Messages

Would be nice if they also connected the Wandering Wiregrass trail as well.  Any plans for this?  It's not that far from Scrub.  Also would be almost a necessity to be able to stop by the 88 Store.  My V-Force 700 can only go a little over 30 miles on a tank of gas...

My daughter has been riding for 6 years and is an awesome and safe rider.  We have ridden ONF for many years, Durhamtown, NC, TN, WV, etc.  She turns 16 in September.  Does not seem worth it for me to pay $75 to have her ride maybe once between July 1 and her birthday in September...am I correct that she will not need the ID after she turns 16?

I stayed out of ONF during hunting season in the past but now that they have limited ATV riding to less than about 20% of the 450,000 acres I am going to ride the numbered trails.  If there are hunters there then too bad.  They can go East of 19 and hunt unmolested.

Dang Ida go for the throat!!!

I'm with you!!!

That was fine when it was free Ida but now I say lets ride from 9 to 4

Thanks for the heads up Grizzlybear.  I would hope that the small percentage of the ONF with designated trails would be "reserved" for riding since the rest of the forest is open for hunting.  We should not have to worry about getting hassled by hunters who are hunting in riding areas no matter what time we choose to ride.

Can anyone shed some light on riding the numbered trails systems during hunting season?  I am wondering if hunting is allowed in these areas or not. 

Seems to me that since we have lost most of our riding areas that we should be able to now ride in the NE section of the ONF where the numbered trails are.  This is only about 25% of the forest leaving 75% for hunting.

I for one plan on getting my $75 worth by riding this winter.  I have had a few runins with hunters in the past.  Hopefully they will stay East of Hwy. 19???

Dang it's been a week and not one reply 

Hey KB,

I started a post regarding the topic of numbered trails vs. hunting but so far not a peep from anyone.  IMHO the numbered trails are much less than half the forest so there should be no problem with hunters along these trails.  I for one plan to ride this winter, especially if I pay $75 each for my family's annual pass.  I want to get my money's worth!

I'm hoping GrizzlyBear can shed some light on this subject for us.

I started a thread about hunting vs. riding on the numbered trails in winter but no one responded.  Now that we have given up so much
riding area it seems that we should be able to ride on the numbered trails without fear of being harassed by hunters.  The trails are only about 1/4 of ONF leaving 3/4 for hunting.


Is there anything official or unofficial? 

All it takes is enough people putting enough pressure on the decision-makers.  If enough people contact them they will listen. 

The negotiations could include pointing out that we have given up xxx thousand miles of trails to the new trail system.

Almost all the reasons for stopping night riding such as people riding all over at night through campgrounds, etc. have been pretty much eliminated by staying on the numbered trails.  The markers already have reflective tape on them.  Why?  So they can be seen in the dark!

I think the issue is worth having them take a look at.  It would be an easy change to go from no riding an hour after sunset to no riding after midnight. 

Heck I don't want to ride after midnight at all but a 9pm to 11pm cruise along the trail is awesome.

So who thinks it's worth a shot?

Anyone besides me like to ride at night?

I think this was stopped because of people screaming through campgrounds at 3am, etc. 

What would it take to get the rules changed to allow riding at night?  If not all night to say 11 or 12 O'clock?

Can anyone tell me if now that we have designated trails if it is now safe to assume that hunters will be prohibited or at least stay clear of these areas?  I am both a rider and a hunter and just looking at the map of the trails it appears that riding only takes about 1/4 of the ONF leaving 3/4 for hunting.  Seems like a pretty fair deal for everyone.  I for one would love to be able to ride during the holiday breaks, etc. in the wintertime.

Any word on this GrizzlyBear?

This weekend was the first time in 18 months I have been able to make it to ONF.  I have ridden quite a lot there and one of the best things I like is the freedom of taking whatever trail looks good at the time.  It is unfortunate that we have lost this freedom, however, I understand that with the large number of people riding now that some regulation has to happen for the benefit of all.  Enough philosophy.

