Locating USFS OHV areas- Finding USGS maps tos Buy or DL

[timmer]

Locating USFS OHV areas- Finding USGS maps tos Buy or DL

goto > http://www.fs.fed.us/

select state or type in name - go -

select forest area from master menu - go -

on the left menu click on Maps and brochures or on the menu on the right click recreational Activites. mouse over the area you would like to research and left. - click - then repeat process on the regional map. Do a quick scan of the forest areas main page looking for a link labled something like Motor Vehicle Use map. IF not choose Maps and Brochures from the left hand menu and look there. Some sites have online maps there some do not. If not back up and select "Recreational Activities"
On that page or in the menu select OHV areas or Motor Vehicle Use Map or somesuch. If neither are listed, use the page's search function and enter OHV.

Also try here http://www.fs.fed.us/recreation/prog...ohv_maps.shtml

S0, in the cleavland national forest in california there are 4 OHV areas

http://www.fs.fed.us/r5/cleveland/recreation/ohv/index.shtml.

OK,
Now there are other forest service roads with in the park that are not particularly associated with the OHV areas. These are mainly mantainance roads and road systems that are associated with back country camping or other sights. In fact in a national forest back country camping is allowed anywhere unless specifically designated as no camping provided that you are one mile off a established road. and there are many trails or cherry stems that lead out there. These are the Forest service roads you are interested in. THE SPEED LIMIT ON THESE ROADS IS 25 mph MAX UNLESS OTHERWISE SPECIFIED.

You wont always find their designations on google earth. The designations can usually be found on the FS or BLM 100K:1 or wider scale maps. These wider view maps are almost always avalible at the rangers station and sometimes (for free or purchase) on the forest websites avalible at the links above. or on the BLM websight or ranger station.
But the backroads, 10 meter topo and, sometimes, FSrd. designation) can best be found on a USGS 24K:1 or 7.5 minute quadrant maps. These goverment survey maps best used for backcountry exploration. BMWOT

To down load or purchase these 7.5 or 15 minute topo maps you can go to the USGS store. (Downloads are free)

http://store.usgs.gov/b2c_usgs/b2c/d...a=%24ROOT)/.do

Scroll down to maps to select they type of map you would like to obtain either Purchase or Download.

To Download select Map Locater this will bering to to a ttypical internet map dont be fooled this map is only fired by google
Just mouse over and select desired area from the main map. then zoom in
Now each quardant has a name and some times its kind of tricky to find the exact map you want . but with some effort you can find it. Try notable topgraphic names Like wildomar,ca. in the search fuction.

now you have a starting point this is a map you can download and look at.
just type the quadrent designation you would like to select (wildomar, ca) in the search function and then zoom in on the quadrant so named. click on it to zoom in. A hint*go here to identy other quadants or the initial quadrant you are interested in.

double click and select a map to download from the pop up menu.

To go to the Purchase menu scroll down to maps and click MAPS then
select the type of map you desire (I like the 7.5 minute maps myself)from the menu on the left click on that. mouse over the state you wish to examine and click there. a alphabetical list of all the quadrent designations will appear. Now is the time to use the quadrant names aquired in the previous exersize to gain access to names of quadrents ajacent to that of your original search area.. Scroll through the list or use the aklphibetican menu on the left to forward to that group. Select the quadrant desired.
Wildomar ,CA
http://store.usgs.gov/b2c_usgs/catalog/query/(xcm=r3standardpitrex_prd&layout=6_1_61_50_2&uiare a=2&ctype=areaDetails&carea=0000000452)/.do?lastVisited=areaDetails&query=wildomar.

up pops the order page for the the 7.5 minute maps you are interested in. They are $6.00 USD

(BLM and USF&G works much the same way)

These are maps to your country and national forest park & wildlands check those out that interest you.
also try here,. these are maps to all the forest service roads in your area you have been looking forward to exploring

Completed Motor Vehicle Use Maps
http://www.fs.fed.us/recreation/programs/ohv/ohv_maps.shtml

Only you can prevent wildland fire and Please tread lightly On open trail systems.

timmer

[timmer]

We might want to sticky this thread . it took me awhile to figure out how to locate the correct quadrants and purchase these USGS maps. and find OHV areas in the National forest system

[05TacoTRD]

Sticky this thread. Tons of great info! Great post Timmer!

[tacomaman06]

good job timmer!! definitely needs to be "stuck"!

[Kilted Chiken]

Ask and ye shall receive.

[timmer]

also try here Also try here

these are maps to all the forest service roads in your area you have been looking forward to exploring

Completed Motor Vehicle Use Maps
http://www.fs.fed.us/recreation/programs/ohv/ohv_maps.shtml

[Dark Knight]

Thank you!

subscribed for later use.

[Imagine7721]

Awesome post!

Now if only I had a plotter to print them on...

[Black Hills Tony]

Originally Posted by timmer

Locating USFS OHV areas- Finding USGS maps tos Buy or DL

In fact in a national forest back country camping is allowed anywhere unless specifically designated as no camping provided that you are one mile off a established road.
timmer

Great post Timmer, and as each forest implements the Travel Management Rule, having good info at your disposal will become increasingly important.

However, I'd like to respecfully point out that your statement about camping is not universally true within the Forest Service. For example, here in the Black Hills NF, the current rule regarding dispersed motorized camping is that you must camp at least 100' from lakes, rivers, ponds, and streams. Once we complete our Travel Management NEPA process, the rule will most likely be that dispersed motorized camping will be restricted to within 300 feet of established roads and trails.

I'd reccommend that when you visit a forest or grassland that you are unfamiliar with, stop by a district office or visitor center. Generally you can get free copies of the Motor Vehicle Use Map (MVUM), and the latest information about closures and restrictions. Who knows, you might run into a fellow TW member

[MTgirl]

heres a great link for Topo Quads of Montana, I'm sure that other states would have something similar on their sites as well.

http://nris.mt.gov/nsdi/drg.asp

if you dont have a large scale plotter available just download and take it to a retail copy center. most places charge about $10 for a full color copy. and if you're lucky they will have the fancy (& pricey) waterproof paper on hand.

[timmer]

you can order the maps from the USGS for $6 apeice the MUMVs are usually avalible at your main rangers office

[Black Rock Taco]

Microsoft and the US Govt have had a service known as Terraserver for YEARS. Scanned 200m x 200m sections of USGS Topo maps stored on MS servers. Several folks have developed utilities to access this data; The one I've used for the past 6 years + can be found at
http://jdmcox.com/
You can download 7.5 min and 100K metric topo, and also the BW aerial photography (at two different resolutions) used to create/update the maps. Plug your GPS into the laptop while driving, and it will plot your location on a topo map /aerial photo!!

Been using this for years; it's a must have freebie.