DEEP DIVIDE

ROGUE ROAD BUILDERS ARE SCARRING A WILDERNESS IN UTAH, RUSHING TO MARK THE PRISTINE LAND BEFORE WASHINGTON CAN TURN IT INTO A MONUMENT

Ken Rait is on a road to nowhere, and he's none too happy about it. Jouncing along in a Jeep Cherokee through the Southwest wilderness, he points with disgust at the freshly dug track he's following. It meanders into a streambed, emerges from the other side and then stops abruptly. In just one afternoon Rait, an environmentalist with the Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance, will find several more such dead-end trails, ranging from a mere quarter mile to a few miles long. Not one of them goes anywhere at all. "They're cutting roads all over the place out here," he says wearily.

...

Want the full story?

Subscribe Now

Subscribe
Subscribe

Learn more about the benefits of being a TIME subscriber

If you are already a subscriber sign up — registration is free!