We mostly ride in the Sycamore Creek area a little northeast of Phoenix, AZ. Every time we go, we pick up and pack out trash left by other users – dirt bikers, ATV riders, UTV riders, target shooters, campers, families with young kids, etc use this area. It’s a big area and absolutely beautiful. So far our access is open and unrestricted. But the trash problem is getting worse and the area is going to be closed if it does not stop.

Attached is pic of the crap we collected and hauled out today. Filled the entire bed of our Rzr and most of our 250 gal trash can at home. Lots of the trash was broken beer bottles used for target practice. The glass was all over the steep trail we were descending into a valley. The people who shot these bottles were risking ricochets because they were shooting way uphill from a flat spot near the bottom. Those bullets could hurt/kill somebody. The broken glass could puncture a tire. This spot was 6-7 miles from our truck. A flat could be very dangerous for many riders who might not be capable of fixing a flat or walking out of the desert that far and maybe not carrying enough water.

How could anybody deface our beautiful desert by leaving trash like this?
How could anybody shoot targets without a proper safe backstop and risk hurting other people using the area?
What can we do about it?

My wife and I pick up and carry out trash every trip. Occasionally I stop and politely ask target shooters to police the area before they leave. Most are friendly and cooperative. One group of young men yelled and waved angrily and forced us to turn around and go back where we came from because we inadvertently drove into their line of fire. But they were using an active trail with no backstop as their target location which consisted of beer bottles, beer cans and other trash. It was very dangerous for us to turn around and go back because we were on a steep narrow trail with steep sides. If our Rzr went off the trail it would probably roll over repeatedly and be destroyed, injuring or killing us in the process. My wife was terrified by these men yelling at us and the process of turning around and going back up the steep trail scared the heck out of her. I was pretty pissed but obeyed them because I thought they might just shoot us. There was nobody else around. My wife is 67 and I am 70. Never in my life have I seen people that unpleasant.

I am a gun person and shoot a lot and fully support the right of everybody to enjoy target shooting in our desert. But shooting must be done safely without interfering with other users in the area and all target debris and trash must be taken out. Don’t understand how anybody can trash up the desert or behave in an unfriendly manner toward other folks who are also trying to have fun.

It is in our interest to keep riding areas clean and to treat other users with respect. If we do not act responsibly we are going to loose more and more riding areas. Hope this message gets spread around.

We mostly ride in the Sycamore Creek area a little northeast of Phoenix, AZ. Every time we go, we pick up and pack out trash left by other users – dirt bikers, ATV riders, UTV riders, target shooters, campers, families with young kids, etc use this area. It’s a big area and absolutely beautiful. So far our access is open and unrestricted. But the trash problem is getting worse and the area is going to be closed if it does not stop.

Attached is pic of the crap we collected and hauled out today. Filled the entire bed of our Rzr and most of our 250 gal trash can at home. Lots of the trash was broken beer bottles used for target practice. The glass was all over the steep trail we were descending into a valley. The people who shot these bottles were risking ricochets because they were shooting way uphill from a flat spot near the bottom. Those bullets could hurt/kill somebody. The broken glass could puncture a tire. This spot was 6-7 miles from our truck. A flat could be very dangerous for many riders who might not be capable of fixing a flat or walking out of the desert that far and maybe not carrying enough water.

How could anybody deface our beautiful desert by leaving trash like this?
How could anybody shoot targets without a proper safe backstop and risk hurting other people using the area?
What can we do about it?

My wife and I pick up and carry out trash every trip. Occasionally I stop and politely ask target shooters to police the area before they leave. Most are friendly and cooperative. One group of young men yelled and waved angrily and forced us to turn around and go back where we came from because we inadvertently drove into their line of fire. But they were using an active trail with no backstop as their target location which consisted of beer bottles, beer cans and other trash. It was very dangerous for us to turn around and go back because we were on a steep narrow trail with steep sides. If our Rzr went off the trail it would probably roll over repeatedly and be destroyed, injuring or killing us in the process. My wife was terrified by these men yelling at us and the process of turning around and going back up the steep trail scared the heck out of her. I was pretty pissed but obeyed them because I thought they might just shoot us. There was nobody else around. My wife is 67 and I am 70. Never in my life have I seen people that unpleasant.

I am a gun person and shoot a lot and fully support the right of everybody to enjoy target shooting in our desert. But shooting must be done safely without interfering with other users in the area and all target debris and trash must be taken out. Don’t understand how anybody can trash up the desert or behave in an unfriendly manner toward other folks who are also trying to have fun.

It is in our interest to keep riding areas clean and to treat other users with respect. If we do not act responsibly we are going to loose more and more riding areas. Hope this message gets spread around.