Estimated read time: 3-4 minutes
BOUNTIFUL — Two outdoorsmen are warning people about the conditions of a popular off-road trail after several crashes, and it's seemingly only getting more dangerous.
On any given day near the Bountiful 'B' and Skyline Drive, it's common to see trucks parked with empty trailers as people ride dirt bikes, ATVs, side-by-sides and Jeeps on the hillside trails.
On Wednesday morning, Tyson Zesiger and Luke Sowby parked in a spot called "Dead Man's Curve" and walked into one of the main trails near the curve. Usually, you'd find them riding in the area. But they were visiting a specific spot.
"It's not even visible from this point," Sowby said, pointing out in the distance. "You won't have time to slow down until it's too late."
The trail appeared to continue up a hillside without indicating anything wrong. Walking a little further up, it became apparent what he was talking about. Suddenly, the trail gave way to a deep, wide wash.
"It's pretty steep," Sowby said, peering over the edge. "It's a long ways down."
The trail, which riders have been enjoying for decades, is now completely washed out in that one spot — probably thanks to the wet spring. It only recently became completely impassible.
"Just last summer, I rode my dirt bike past it quite a few times," Sowby explained. "And the first time I came up this year, it was gone."
The washout is taking riders by surprise, as it keeps growing.
"Our friend's little brother actually had an accident where he fell down into this ravine here, unfortunately," Zesiger said.
The two recently recovered that person's dirt bike from the bottom of the wash. It was quite the operation to hook straps to the bike and hoist it up.
That cyclist, Will Smith, explained he was riding up the trail and didn't see the drop-off until the last second.
"I'm downshifting on my bike and trying to stop. And it was just too late. And I flew off the edge of it," Smith said. He was knocked unconscious and stayed overnight at the hospital. He has some large scars on his arm, but he will be OK.
"I gashed open my elbow, and it sliced my tricep tendon," he said. "Which is very lucky. I could be dead."
Smith is extremely lucky, considering the Davis County Sheriff's Office said Wednesday it has received calls to that spot nearly a dozen times in the last few years for rollovers, as the wash has grown.
In one incident, search and rescue crews responded to an ATV rider who died after rolling down the wash.
Davis County officials said the trail is not a sanctioned trail and is considered a "trail-by-use," with no maintenance. The county said people ride there at their own risk.
The sheriff's office recommends people know the trails they plan to ride and be ready for trail conditions to change.
The U.S. Forest Service said that the trail, including the washout area, is not on federal land and is a mix of private land and unincorporated Davis County.
That's why Sowby and Zesiger returned to the washout recently and installed a stop sign they found at a swap meet, to warn others of the trail conditions. They're hoping to install a warning sign on the other side, as well.
"We kind of want to spread awareness and help other people know," Zesiger said.
After standing at the site for a little while Wednesday, a dirt bike rider pulled up on the other side, clearly surprised by the drop, using an expletive to describe the washout.
"That wasn't on the map!" he exclaimed.
"Yeah, don't ride off that," Zesiger told him.
"You got to go all the way back around," Sowby told to the rider. The rider turned around and took a safer area.
"We just want to keep everybody safe up here," Sowby expressed.
