensus on additional environmental protection recommendations to be made to the Yukon government.

Let us know what you think!  If you have an opinion you would like heard, or photos and input for our educational materials, please contact the ORV Project Coordinator, Christina Macdonald at ycswild@ycs.yk.ca.

Get informed! Check out these links for information on the environmental impacts of ORVs in the Yukon and how to minimize these effects through responsible and safe ORV use.

• A 2003 Yukon Fish and Wildlife Management Board report that looks at the effects of roads and trails on wildlife.    

• The Yukon government’s website on All Terrain Vehicles and the Environment

• YCS endorses the Tread Lightly® principles as guidelines for responsible ORV use.

Working Group Members’ Websites:

• Trails Only Yukon (TOYA)
• The Yukon Off-Road Riders Association (YORRA)
• Klondike Snowmobile Association (KSA)
• Wilderness Tourism Association of the Yukon (WTAY)
• Yukon Fish and Wildlife Management Board (YFWMB)
• Yukon Fish and Game Association (YFGA)

 

Paddy’s Pond/Ice Lake Park, Whitehorse, July 27, 2011

“The colours in here in the fall, the bird life is amazing, it’s a gem…there’s a lot of really neat plant life in here.” - Granger resident, speaking about Ice Lake

As one of five parks identified in the 2010 City of Whitehorse Official Community Plan (Map 6), the City of Whitehorse will be prioritizing Trail Plan implementation measures in the Paddy’s Pond/Ice Lake area in collaboration with stewards, user groups and interested residents.

Joan Turner, led the group on a tour of the trail system around Ice Lake.  This trail system is well used by walkers, cross country skiiers, snowshoers and ORV users (snowmobiles, ATVs, motorcycles and 4x4s).  Kayakers have been seen on Ice Lake Pond.  Wildlife also use the trails – fresh caribou tracks were observed during the hike close to the Ice Lake Road. 

 

Observations

• ORV use of the area accelerated about two or three years ago and residents speculate the increased use is due to the extension of Hamilton Blvd.  Increased use of the trails has caused trail widening and environmental damage of wet areas, primarily during the shoulder seasons.  Rain and creek overflow areas also make trails more sensitive to disturbance. 
• Construction and ATV activities have caused extensive damage of a seasonally wet area near the junction of Hamilton Blvd and the Lobird cutline.  While a Double Track Trail suitable for ATV use runs from the Hamilton Blvd. underpass to a Motorized Trail at the southern edge of Copper Ridge, ATVs were deliberately moving off this trail to drive through the wet areas on either side causing considerable, lasting damage. 
• Features have been put in place to try and control trail use including the installation of a gate just east of the Hamilton Blvd. underpass to discourage car and truck use of the area.

 

Future Planning Considerations

• A Trail Committee of representatives from Copper Ridge, Granger and Hillcrest neighbourhoods have been meeting with Jane Koepke since early April and have conducted five walkabouts with Jane to discuss trail issues and planning in the area.  Jane Koepke is a trail planner and has been contracted by the City of Whitehorse to work with communities across Whitehorse to plan local trails as part of the implementation of the City’s 2007 Trail Plan. 
• The trail system on the east side of the Yukon River is often used as an example of a successful trail planning process.  However, it should be noted that the trails on the east side of the river have less community ownership than many of the other trail systems in the city; future planning for trail systems that are more closely connected with specific communities may require compromises from all community members.  Ongoing communication between City trail planners and community members will be key for successful trail planning in these neighbourhoods.  Rationales for decision-making must be clearly communicated.
• The two lakes within the Paddy’s Pond/Ice Lake Park boundary are Paddy’s Pond and Ice Lake.  Community members are very interested in ensuring these areas are protected from potential environmental damage caused by heavy use of the area.  Some community members have suggested that a designated walking trail be built around Ice Lake to decrease off-trail activity that can lead to environmental damage. 

 

Jorg Schneider Memorial Poker Run, Haines Junction

August 3rd, 2011

This event consisted of a discussion of the annual spring Jorg Schneider Memorial Poker Run and the different concerns community members have about the event, particularly the mud-bogging section of the route.  The group discussion was followed by a tour of a small section of the mud-bogging area. 

