A dirt route cut across open desert terrain. Photo via Pexels.
The Motor Vehicle Use Map is the document that determines where you may legally drive on National Forest System land, and it is the one most people have never opened.
What it is
An MVUM identifies the roads, trails and areas designated for motor vehicle use on a given forest under 36 CFR 212.51, by vehicle class and frequently by season. It exists because the 2005 Travel Management Rule requires each forest to publish one.
The governing principle is that motorized use is limited to designated routes: routes not shown on the MVUM are not open to public motor vehicle travel. The map exists to enforce the prohibition at 36 CFR 261.13, and violating it carries a fine of up to $5,000, up to six months’ imprisonment, or both.
That is the part that catches people. Old logging roads, two-tracks and user-created routes exist on the ground everywhere. Physical existence is not designation.
How to read it
Routes are marked by symbol for the class of vehicle permitted — highway-legal vehicles, vehicles under 50 inches wide, motorcycles — along with seasonal and distance allowances. A route open to an ATV may not be open to a full-size truck, and vice versa.
Seasonal designations appear as date ranges. A route open in August may be closed in April, usually because of surface conditions or wildlife.
Symbols for dispersed camping alongside a route are frequently included, often expressed as a permitted distance from the centerline.
MVUMs are typically black and white, deliberately sparse, and updated annually. They are free, must be published online, and are available as geospatial PDFs that work in GPS-enabled phone apps.
Why it is not a navigation map
An MVUM shows legal status, not terrain, difficulty or condition. It will not tell you a designated route requires a locker and 35s, or that a bridge is out.
It pairs with a topographic map rather than replacing one. Treating it as a trail guide is how people end up on routes their vehicle cannot handle.
Why this is changing
The framework behind MVUMs is currently under review. The Forest Service has proposed revising its travel management regulations to presume existing routes open unless a documented reason closes them.
Importantly, the proposal states that existing designations and maps remain in effect until revised. Nothing opens the day a rule is finalized — the MVUM in force today is still the MVUM that governs.
What the symbols encode
Each designated route carries a symbol set for vehicle class, seasonal dates and, where dispersed camping alongside it is permitted, a distance from centerline. Those are four separate permissions on one line, and a route can be open to one class and closed to another on the same day.
Width limits are the ones that catch full-size vehicles: a route designated for vehicles under 50 inches excludes a truck regardless of how passable it looks.
What an MVUM deliberately omits
It shows legal status, not terrain, difficulty or condition. It will not tell you a designated route needs lockers and 35s, or that a bridge is out. It pairs with a topographic map rather than replacing one, and treating it as a trail guide is how people end up on routes their vehicle cannot handle.
Keeping a current copy
MVUMs are republished annually and the current one governs. They are free, required to be published online, and available as geospatial PDFs that work offline in a phone GPS app — which matters because the places you need it are the places with no signal.
Sources
- US Forest Service, Motor Vehicle Use Map (MVUM) Information and FAQs
- George Washington and Jefferson National Forests, Motor Vehicle Use Map
- 36 CFR Part 212 — Travel Management (eCFR)
This article was researched and drafted with the assistance of AI tools and reviewed, fact-checked and edited by Leonidas Clark before publication. Confirm current route status and rules with the managing agency before you travel.
