Off Road Vehicle Restrictions Including Okanagan

[Fancy]

Not what I own.

[XT225]

You just contradicted yourself there. Gravel is not a paved road. Read the picture from both posts.

No, the CBC article is wrong. Cars, trucks, jeeps can go onto gravel roads; just not OFF-road (meaning trails/4x4 roads, etc). There are many roads where people still live, that are gravel; there is no way they are going to ban them all at the moment.

[wanderer]

There is multiple ways out of every area around Kelowna. Buy a backroads map book or a GPS and if you need to get out you will find a way.

I'm sick of the mentality we adopted where we are ok with the government restricting activities because of a few people they think are dumb.
We all pay high taxes to live in Canada and the cost of fire fighting is huge. We need more conservation officers to patrol around, report fires, ticket offenders, inspect vehicles to make sure they are up to spark standards and have heat shields in place. If you feel like you are being watched all the time and see a conservation officer on every trip to the backcountry and regularly have your vehicles inspected when traveling off road you would smarten up. Having the officers out there can also help in reporting fires before they get out of control.

Totally agree with you Sparki55. There need to be more conservation officers, the lack of field resources is abysmal and it would give good jobs to people who love the back country and out doors. I think there needs to be courses in schools of how to respect the back country, such as carry in carry out ... that used to be standard practice. More people with respect for nature and the woods means more eyes on what is happening out there that shouldn't be.

[wanderer]

You can still travel by "regular" vehicle on regular roadways to the mountain fishing lakes. I'm thinking James Lk, Postill, Beaver, Doreen, Bear (Lambly) Lake, Cameo etc.

No you cannot. Castanet always fails to post properly.

http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/off-road-ban-bc-1.4235780

My information was from Gov't of BC - BC Fire Info:
http://bcfireinfo.for.gov.bc.ca/hprScri ... sp?ID=2834

[XT225]

Here is an article from a local radio station. Everyone seems to have a different viewpoint of what OFF-Road really means. I would say a "designated road" is most gravel roads that have a name.

“The operation of any off-road vehicles in these regions during the current wildfire situation creates a potential wildfire risk,” says Donaldson. “While jeeps, trucks and other on-highway vehicles are permitted on [b]designated roads, they are not allowed off-road.”[/b]

[XT225]

My information was from Gov't of BC - BC Fire Info:
http://bcfireinfo.for.gov.bc.ca/hprScri ... sp?ID=2834

Yes and your info is likely the most correct, coming from the Govt.

KAMLOOPS - Effective at noon (Pacific time) on Friday, Aug. 4, 2017, the operation of any off-road vehicle for recreational purposes on Crown land will be prohibited throughout the Cariboo Fire Centre, Kamloops Fire Centre and Southeast Fire Centre. In addition, all on-highway vehicles must remain on[i] defined road surfaces.[/i]

Travel up to places like the mountain lakes on proper gravel roads is not banned.

[Sparki55]

Here is an article from a local radio station. Everyone seems to have a different viewpoint of what OFF-Road really means. I would say a "designated road" is most gravel roads that have a name.

“The operation of any off-road vehicles in these regions during the current wildfire situation creates a potential wildfire risk,” says Donaldson. “While jeeps, trucks and other on-highway vehicles are permitted on [b]designated roads, they are not allowed off-road.”[/b]

I'd call a designated road a road that you can have an address on, so yes people living on a gravel road can return home. Anything else that doesn't have a street sign would be a road with a name. Not going to risk a $747 dollar ticket over an interpretation of what is off road with a conservation officer.

[XT225]

I'd call a designated road a road that you can have an address on, so yes people living on a gravel road can return home. Anything else that doesn't have a street sign would be a road with a name. Not going to risk a $747 dollar ticket over an interpretation of what is off road with a conservation officer.

I would say any road such as Beaver Lake Road with a proper sign, etc is completely open to travel in a car, truck, etc.

[johnny24]

I'm in favour of the ban. Many friends that recreate in the backcountry have already made decisions to not go out in the backcountry- too dangerous both with the risk of starting a fire,

What they told you...

but also the risk of getting stuck out there having your exit route cut off with a fire.

The real reason...

[wanderer]

Grannies to protect woods Yankee Flats:
https://www.castanet.net/news/Vernon/20 ... tect-woods

[shel_7847]

does any body know if this includes atv's

[Fancy]

ATV's are off road vehicles.

[mjc0483]

Sparki is mad he can't go have his fun. I guess people potentially losing their homes is worth the risk so little Sparki can go off roading. So childish!

[quagmaire]

Taken from the 4WDABC Facebook page:


Wildfire season in BC typically starts in August. This year, large areas of the Cariboo have been on fire since late June.
So far this year, nearly 5,000 square kilometers have burned. 4,000 people are currently fighting the fires with over 200 aircraft, plus other heavy equipment. Upwards of 40,000 people have been evacuated from their homes, and almost 7,000 remain on evacuation. In terms of area burned, this is BC's second worst fire season in recorded history... and it's not even half over.
The backcountry is tinder dry, and the weather through most of the province is staying hot and dry. The fire hazard in almost all of BC is now rated EXTREME. BC Parks have closed most of their parks around BC, Rec Sites and Trails closed all their areas in the Cariboo last week, the Okanagan Simikameen closed their backcountry yesterday (including Whipsaw), and this morning, the BC government announced that ALL OFF-ROAD ACCESS IS NOW BANNED IN THE CARIBOO, KAMLOOPS, AND SOUTHEAST FIRE DISTRICTS. Many local governments have added their own closures. It's highly likely that more closures are coming before the long weekend is over.
There are already more fires burning than there are people to fight them. Resources are beyond stretched and crews are coming in from all over the world to help. Is it really worth the risk of adding to those numbers, just to get out in the woods right now? Is it worth the risk of seeing your favorite part of the backcountry burn rather than wait a few weeks for the situation to calm down?
Fires can start from the unlikeliest of sources - yesterday one fire started in the Cariboo from a tree falling on a power line. Hot exhaust, a spark of metal on rock, a piece of glass magnifying the sun... with so many potential sources of ignition not under our control, do we need to add any more?
Obviously, we can't TELL you what to do or where not to go... but the Directors and Officers of the 4WDABC strongly recommend that you carefully weigh the risks to our playground, and consider postponing any off-road travel plans anywhere in BC right now. Hit a beach instead, work on your rig, invite your buddies over to hang in your back yard. For most of us, staying out of the woods is no more than a temporary inconvenience.
We'll continue to update this post with closure information. Other posts will be locked in an attempt to keep all the info in one place.
Regional closures: http://bcfireinfo.for.gov.bc.ca/…/wildf…/DisplayArticle.asp…
Okanagan-Similkameen closures: http://www.rdosmaps.bc.ca/…/EOC/20170803_UPDATE_Wildfire.pdf
Cariboo rec site closures: https://news.gov.bc.ca/releases/2017FLNR0164-001309
BC Parks homepage (see link for closed parks): https://news.gov.bc.ca/releases/2017FLNR0164-001309
Wildfire Quick Facts: https://news.gov.bc.ca/f…/factsheet-bc-wildfires-quick-stats
BC Wildfire Management Branch homepage: http://www.bcwildfire.ca
Road closure info: http://www.drivebc.ca

[tsayta]

My machine will not move until this is over. Period