 The mud-bogging section of the Poker Run is a small portion of the overall route and was first put through by a CAT – it has been used for the past 19 years by the annual spring Jorg Schneider Memorial Poker Run event.  The mud-bogging area is dominated by thick heavy bush and wet meadows in the spring.  In addition to ORV users, the CAT trail is used by hikers, bird watchers, horse riders and in the winter, skiers and for snowshoeing.  On the tour, variable degrees of rutting were observed as well as trail proliferation and widening caused by smaller ATVs going around deep, muddy areas during the event.  The trails and ruts we observed on the hike were dry and hard and there was new vegetation growth on the trail including some fox tail (invasive).  Wildlife tracks were observed including, moose, grizzly, coyote and lynx tracks.

The Lions Club will be conducting an assessment of the Jorg Schneider Memorial Poker Run event to identify ways to improve their safety protocols and contain participants within the existing impacted trail area.   

Participants in the Haines Junction hike discuss trail usage issues at the site of the mudbogging section of the spring Jorg Schneider Memorial Poker Run.	Deep rutting caused by ATVs in certain sections of the Jorg Schneider Memorial Poker Run route has impacted use of the area by horseback riders, walkers and cross country skiers.
Moose tracks and ATV tracks.  The Jorg Schneider Memorial Poker Run may have limited impact on wildlife in the area as the event only occurs once a year.  However, the mudbogging section of the route is near the Dezadeash River, an important wildlife corridor for moose and bear, and increased use of the area by ORVs could lead to negative impacts on wildlife.	Variable rutting and trail braiding on the mudbogging section of the annual Jorg Schneider Memorial Poker Run in Haines Junction.

 

Planning Considerations

 

• As the population of the Yukon increases, trail use conflicts between different user groups will also likely increase.  Events and activities that impact people’s enjoyment and use of publicly held land (for instance deep rutting by ATVs that makes horseback riding unsafe) highlight the importance of ensuring community concerns over trail use are collaboratively addressed at the local level and that all community members have an opportunity to contribute to land use planning.  

• The Poker Run provides the Haines Junction Lions Club with an opportunity to be a leader in addressing land use conflict between ATV users and other recreational users.  Events such as the Poker Run also provide important opportunities for experienced ATV users to demonstrate safe and environmentally responsible use of their machines.  Tread Lightly! and Leave No Trace® principles that promote skills and practices that minimize environmental impacts could be distributed and discussed at group events such as the Poker Run.
• ORV users have in-depth knowledge of areas of land that are being impacted by the mining industry, commercial outfitting companies and other land use activities.  Policy and legislation addressing environmental impacts of activities that use ORVs on the land need to affect the different user groups equally.  

• Moose, bears and other animals use the Dezadeash River as a travel corridor.  While the impacts of the Poker Run on wildlife may currently be minimal as the event only occurs once a year, increased use of the area could impact wildlife movement and habitat.  
• Government and expert assessments of the environmental and wildlife impacts of ORVs would be useful additions to the land and trail planning process. 
• Concern was raised that if the current location of the mud-bogging section gets too heavily impacted by the Poker Run, the location will be moved to another region, resulting in further habitat loss and impacts on different users’ enjoyment and use of the area.  Ensuring that rutting and trail expansion is minimized during the Poker Run is crucial so that the event is contained to its current location and the route can be used safely and enjoyably year after year.  

 

Middle McIntyre Creek, Whitehorse, August 10, 2011

“There is room for multiuse but I think that it has to be planned and with everybody providing their input and there’s going to be give and take, there has to be.  Not everyone is going to get what they want.  We all have to be responsible citizens.” - Tami Hamilton, local expert, referring to trail planning for motorized and non-motorized trail users in the Middle McIntyre Creek area.

McIntyre Creek is one of five parks identified in the Whitehorse Official Community Plan.  This 3,620 ha park runs the length of McIntyre Creek from its headwaters in McIntyre Mountain to where the creek joins with the Yukon River, north of downtown.  The Guided Hike was led by Tami Hamilton and took place in the Middle McIntyre Creek area, located between the Alaska Highway and Mountainview Drive. 

