It's prime season for biking and hiking in the Avenues foothills. This year it seems especially lush and the vegetation is filling in nicely around the recently constructed trails.
There could be more trails available to hike and ride, but trail construction was halted in May of last year. This was allegedly a "pause" that would last until that fall. Then it was extended to this summer. In April, the city council further extended the pause until at least spring 2023.
My views align with those of Ashley Patterson's in her op/ed in yesterday's Salt Lake Tribune. The Foothills Trail System Plan included three years of public input. Those surprised by the construction successfully pushed the city to pause completion of the project. Some legitimate concerns were raised and the trails community supports addressing these.
On the other hand, we do not want to see trails construction stopped permanently or delayed significantly. After the pause last year, consultants should have been hired to evaluate the trail construction plans, but that hasn't happened. Instead, the can has been kicked down the road for another year.
It is long past time for city council and Mayor Mendenhall to move this process forward. Other communities along the Wasatch Front have built world-class multiuse trail systems. We can too.
For more information, see https://slctrailsalliance.org/.
Respectfully, as a pro-trail mountain biker the images of vegetation you posted are mostly weeds. Looks like cheat grass, white top and a little dyer’s woad.
ReplyDeleteProbably so.
DeleteI agree Jim. The current stall is frustrating. Increased use isn't going to go away by ignoring it, and the "community" trails that get trampled in by waves of new users and then erode into an established trail are a real threat to that area.
ReplyDeleteI concur also. I frequently use the current trails both by bike and on foot. The newer trails are more fun, more sustainable, and serve to separate different types of users better to reduce congestion. This mountain biker enjoys not having as many bike pedestrian encounters while hiking too.
ReplyDelete10-20 inches of snow forecast for Colorado east of the divide above 8000 ft. Even my house at 5600 ft might get 1-2 inches. Plus rain. Much needed moisture. I hope it doesn't fail again.
ReplyDeleteJim--quick question. Have you noticed the new weather instruments on one of the electric telephone poles in Morris Meadows just north of the reservoir? There is also a set mounted on an telephone pole near the bottom of the Bobsled. Last, there has been a solar-powered transmitter that sits on the summit of Morris Mountain that may be related. Do you know anything about these instruments? They appeared over the winter. Are they U instruments for studies? NOAA? Thanks,
ReplyDeleteThe two weather stations were installed by Pacificorp. Direct links to the data: https://mesowest.utah.edu/cgi-bin/droman/meso_base_dyn.cgi?stn=PC107 and https://mesowest.utah.edu/cgi-bin/droman/meso_base_dyn.cgi?stn=PC105.
DeleteI have not seen that transmitter as I haven't hiked to the top of Morris Mountain. The irony of not being able to build trails while a repeater tower can be plopped on a prominent peak.
That being said, I suspect much of this equipment is being installed for fire protection and possibly electrical cut offs during high wind. That's only a guess though.
The best place for a great trail network is close to where we live in our city’s backyard. Change is hard for some but it will be good for all. More, better, and accessible trails cultivate stewards for our planet’s shared future.
ReplyDelete