May 6, 2020 at 12:50 pm
By Game Warden Brandon Sperrey
Game Warden Brandon Sperrey works in an area of the state where riding ATV’s is a way of life. The area is full of well-maintained trails and hundreds of people come to ride yearly. This year, Warden Sperrey has already been bombarded with reports of ATV’s riding on closed trails as well as private property, where they shouldn’t be operated without permission. With the COVID-19 pandemic, many people have an unusual amount of time on their hands and have gotten the itch to fire up the wheeler and go for a ride.
During his regular patrol, Warden Sperrey checked an area in Howland, where he noticed a set of ATV tracks, in the remaining snow, leading past a locked gate. The property is open for access, but the gate is locked during mud season to limit damage done to the road system, utilized by companies harvesting the property. Warden Sperrey called the local forester in the area and confirmed with him that no one had permission to operate an ATV on that particular property. Warden Sperrey was able to track the prints in the snow back to a camp approximately two miles away.
The following day, Warden Sperrey got access to the other side of the gate and followed the route that the ATV had taken the night before. The ATV had traveled approximately 4 miles on the other side of the gate through still thawing ground, causing ruts in many areas. The ATV passed both a locked gate and a rock barrier blocking a portion of an old road.
Warden Sperrey was able to apprehend the violator at the camp nearby and the subject received a civil summons for operating an ATV on the land of another without permission. Game Wardens continue to work across the state to protect access to private lands and wish to remind everyone that they need permission to ride anywhere that isn’t their own property or a designated ATV trail, that isn’t closed for mud season.
Learn more about how the Maine Warden Service work with landowners and how to be a good land user at mefishwildlife.com/outdoorpartners