ARCOLA, Sask. – Jack Bryce is angry at people on all-terrain vehicles who chase cattle, cut and break fences and ruin trails in Moose Mountain Provincial Park.
Bryce raises cattle and harvests trees in the southeastern Saskatchewan park.
Many trails in the park, which are used by cattle, have been rendered impassable by ATVs, he said.
“No signage has been put up and people coming from the cities don’t understand cattle. They have no respect. Instead of stopping and letting cattle walk off of the trails, they chase the cattle down the trails,” Bryce said. “They leave the pasture gates open. Last fall we were up there every morning and night closing gates.”
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Chasing cattle can injure the animals. Pregnant cows or cows and young calves are especially susceptible.
“These trails have been in the park since the beginning of time. The natives and the pioneers used them. People came from 50-80 kilometres away to cut firewood here.
“I have fought all my life for the right to log in here. I will keep fighting until the day I die to maintain that park for future generations,” Bryce said.
Clint McNeil is also upset. His father had an altercation with people on quads who had allegedly chased cattle into their crop.
The fences have been cut adjacent to the park on private land.
“It would be like if you went to a city person and you went to their front yard in Regina and started ripping around with a quad on their lawn. How would they like it? Farmers want respect. We want to treat everyone fairly if we can,” he said.
Jack Hextall, president of the Saskatchewan Cattlemen’s Association, said the problem is not uncommon.
“It is an issue that crops up from time to time at different places across the province,” he said.
NEW ATV RULES
New rules on ATV use in Moose Mountain Provincial Park came into effect Sept. 1.
• Recreational ATV use is permitted only between June 15 and Labour Day each year.
• The Ashley Lake and Boundary Trail is closed to ATV use permanently.
• All trails must be accessed from the unloading area on the Center Road, immediately west of the core area Texas gates.
• Hunters may use ATVs only to retrieve big game that has been taken legally.
