Tuesday, Jun 6, 2006
Superintendent Karen Gustin announced today that Big Cypress National Preserve will close to all wheeled recreational off-road vehicle (ORV) use for a sixty-day period beginning Monday, June 12 through Thursday, August 10, with trails re-opening on Friday, August 11.
This closure will apply to all wheeled vehicles allowed within the preserve, and the units in which they are typically operated in. This includes - Swamp Buggies; all-terrain vehicles (ATVs); and, street legal 4x4 use within Zones 2 and 3 of the Staristeps Unit; Bear Island; Turner River; and, Corn Dance Units.
Airboat use in Zone 4 of the Stairsteps Unit has been closed as of Monday, April 3 due to low water levels in the area. The sixty day closure for Zone 4 would be over on June 2. However, the area water levels remain low for safe airboat operation. Zone 4 will reopen once water levels have risen to the point that safe airboat operation along the trail system can resume. Another press release will be distributed once the Zone 4 closure is lifted.
The Recreational Off-Road Vehicle Management Plan calls for a sixty-day seasonal closure to allow a period free from resource pressures related to ORV use. The off-road vehicle closure within Big Cypress National Preserve was first instituted in 2002. This closure does not apply to landowners that hold special use permits to access their private properties within the Preserve.
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