Work for the National Park Service in Utah and you best be prepared to serve the best interests of Utah politicians. Why else, after Park Service staff at Glen Canyon National Recreation Area spent nine years working on the requisite environmental studies and public comment periods to allow ATV use in the NRA, would the agency's regional director issue a directive that all parks in the state open their dirt and paved roads to ATVs without similar studies?

Put hikers, cyclists, and horseback riders on the same trail network and some issues can arise. That's why rangers at Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area in California are taking to the trails on mountain bikes and horseback to try to educate all users on trail etiquette.

There are some natural resources in the National Park System that prove too tempting to some. At Mammoth Cave National Park, two individuals recently were cited for digging up more than 100 ginseng roots from inside the park in violation of federal law.

This Saturday the Tour of the Moon recreational bicycle ride will pedal through Colorado National Monument. The cyclists will travel over Rim Rock Drive, entering the monument at the east entrance off of Monument Road near Grand Junction, Colorado, and exiting at the west entrance onto Highway 340 near Fruita. Cyclists will be limited to the west bound lane.