offroading problem

[mercab18]

i went offroading with my gf today in an area that doesn't have a "no trespassing" sign on it. there are lots of tracks from other jeeps or 4wheelers that have been there before. we were back there for a while, then when we came back out onto the main road, there was a cop out there waiting for us. i guess some guy had called and complained. the cop didn't seem to care much, but the guy was ****ed. anyone have any experiences with trespassing and the rules that go along with it?

there was no sign that marked "no trespassing"
there were a lot of tracks from 4wheelers that have been there in the past

i live in ny

[jeepster357]

Sometimes its a fine line between public and private areas. I have seen several trails in southern california and here in colorado that have been used often but are still on private property. Your best option is to either buy off road trail books or use the internet to identify public trails.

[Bounty__Hunter]

It's your responsibility to know where you can go and where you can't go, if you're going to be a responsible jeeper. You can't run down every trail you see, just because it's obvious it's been driven in the past.

You need to know if it's an area open to the public that allows offroad travel.

[jay79cj7]

Just because somebody doesn't put up a no trespass sign doesn't mean they want you driving on their property.

[mercab18]

it wasn't like it was his backyard or anything. it was in the woods where you can't see any houses. i inferred that it was the state's property and figured they wouldn't mind, since there were already a ton of tracks anyway

[TerryMason]

So, what happened? Did you get a big ol' ticket, or a warning?

[mercab18]

just a warning. the cop was cool about it