I have never bought a new quad so until this week had no titles in hand.  After reading all the new rules/regs I decided instead of trying our luck without the stickers I should do my best to comply.  I had 3 ATV's bought prior to July 2002 and 2 bought recently.  A trip to the local DMV and $541 later I had 5 nice shiny new green stickers in hand and titles on the way.  The ironic part was one bike, a 1989 Honda CR125 that I paid $100 for and rebuilt now has a title and sticker that cost me almost half the price I paid for the bike   

Saturday morning -  3 trailers with 12 people/quads arrive at Rodman.  Wow, looks different from my last time there which I think might have been the ATVFlorida.com Rodman IV...

We were met by at least 3 if not 4 Rangers with sharp pencils and clipboards  Man was I glad I had a handful of green stickers !!! 

The rangers were very nice and also at least one of them rides a quad.  Did not get his name but he answered all my questions and as we were all applying our green stickers I think they realized we were not there to cause trouble and abide by the rules so within a few minutes we were on our way South toward Lake Delancy. 

It was sad to see all that sand in the pit going to waste.  We had 2 new riders who had never ridden a quad before.  Would have been nice to let them run around there to get used to the quads.  The first part of the trail was great.  It was freshly groomed.  Soon we hit some patches of whoops.  At 46 years old I can do without whoops.  That's why I like ONF.  I could always find trails that were smooth!

After way too many whoops we came to an intersection with a Purple marker.  We made a turn and had a nice little run on part of the Delancy Loop trail which was nice with very little whoops.  Came to a couple of forks and next thing I know we are back on the Longleaf heading South. 
After a while we arrive at Lake D for a bathroom/drink break.  The last mile or so was really nice with hardly any whoops and a fun little section of tight twists and turns before crossing the road into the park. 

We had the choice soon after leaving the campground to take the shortcut across to head back to Rodman but decided to continue South which we did.  Hard to remember everything but the whoops were bad sometimes and sometimes not.  I saw intersections with connecting trails over to Pipeline, Tobacco Patch, and Hog Valley but since we had not ridden in a while we were all ready to head back to Rodman, especially since our smallest guy could not seem to stay out of one of the deep mudholes and got a big gulp of muddy water in his intake. 

By now a storm is building and we hear thunder in the distance.  I ended up riding the little Raptor 80 instead of my VForce 700 the last 2 miles to Rodman.  Looked like an ant carrying a watermellon  but I finally made it.  Just after we get loaded up and driving across Rodman dam the storm hit.  Good timing.

Sunday Morning - Decided to ride the Pipeline trail today.  Took 88 North to 316 to try to find the new temporary parking area. Saw the new bathroom several hundred yards North of 316 and turned off the road toward it.  There was a huge red clay looking mudhole between 316 and the parking area.  One of us had a 28' trailer and a 2WD dually so we decided not to try it.  Continued along 316 a little further and parked along the side of NF97 about a half mile North of 316 to ride the Pipeline trail.  A few people were parked there already. 

Finally we get everyone fueled and lubed and headed out.  Got behind some slow riders and had to follow them about 10 minutes since the trail was single lane and nowhere to pass.  Came to an intersection and they went left so we went right.  This was the "mixed use" trail heading East.  Eventually came to the intersection of the Pipeline again and headed South.  By now it started to rain and before we get back to the trucks lighting was hitting pretty close so we are going fast as we could with rain-soaked goggles.  Made it back and had lunch in the trailers waiting for the rain to let up.

Our last ride we decided to take the Pipeline Northwest to the Tabacco Patch trail toward Eureka.  We made it to the blue markers and headed North but another mean looking storm was directly in our path.  Went maybe a mile before the rain started.  Went back Southeast toward the Pipeline and took the NE route around back toward the trucks.  (Yea I know it's the long way but what the heck we were already soaked). 

The first part was a lot of fun but then we hit a section of about 2 miles that had relentless whoops.  Pretty much the Northernmost section of the Pipeline trail.  Really needs grooming but the trail is really tight and a lot of tight turns I don't know if the machine will fit or not.

Pros - Groomed parts were nice.  GPS not necessary but still I was glad to have it since I have not yet learned the trails.  Nice bathrooms at Trailheads.  The numbered trails should provide separation from hunters and allow riding during the winter during hunting season without the conflict I hope.

