| Page 1126 | National Parks Traveler

I see no problem with desginating certain trails as mountain bike friendly trails. I have never understood the the reason for preventing bikes on trails that you allow horses and pack stock on. Riding a bike on a trail disturbs the environment and wildlife about as much as hiking though the area. Responsible riders stay on the trails and follow guidelines as do responsible hikers and horseba

Mar 24th - 13:58pm | Ryan

Matt, simple, read the wilderness act:http://www.wilderness.net/index.cfm?fuse=NWPS&sec=legisAct

Mar 24th - 13:26pm | Matt Stubbs

Wow really I guess "the Wilderness" is a different set of regulations... Please point out this specific set of regs and what defines "the Wilderness" so we may see where this is. Disclaimer: This is not a personal attack in any way, but a simple question based on statements made that are unclear. Any harm done was unintentional and a take permit will be applied for.

Mar 24th - 12:38pm | Ryan

Matt, "Please understand that this is a silly statement as there is every type of mechanized form of access available and in use by the NPS and visitors alike. So if this statement were true then I guess we can throw the book at any and all who enjoy the park."

Mar 24th - 11:17am | Jack

This is one of the biggest issues facing mountain bikers and our national parks. This confrontation will come to a head eventually, but we all need to be educated about the issues first. Here is some extra reading:

Mar 24th - 11:14am | Ron Saunders

I am beginning to look at these issues with the National Parks from a different perspective.

Mar 24th - 10:36am | Matt Stubbs

"BUT, that was 100 years ago" To this minute roads and trails are being cut into the national park systems to service whomever is in need. So you can remove the "was" from that statement. "This is a tired argument and the wilderness act clearly prohibits any sort of mechanized modes of transportation in wilderness."

Mar 24th - 10:34am | Mark E

Not sure why we're conflating wilderness with this proposal in Big Bend. Park staff, IMBA and conservation groups agree that the part of the park where this trail will be built should not be designated as wilderness.

Mar 24th - 10:00am | Jeremy

Kurt- "Mark from IMBA made quite clear that mountain bikers prefer thrills." = FALSE and MISLEADING

Mar 24th - 09:23am | Ryan

"Maybe we should simply reallow bikes in wilderness, like they were originally intended to be (google Ted Stroll for back up data) and that would really solve all our problems."

Mar 24th - 09:10am | Mark E

Kurt, let me assure you that this trail won't constitute a thrillride — that's not the intent of the design. You paint mountain biking with an awfully broad brush, as if riding singletrack is all about speed and thrills, and cycling on dirt roads is necessarily slow and cautious. Not so.

Mar 24th - 06:59am | Matt Stubbs

I have one question though it may not be in the format it should... In the original formation of the national parks what was the intended mode of transportation to allow the people to visit and see the parks?

Mar 24th - 05:35am | Kurt Repanshek

Zeb, Mark from IMBA made quite clear that mountain bikers prefer thrills. I was simply reiterating his words to get that point across. And I don't believe I wrote that mountain bikers have no respect for nature. That was your inference.

Mar 23rd - 23:13pm | justinh

imtnbke, Even the largest parks are accessible by foot and horseback, which is the point of backpacking through preserved wilderness. I'm not sure I follow your charaterization that hiking or horseback riding can be "imposed" on people.

Mar 23rd - 22:46pm | imtnbke

Justinh,

Mar 23rd - 22:03pm | Roger Siglin

Like most groups the mountain bike fraternity is it's own worst enemy. In too many places single track biking is about adrenaline rushes and racing. If you question that just look at the various websites. This is not to dispute that many mountain bikers love the natural world as much as any hiker.

Mar 23rd - 22:01pm | justinh

imtbke,

Mar 23rd - 21:34pm | imtnbke

Kurt, you're right: "The very purpose and role of national parks is being drawn into question" by this initiative. The question is whether the national parks are going to continue to slide into national irrelevance, with a few iconic places visited by hordes in Winnebagos and the backcountry seen mainly on televisions and computer screens.

Mar 23rd - 21:24pm | Zebulon

Kurt,

Mar 23rd - 20:32pm | Scott Watkins

I have mixed feelings about mountain bikes in the park, but there are some false and misleading arguments by PEER that are repeated as fact in this article. Read the actual EA...

Mar 23rd - 20:12pm | Kurt Repanshek

Mark, I'm afraid your very first sentence explained IMBA's entire motivation: Big Bend national park has oodles of dirt roads open for biking, but very little in the way of singletrack and the type of riding that mountain bikers prize.

