Ask a conservation officer

[Lee Borgersen]

        Ask a conservation officer:

                  Be aware of ATV access restrictions when hunting

 


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Q: I see ATV use increase on local snowmobile trails during deer hunting season. Is it legal to use an ATV on a snowmobile trail to access a deer stand or retrieve game?
 



 





A: In many cases, no. There are two primary types of snowmobile trails in our area: grant-in-aid (GIA) trails, where easement has been granted over public or private land for a snowmobile route, and the CJ Ramstad/North Shore State Trail.

State trail routes, such as the Ramstad, allow only specifically permitted uses — usually bikes, horses, snowmobiles and skis. For the most part, this route is closed to ATV use, including during the deer season.

The GIA trails, commonly referred to as “club trails,” follow an easement granted only for snowmobile use. Where that trail crosses private land, the landowner has granted permission only for snowmobiles to operate, not for other machines or uses.


However, where that trail crosses public land (state forest, county tax forfeit, etc.) the determination as to whether ATVs are allowed falls back on the land manager. Many entities do not necessarily prohibit ATV operation in that situation, provided legal access and wetland considerations are followed. Conservation officers do enforce restrictions on ATVs in these situations. Several calls have been received where a hunter did their homework to find a piece of land not legally accessible by ATV — and they hike into their stand only to have an ATV drive by close to shooting hours and spoil part of their hunt.


Out of fairness to other hunters, and respect to the landowner or manager, ATV operators need to determine whether ATVs are allowed before riding down a non-ATV trail.

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Matthew S. Miller is a Minnesota Department of Natural Resources