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Lake County limits High Country Tours’ summer OHV operations to 60 vehicles per day after public concerns about road damage
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Summary
After extended discussion about road wear and community impact, the Lake County Board of County Commissioners conditionally approved an amendment letting High Country Tours run summer OHV (ATV/UTV) tours on county roads with a daily cap of 60 tour vehicles; staff said the permit will include reporting to evaluate impacts and the county will revisit policy in a scheduled work session.
The Lake County Board of County Commissioners on Feb. 3 conditionally approved an amendment that allows High Country Tours to operate wheeled OHV (all-terrain vehicle and side-by-side) tours on designated county roads during summer months, limiting the company to no more than 60 tour vehicles per day.
The amendment, requested by High Country Tours, would extend current winter snowmobile routes to include summer access on red-designated county roads and an extension toward Mosquito Pass. Staff recommended the change with conditions that include emergency-management coordination, required reporting, and specified parking/loading sites near County Road 1 so the county can track impacts.
Why it matters: Commissioners and public commenters raised sharp concerns that an unconstrained expansion could accelerate erosion and rutting on narrow historic roads and shift maintenance costs to the county. Commissioner (Speaker 3) said constituent emails raised alarms that an unchecked permit could mean “120 new vehicles a day,” a figure several commissioners and residents said would strain roads and public tolerance.
Operator Tim (Speaker 9), representing High Country Tours, told the board he intends to manage tours to minimize damage and said the company will cancel operations when conditions threaten the roads. “If the mud stick into the tires when the vehicles come in, the next batch doesn’t go out,” Tim said, describing a practice of pausing tours in wet conditions. He also argued a larger per-day cap gives operators flexibility for occasional large corporate groups but said typical daily operations are much smaller.
Board action and conditions: Commissioner (Speaker 4) moved to conditionally approve the permit amendment; Commissioner (Speaker 3) seconded. The motion included a specific condition limiting tours to no more than 60 tour vehicles per day, and the board approved the motion. Staff said the annual permitting structure and reporting requirements will allow the county to measure impacts each year and adjust limits or conditions as needed. A work session on the county’s OHV ordinance and permitting approach is scheduled for Feb. 24 to develop broader policy on caps, data collection and cost recovery.
Context and next steps: Staff and public-works officials noted existing tools—grooming agreements and cost-share options used in winter—do not fully address summer wear. The county has paused an impact-fee study pending further prioritization; commissioners said the February work session should consider equitable daily limits across all outfitters, ways to recoup maintenance costs, and enforcement mechanisms for private users whose activity is not covered by commercial permits. High Country Tours’ amendment is conditioned on the county’s reporting and emergency-plan requirements; staff will also invite foundational partners and adjacent jurisdictions to the Feb. 24 work session.