The Whitehorse Official Community Plan identifies sections of the Middle McIntyre Creek area that have been excluded from the Park boundaries.  These areas are designated First Nation Lands, Mixed Use Industrial-Commercial and Residential-Urban Development.  The area in Middle McIntyre Creek included within the Park boundaries has a mixture of land designations including Recreation, Environmentally Sensitive, and Green Connection Areas.  The Middle McIntyre Creek area is crisscrossed by an extensive trail network. 

The Middle McIntyre Creek is a well used and highly impacted area; if management and mitigation of the impacts of trail users is not addressed promptly, cumulative impacts in this area will destroy the beautiful wetlands and forests of this region that we value so highly.

Observations:

• White Sweetclover, an invasive species that quickly colonizes disturbed soils, is common throughout the Middle McIntyre Creek area. 
• The climate, short growing season and thin soils make vegetation sensitive to human disturbance.  Heavy use of trail systems can kill vegetation resulting widening of initially narrow trails.
• Widening trails and roads in the Middle McIntyre Creek area are encroaching on wetlands, affecting hydrology and vegetation composition. 
• Bridges across the creek direct traffic away from sensitive aquatic habitat and streamside vegetation and improves water quality in the creek. 

Future Planning Considerations:

• Education can play a role in shifting values towards respectful use of the environment and promoting responsible trail use.
• Increased housing development in areas such as Whistle Bend, Porter Creek-D, and Takhini North will lead to increased traffic on McIntyre Creek trails.  Activity needs to be limited to existing trails and ORVs need to stay on designated motorized trails. 
• Trail planning processes should reduce access to the ponds and wetlands in the area so that wetlands can retain their natural functions.  Signage that requests park users stay on trails and out of wetlands would be important elements in preventing further environmental degradation. 

 

Carcross Dunes, Carcross, August 11, 2011

“You go for a walk around here and every single trail you take is different, because of the sculptures of the trees and the lay of the land and the patterns…it’s just such a spectacularly beautiful place.” Bruce Bennett, Wildlife Viewing Biologist, Yukon government

Bruce Bennett, Wildlife Viewing Biologist with the Yukon government, led a hike through the Carcross Dunes along the edge of Bennett Lake.  The ecology of the dune ecosystem was discussed as well as the effects of disturbance, natural and human. 

While a desert at first glace may seem devoid of life, Bruce Bennett pointed out, “there is a whole web of things that grows in this little area of the dune system”.  The plants and animals that live in the Carcross Dunes have adapted to the shifting sands and windy environment that characterize the dune ecosystem and some species can only be found in Carcross.  Stabilization of the dunes through housing and road development or excessive disturbance from foot and motorized traffic could alter the natural balance and impact the interdependent web of life that lives in this ecosystem.

Bruce Bennett, Wildlife Viewing Biologist with Yukon government, discusses the role of disturbance in maintaining dune ecosystems.	Pathways showing how disturbance from foot and ORV traffic reduces  vegetation growth in the sand dunes.  In heavily used areas such as the Carcross Desert, no vegetation can grow because there is too much disturbance.

Observations:

• The Carcross dune ecosystem is finely balanced – too much disturbance prevents vegetation from growing and too little disturbance allows succession to proceed past the disturbance-tolerant stage that characterizes the Carcross dune ecosystem.  Sand from the Watson River is constantly blown on shore by the prevailing winds – this natural disturbance allows only vegetation that tolerates being buried to thrive in the dunes.  Human sources of disturbance include foot and motorized traffic as well as developments such as houses and accompanying infrastructure including roads and septic systems.  Foot and motorized traffic such as ATVs can cause too much disturbance to the ecosystem which prevents any vegetation from growing whatsoever.  An example of a dune ecosystem where high levels of human activity impact the ability of vegetation to grow is the Carcross Desert.  Houses and accompanying infrastructure disrupt the natural balance of the dune ecosystem by stabilizing the environment and allowing succession to proceed, affecting the plants and animals that have adapted to the sand dune ecosystem.

