The first trail I inventoried as part of the Lost Trails Guidebook was BLM Route 781 in the San Rafael Desert. This route was on my radar, because in a recent appeal of the Bureau of Land Management Travel Plan in this area, wilderness groups had made the
claim that this route was reclaiming and should be permanently closed.
I was surprised to learn that the reason for closure was because the trail wasn’t being used enough, because I had been conditioned to believe that the primary reason for trail closures was excess resource damage from irresponsible use.
Contrary to the claims of the wilderness groups that this trail wasn’t apparent on the ground and was reclaiming, I was easily able to find the trail. It had become more faint than other trails in the area from lack of use, but the bulldozer lines were still
apparent. The two tracks were still visible in the desert brush.
On top of that, it was a trail that provided access to a unique recreation experience for offroad users. It leads up into a wash from a stunning overlook of the San Rafael River. In the midst of the wash there is one area where the trail traverses a sandstone
obstacle that would make this one of the few great technical trails in the San Rafael Desert with some clarity from BLM on the best way to complete the route.
Unfortunately, the BLM closed this route through a recent settlement with the wilderness groups that occurred after the Lost Trails Guidebook had gone to production.
We are currently appealing this closure and over 100 miles of other closures in this area along with the State of Utah. Until we’ve reached resolution on this appeal, we advise users not to travel on this trail.
However, this trail shows us an important example of the stakes in this fight and increases the importance of why we created the Lost Trails Guidebook in the first place. This is turning out to be a drawn out process, and the reality that we could lose access
to 100s or 1,000s of miles of trails is entirely possible. As is the case in the San Rafael Desert the #1 reason that the wilderness groups are successfully closing trails is because they are prevailing in their claims that we’re not using the trails enough.
After logging thousands of miles of field work to ground-truth the claims that these trails are reclaiming, I am finding from firsthand experience that these claims are categorically false. I’ve been able to find every trail that is allegedly reclaiming.
I’m also excited to report that every trail I explored was a rewarding experience in its own unique way.
In some cases there was amazing scenery. I had memorable encounters with wildlife. I discovered numerous sites of historical interest. Sometimes the reward was simply exploring something new and being the only person around in a vast and
empty desert.