When the event was suggested we were basking in 50 and 60 degree temperatures, with the greatest inconvenience suggested being a potential sunburn.  Exit to reality.  Granted that April is noted as the rainy month, but who would have guessed snow on the 20th of April?  If you can imagine a day that would certainly roll you over and send you back to sleep it had to be the very day chosen by the BLM for the clean up of the Five Mile Pass area.  Participants in this exercise would either be the professionals of the BLM or a group of extremely determined recreational preservationists.

There were Motorcyclists, Jeepers, ATVers, even a few family groups standing in the mud out in the cold and snowy air on that day as the maps and instructions were passed along to the more than three or four dozen participants.  All of these participants were avid in their support of motorized use of public lands.  They were determined to make a difference.  To tell you the truth, Five mile pass will never be the same again.  The next time someone will go to the Pass they will have a hard time finding those old landmarks,like the washer/dryer target range and the sacrificial motorcycle burning  pit.

Why in the world does there seem to be a segment of humanity that considers the back country to be the place to deposit one's assets and then proceed with target practice?  It is no small problem.  Five Mile Pass is now officially closed to shooting, but you would never know it for the refuse that was hauled back to the two 30 foot long dumpsters. It appeard that every item placed in the dumpster had at least one bullet hole in it.  All but the beer cans, they seemed to be immune to the choice of targets, or the fact that they had been emptied into the shooter's brain simply made them impossible to hit.

We can all remember the days when Ben Cartwright set up whiskey bottles on a log and fired away.  Those days are gone now.  While we still have the right to keep and bare arms, we also have the responsibility to do so in an area away from civilization.  Really, target shooters can demonstrate much better skill when shooting at a bulls eye rather than an abandoned refrigerator.

It is a sad comment on humanity when their choice of locations for throwing things away is the desert, rather than the dump.

  

Is the Five Mile Pass ready to be proclaimed sterile from the evidence of human foolishness?  Not by a long shot.  Had there been three hundred people, rather than three or four dozen, it may have had a good chance of receiving such a stamp of approval.  Granted it was a bad day, but there seemed to be an obvious absense of the groups who raise the cry of preservation at all costs. Surely some of them could have come with their green beanies in tact.  The real ecologists were found out there ankle deep in mud, wind and snow.  They were the ones who were willing to leave the comfort of their lodges to keep a promise and fulfill a commitment.  As for the others,  well, they can talk the talk, but it appears they can't walk the walk, so to speak....  The trouble was, the event was not a hearing, protest or a closed road celebration.  No one was footing the bill to carry a sign and chant a slogan.  There were no television cameras, and it was a down right miserable day.  Perhaps the home of the tumbleweed is not so special to them after all.

Those who put their hand to the trash contributed a lot more than time. It is very likely that each of these three or four dozen participants also spent twenty to thirty bucks a piece just to be there and help out.  That adds up to real money, even with such a small number of participants.

For those who put their assets to work, (Jeeps, 4x4's, Trucks, ATV's, Motor Homes trailers etc.) they have the peaceful assurance that their work will go unnoticed by the visitors to Five Mile Pass.  After all, who will see the evidence of that which is no longer there?  Even so, there is  a greater appreciation to the area and the BLM for the opportunity of providing service, even when it wasn't convenient or comfortable.  The professionals from the BLM will certainly remember who was there to do their part when it comes time to consider areas for motorized recreational opportunity.

It is not too late.  You too can hug the Pass.  There are many miles of trails and roads in this area that have the occasional can, container, wrapper or other assorted refuse items.  We can all make a difference by simply bringing along a bag and collect the trash as we come upon it.  Please think twice before you toss.  Just haul it out and everyone will enjoy the opportunity of recreation everywhere.

Many thanks to Britta Laub from the Salt Lake District office of the BLM for organizing the event and facilitating the opportunity to make a real difference.