This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2016, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
Wes Swenson's argument for wheels in the wilderness has no traction (Tribune, Aug. 21.) Swenson proposes that the Human Powered Travel in Wilderness Act "will restore overgrown and lost trails." This sounds great, but the reality is that national parks and forests have piled up tens of millions of dollars in backlogged and postponed maintenance on buildings, systems, roads and trails (High Country News, Aug 22). Swenson's optimism is not reflected in woeful congressional allocations for our parks, forests and wilderness areas. But, hey, "take back" the federal lands and the great state of Utah will fix all of that, right!?
Gregory M. Proffit
Park City