Ridge to Rivers tested trail schedules, directional routes. Are they here to stay?
The user schedules and directional routes that trail managers tested in the Boise Foothills this spring and summer are here to stay, according to a news release.
Ridge to Rivers, the agency that manages more than 250 miles of local trails, announced Wednesday that it would permanently adopt the rules on four trails. Those changes are user schedules on Lower Hulls Gulch Trail, user separation on Bucktail Trail and directional routes on Polecat Loop and Around the Mountain Trail.
The agency first implemented the strategies this spring in an effort to reduce crowding and hiker/mountain biker conflicts on popular routes. The directional trails mean users will all travel in the same direction (with the exception of the first half-mile of Polecat Loop and the section of the trail from Cartwright Trailhead to lower Doe Ridge Trail, which are two-way). Users will travel counterclockwise on Around the Mountain, while the direction on Polecat will change annually (it’s clockwise through 2022).
User schedules on Lower HIlls Gulch will close the trail to downhill mountain bikers on even-numbered days and close it to all other uses on odd-numbered days to reduce downhill biking conflicts. Bucktail Trail is now downhill mountain bike-only. All users, including mountain bikers, can head uphill via Central Ridge. Pedestrians and equestrians have a new trail called Two Point that connects between Central Ridge and Bucktail.
Ridge to Rivers officials said they received supportive feedback from trail users via town hall meetings and a series of surveys.
In nearly 1,600 comments on its final survey, which ran last month, the vast majority of comments were positive. Some users said they felt hikers were limited in their usage or said some users weren’t following the requirements.
According to survey results, 62% of respondents supported keeping the changes on Lower Hulls Gulch while 23% were opposed. (The remainder had no preference or said the question did not apply to them.) About 57% of users supported the Polecat Loop plan (with 22% opposed), and 61% supported the Around the Mountain strategy (with 16% opposed). The Bucktail Trail plan had the most support, with 73% in favor.
The agency has no plan to test other management strategies in 2022, it said.
“We appreciate the involvement and cooperation of our users as we tested some new things in the Boise Foothills this year,” said Sara Arkle, Foothills and open space superintendent, in the news release. “The Ridge to Rivers trail system is more popular than ever and, as use grows, we are committed to thoughtful management of this incredible amenity, including finding ways to maintain everyone’s desired experience.”
This story was originally published November 10, 2021 at 10:44 AM.