• Once trails are established, others will follow.  In a sandy, windy environment such as the Carcross dunes, heavy use can cause trails to quickly widen.  The trail system near the dunes was originally established for hikers and cross country skiers but is now also used by ATVs.  

Future Planning Considerations:

• Esthetics is an important factor to consider in land use planning.  Some people do not want to see ATV tracks marking the Carcross dune and desert ecosystems.
• The Carcross dunes and desert already see heavy use by ORVs due to the closeness of Montana Mountain (a popular ORV destination), local ATV tourism and the popularity of the desert amongst local and visiting snowmobilers and other off-road vehicle users.  As the population of the territory grows, the Carcross area will likely see a corresponding increase in ORV use of the area.  This makes it even more essential for the local area planning process to work with all community members to develop ways to manage and mitigate the environmental impacts of ORV use in these ecologically special and fragile desert and dunes. 

 

Crestview, Whitehorse, August 17, 2011

“One way you can think of a trail is that it’s environmental damage by consensus.  Everybody agrees to damage this piece and then we’ll leave all the rest alone.” - Crestview resident and hiker 

The Whitehorse Official Community plan designates the Crestview Neighbourhood as primarily Residential-Urban with some Commercial–Service in the south.  Crestview is separated from the Industrial region of Kulan to the south by a narrow section of land designated as a Future Planning Area.  A large area of land west of Kulan is also designated as a Future Planning Area.  West of Crestview, the land is designated Greenspace, consisting of Recreation, Environmentally Sensitive and Green “Connection” Areas.  A variety of single and double track trails as well as motorized trails run through the area.

Mike Ivens, Crestview resident, points to deep ruts made in a trail by an ATV.	Deeps ruts in wetland at the south edge of Third Lake, Crestview, caused by ATVs and motorcycles.  Signage requesting people stay off sensitive wetland could reduce this kind of environmental damage.
Wood frog in an ATV track.	Trail infrastructure such as bridges can help reduce impacts of trail use on sensitive fish habitat and streamside vegetation.
Features such as trees and topography discourage ORV users from using the trail.

Observations:

• Crestview provides a good example of a multiuse trail system used by ORV users, hikers, cyclists, skiers and families with strollers.  The relatively smaller population of this neighbourhood and its distance from downtown may mean that the trails see less traffic and are used predominantly by locals, resulting in fewer user conflicts. 
• Topography and trail features can control trail use; ORVs cannot access some of the trails in Crestview due to steep hills so these areas are primarily used by hikers and mountain bikers.  Steep hills and shallow soils can also lead to erosion problems making it even more important for trail planning that avoids environmentally sensitive areas.

• Trail damage is often caused by inexperienced ATV users.  Deep ruts on gravelly hills were common throughout the Guided Hike.   
• Machines built for children tend to have louder engines.  In addition to being noisy, children tend to “play” on the machines more than adults do and remain close to residential area resulting in noise complaints and conflict. 

Future Planning Considerations:

• The southern marshy areas of Third Pond were badly rutted by ATVs and motorcycles.  This area provides important frog, waterfowl and beaver habitat.  Educational signage that identifies the wildlife use of the area and requests people avoid using the area during wet times would be important for preserving this area.  Exploring an alternative trail that directs people around the pond and keeps trail users on higher dry ground is another possibility for trail planning in this area. 
• Ponds in the area see heavy use by snowmachines in winter.  Well-designed trails and signage are essential to ensure snowmobilers minimize impacts on sensitive riparian habitat.
• More information needs to be made available on how trails are designated in the neighbourhood and what these designations mean for motorized and non-motorized use. 
• Some infrastructure has been put in place in Crestview including bridges but more is required to reduce impacts of trail use on aquatic habitat and riparian vegetation. 
  

For more information on this or other hikes, or ORV questions, call 668-5678 or e-mail ycswild@ycs.yk.ca.

This page was last updated May 18th, 2012

Yukon Conservation Society     302 Hawkins Street Whitehorse, Yukon Y1A 1X6