![\"\"](\"https:\/\/featheredphotography.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/illegal-jeep-at-farmington-1074-ron-dudley.jpg\" "\\"illegal-jeep-at-farmington-1074-ron-dudley\\"")
<\/p>\nSome folks should never be allowed to operate a 4-wheel drive vehicle. Or perhaps any vehicle at all.<\/p>\n
Several weeks ago, Valentine’s Day actually, we were patiently waiting for a Northern Harrier on the ground to take off at Farmington Bay WMA when something else caught our attention.<\/p>\n
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This Jeep was off-road where it was illegal for it to be and it was tearing up the wetlands. The entire area was soggy and wet from snowmelt and the jackass behind the wheel was driving like a maniac. The Jeep was fishtailing and mud was flying.<\/p>\n
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![\"\"](\"https:\/\/featheredphotography.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/farrmington-ohv-trail-sign-ron-dudley.jpg\" "\\"farrmington-ohv-trail-sign-ron-dudley\\"")
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Here’s where they (I believe there were two of them in the Jeep) accessed the wetlands. It’s an OHV or “Off Highway Vehicle” trail where full sized street-legal vehicles are prohibited. They drove right by this sign to access the trail.<\/p>\n
Notice that even OHV’s are required to stay within the boundaries of the posted trail.<\/p>\n
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![\"\"](\"https:\/\/featheredphotography.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/farmington-bay-wma-ohv-trail-ron-dudley.jpg\" "\\"farmington-bay-wma-ohv-trail-ron-dudley\\"")
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A wider view of the same trail entrance shows the muddy conditions and the white posts marking the boundaries of the trail as it meanders through the wetlands. Those waterlogged ruts in the trail were most likely caused by the Jeep.<\/p>\n
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![\"\"](\"https:\/\/featheredphotography.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/illegal-jeep-at-farmington-1057-ron-dudley.jpg\" "\\"illegal-jeep-at-farmington-1057-ron-dudley\\"")
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Even if the driver had stayed on the trail the Jeep would still have been operated illegally but as you can see from this photo it was being driven outside the white posts marking the boundaries of the trail. This guy was a real anal sphincter.<\/p>\n
My intention was to get photos where the license plate could be read but most of the time they were moving laterally to me so I couldn’t see it, much less read it.<\/p>\n
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![\"\"](\"https:\/\/featheredphotography.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/illegal-jeep-at-farmington-1102-ron-dudley.jpg\" "\\"illegal-jeep-at-farmington-1102-ron-dudley\\"")
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But eventually as he left the trail to get on the main road again at Goose Egg Hill (he was far away from me at this point so the image is of poor quality) I could read the license plate, but just barely. After this photo was taken the Jeep quickly left the refuge.<\/p>\n
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We immediately reported the incident to DNR staff. They had also seen the Jeep being driven in the restricted area but from far away and they didn’t have any photos so they were happy that we managed to get some.<\/p>\n
Later that day after I’d arrived home I received a call from DNR Law Enforcement asking about what we’d seen and for a copy of a legible photo of the license plate which I sent to them. During that conversation she told me that “we know who the driver is and he will be cited.”<\/p>\n
I take this kind of wanton destruction of the refuge personally. Farmington Bay WMA is a wetlands oasis in the middle of the exploding development of the heavily populated Wasatch Front so it deserves protection rather than abuse and disrespect. When things like this happen I can imagine how refuge manager Jason Jones and his staff feel when they’ve put their hearts and souls into managing and protecting the refuge.<\/p>\n
Repairing the damage will eat up a portion of their extremely limited funds and that hurts.<\/p>\n
Ron<\/p>\n
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<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Some folks should never be allowed to operate a 4-wheel drive vehicle. Or perhaps any vehicle at all.<\/p>\n