Yellowstone says snowmobilers are trespassing in park

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

Originally published Saturday, March 16, 2002

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Hundreds, possibly thousands of snowmobilers are illegally riding off-road through wilderness in Yellowstone National Park -- leaving deep ruts as documented in photographs taken by park rangers.

Illegal snowmobiling is not new in Yellowstone, where all forms of motorized off-road touring is barred. But park rangers said Friday there is more trespassing than ever before.

The intrusions were revealed at the height of a critical debate over the future of snowmobiling in Yellowstone. The Bush administration has ordered a study that may roll back a Clinton-era ban on snowmobiles in Yellowstone, the country's oldest national park.

Breaching boundaries

The remote plateau where the snowmobilers are trespassing is several miles from the West Gate entrance into the park. It is a difficult place for park rangers to reach, let alone patrol.

Rangers say it appears snowmobilers are taking a groomed trail south from West Yellowstone, Mont., a resort town that is a base for snowmobiling in the region, then jumping off the trail and riding into the park over clearly marked boundaries.

"There are hundreds of miles of groomed trails to ride outside the park," said Bob Seibert, the ranger in charge of western Yellowstone. "There's no need for them to cross into Yellowstone, except to blatantly disregard authority. It's just arrogant disregard."

Defending motorsports

Snowmobile enthusiasts accused park employees of trying to add fuel to the argument for a ban by highlighting snowmobile-related problems that suggest a crisis.

"The Park Service is deliberately trying to stack the deck," said Clark Collins, executive director of the Blue Ribbon Coalition. The group represents the motorsports industry, including shop owners, manufacturers and tour operators.

"It is the position of our organization that we do not defend illegal use," Collins said. "But the National Park Service seems to be looking for situations that they can blow out of proportion and set the stage for more criticism of snowmobiling in the park."

Marsha Karle, a spokeswoman for Yellowstone's Park Service headquarters, denied that park workers were involved in a public-relations strategy to make snowmobilers look bad.

"We're not grandstanding," Karle said. "What these trespassing snowmobilers are doing is wrong. It's illegal. There should be nothing wrong with letting people know about it."

The Olympian Copyright 2002

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