Trial over Canyonlands road begins

Dave Bronson's high-school years were marked by group Jeep trips to Angel Arch and swims in Salt Creek. He went alone, with family and with friends. There was even a student council outing to the popular site. He said that, growing up, it was the place to be.

"It was a social thing," Bronson said. "Everyone in town had a Jeep, and that was one of the great things to do. Salt Creek was just more of a fun area. You had the water, and the main thing was to see Angel Arch."

Bronson said he returnedto the site year after year, until the National Park Service gated Salt Creek Road, barring public access, in 1998.

That closure and the rights to the road are at the heart of a five-year dispute between locals and the federal government that will now be decided by a judge.

Bronson, a San Juan County surveyor, was in court Monday talking about his memories of the area, as well as his experiences surveying the site.

Both sides presented their cases Monday as the court fight over this remote road in San Juan County began. What is slated to be a two-week federal trial is pitting the rights of the public against the feasibility of a creek road and the limitations of human memory.

With attorneys for Utah and San Juan County on one side and attorneys for the U.S. Department of the Interior and the National Park Service on the other, the trial before U.S. District Judge Bruce Jenkins is focused on Salt Creek Road.

The road spans about 12 miles, running in and around Salt Creek leading to Angel Arch in Canyonlands National Park. Its status as a road meant for public use is rooted in R.S. 2477, a statute dating back to 1866, which allowed the public use of public lands for the purpose of developing the West, said Shawn Welch, attorney for San Juan County.

The law, repealed in 1976 with protection for existing roads, has led to protracted disputes about which routes in the West qualify for local control. San Juan County sued the National Park Service five years ago for closing much of the Salt Creek Road to vehicles about 10 years ago. The state later joined the suit.

Welch outlined the road's use from around 1896 through 1964, when the road became part of Canyonlands National Park, and asked the judge to consider what Congress intended back in 1866 when it created the statute. He said it was Congress itself that later called the Angel Arch "spectacular" and said the roadway is essential to providing access to the arch.