Cons - Too many whoops for my liking.  Expensive to be legal.  It cost a lot to get all our bikes titled and stickered.  Now after Oct 1st it will be $75x12=$900/year for passes to ONF which don't work at Croom which is much closer for us in Tampa Bay.

Overall we had a great time.  If they get the whoops under control I think there is potential for a very nice trail system comparable to some of the ones I have ridden in Northern GA and North Carolina.  I will go back.

Hope this is useful info.  Not intended to be a complaint.  Just the fax   

12 of us just rode Longleaf and Pipeline this Labor Day weekend.  I will post my opinions of our ride in another thread.  One problem I found was that the Yellow markers South of Delancy campground made a turn North toward the lake with no other choice but U-turn at the water's edge.  Nice view but not sure if this was designed or not.  When backtracking we met another group that made the same "mistake" if it was one. 

N29.42025 W81.76405 is where we turned around.  The marker was about here - N29.41485 W81.76283.

The other place was just a bad section of the pipeline trail that was just no fun at all due to all the whoops.  I set a waypoint close to the end.  We were heading East on the Northernmost section of the Pipeline.  The waypoint I set was:

N29.42544 W81.82978

Thanks GrizzlyBear for your efforts!

Can someone tell me if you can ride anywhere OTHER than the new trail system in ONF?

I used to stop on the side of the road and unload and hit a trail.  Is this now banned except for the new trail system?

Thanks Grizz, do I go to my local (Pinellas County) DMV for the green sticker?  I only have title for 2 of our ATVs.  Have Bill of Sales for all.  That enough?

I have just spent better part of an hour trying to figure out if I need anything to ride ONF this weekend.  Lost of posts on requiring stickers, etc.  Tried to find out more and this is what I got of the USDA Forest Service Website:

Heres the link, then click on "Off Road" - http://www.fs.fed.us/r8/florida/passes/index.shtml#off_road

Off Road Vehicle Stickers
Stickers, passes or permits are not currently required for Off-Highway Vehicles. However, the Forest Service is in the process of changing some regulations that apply to Off-Road Vehicles. The need for education and regulation in this ever growing popular sport is necessary to protect natural resources and the right to utilize federal lands for recreational opportunities. Areas of use will change according to the National Forests in Florida Land Management Plan. Current Access Designation Process status is available on our Access Designation pages for the Apalachicola National Forest, the Ocala National Forest or the Osceola National Forest.


When you click the Ocala National Forest link it says "Page Not Found" - What the heck!!!???

Thanks Chillin.

I am still waiting to see if the rain chance goes up.  I know the dust must be really bad. 

I have not ridden in ONF since last year.  Anybody know the situation with the fires/smoke?  Someone told me parts of the forest are closed.

Would like to ride Rodman/Delancey, etc. this weekend if possible.  Any info appreciated.

Just ran across your post.  Yes there would be gas under there. I had mine apart about 3 years ago so it's kind of fuzzy now but here goes.  The piston goes up creating a vacuum underneath that pulls the fuel/air misture in through the reed valves.  When the piston comes back down it forces the mixture up through the intake port into the combustion chamber. 

A common problem with the older CR125 2 stroke engine is the main bearing coming out of the race.  This will then allow crankcase oil to be pulled in with the fuel/air mixture.  Really smokes and a lot of oil goes into the exhaust pipe. There is no question if this has happened.

Crap!  Put new stator in and now instead of weak spark I have NO spark   

Well, October 1st has come and gone.  I haven't been riding since June.  Any updates on the dirt roads in ONF???

According to RMStator I need a new one, not just the pickup coil.  Cant be anything else it is all new!!! 

KB - I don't know that answer.  I remember the pickup mounting holes had not adjustment that I could see.  Would make sense if it is too far away the mag field would be weaker and generate less spark.  I guess I can pull it apart again and check it.  Thanks,

Ms. Nightbreed - It seems to run fine.  I just had the valves replaced because it had lost some compression and was smoking after startup.  Now no smoke, compression is good.  I hate these kinds of problems!!!

I also need to check the wiring harness and all the connections.  This quad has seen it's share of mud and water.