Deercreek

[2021ang]

Like many reservoirs in Utah, there are multiple agencies involved with management of reservoirs.  In the case of Deer Creek, it is actually owned by the Bureau of Reclamation (BoR) with management split between the Provo River Water Users Association (PRWUA) and the Utah State Parks.  And due to a recent change in the law regarding Off Highway Vehicles (OHV) management, the control and restrictions of OHV now falls under the newly formed Division of Outdoor Recreation (UDOR).

Enforcement of OHV restrictions can be provided by Conservation Officers (UDWR) or Parks & Rec Officers (UP&R).  Not sure if this will change under UDOR, but that is possible.  The UDWR Officers mostly don’t care, but might cite OHV violations if committed along with a game law violation.  Park Rangers are more likely to care as they are now trying to convince folks that Snowdogs have to be registered which is not legally required yet.  But that’s a whole different story.  The BoR doesn’t really have any enforcement policy but they typically do not allow OHV use on any of their properties.  I don’t know 100%, but believe the PRWUA is the agency that implemented the original restrictions of OHV use on the ice/beaches of Deer Creek along with dog restrictions.

As already mentioned, the best way to know for sure is to give the Deer Creek State Park manager a call and ask him.

Thanks to all for the information you have provided. I will follow-up with the park manager and post what I learn. The reason I asked about this is why not allow winter vehicles on the lake when boats and jet skis are allow in their seasons? Doesn't seem right to me.  The only reason I could think of is no one is making any money from the users in the winter.

I called the park today. I was not able to get in touch with the park manager. but apparently, they are already working on this. The receptionist told me they were talking about it this morning and maybe having a resolution by the end of the week. I will keep trying.