Mar 23rd - 19:11pm | justinh

Zebulon, I'm not sure I follow your post. What makes you suggest I'm not "big on sharing"? "Intended" by whom?

Mar 23rd - 16:14pm | Ron Saunders

Kurt, How about you writing an article requesting "class action" comments. Group A: Please list all the things you would like to construct and do in some of our National Parks. Group B: Please tell Group A why they can't. Could probably knock out a lot of birds with one stone. Dang, I didn't mean to say that. How do you erase stuff with this machine.

Mar 23rd - 14:57pm | Zebulon

Justin, you're not big on sharing, are you? Maybe we should simply reallow bikes in wilderness, like they were originally intended to be (google Ted Stroll for back up data) and that would really solve all our problems.

Mar 23rd - 14:52pm | Mark E

Big Bend national park has oodles of dirt roads open for biking, but very little in the way of singletrack and the type of riding that mountain bikers prize. The park also features expansive amounts of wilderness. Park staff have not expressed any concern that this trail will impede plans to add additional wilderness, nor has pro-wilderness groups so far as I'm aware.

Mar 23rd - 14:34pm | justinh

I'm not sure why the number of NPS units allowing singletrack is relevant here. I'm concerened about the precedence this trail creates for adjudicating similar proposals in the future, particularly with regard to . . .

Mar 23rd - 14:18pm | Richard Smith

This seems like cherry picking. Check out Yosemite, and there are too many people and cars and improperly constructed (limiting) bridges which increase flooding potential, and no one is making a stink on how that place is being impacted, which is strange, since the mtn bike tail is so tiny in comparison.

Mar 23rd - 13:44pm | Kristy

Here's the list of NPS units with mountain biking.. http://www.imba.com/nps-trails-roads

Mar 23rd - 13:08pm | Anonymous

Randy Thompson's Ghost said:"Let them build the trail - if we continue to limit activities that the 18-24 demographic enjoy - we continue to diminish the importance of National Parks in the future."

Mar 23rd - 12:22pm | Anonymous

Excuse me, Mark E of IMBA - can you please name the "dozens of NPS properties around the nation [that] already offer singletrack mountain biking?"

Mar 23rd - 10:08am | Mark E

Regarding PEER's criticism, here's IMBA's perspective (I'm the communications director). 1) The proposed trail has been specifically designed to create a model for shared hike/bike use. Rather than a "high-speed roller-coaster" or whatever fear-mongering phrase PEER used, the design incorporates good lines of sight, speed-controling features for bikes and gentle grades.

Interior Department Report Finds No Misconduct By Point Reyes National Seashore Staff In Review of Oyster Farm Impacts

Mar 24th - 15:50pm | Hayseed

This article is, like the Interior Solicitor's Office's report, very biased.

Mar 24th - 13:18pm | former voluntee...

the basic data is flawed because the field investigators who gathered the data were biased during their training period to record/ atribute the varied disrurbances in the seal colony to man made occurances--harbor seals along the pt reyes coast seem to to have an increased incidence/awareness of humans activity and fear of interaction

Reader Participation Day: Would You Ever Go On A Multi-Week, Or More, Hike?

Mar 24th - 13:51pm | rdm24

Already did the John Muir Trail. LOVED IT!!!!

Mar 23rd - 13:27pm | Jenny

Not only would I, but I hope to have the opportunity some day!

Mar 23rd - 12:38pm | Randi Minetor

I have dreamed for many years of hiking the AT. It's always been an "if circumstances were different" dream—if I had the opportunity to take seven months off, if I were in better shape, if I had more camping experience, and so on. So yes, I would do it ... if all the variables added up in the right way.

Mar 23rd - 11:13am | Bob M

Kurt, you need to ask???

Free Water Soon To Be Available On North, South Rims of Grand Canyon National Park

Mar 24th - 10:00am | Marjorie

Probably the thinking is: a hiker who is prepared comes with water (and food, and sunblock, and etc.) but the hikers who will get into trouble show up with nothing. If there is a water station at the trailhead, he/she might think, "Oh, maybe I should take something to drink on my 15 mile round-trip, vertical mile down and out day hike that they told me not to attempt". If they also have to w

Mar 23rd - 19:02pm | Jon Merryman

How is this any different than installing a water fountain? We let all the water fountains from my childhood fall into disrepair, and now we are putting them back with a different kind of tap. Why not have both?

Mar 23rd - 11:25am | Marjorie

I pick up sooo many plastic bottles on the trail. I mean, they weigh a whole 1/8 of an ounce! When they are in the middle of the trail, I might assume they were dropped accidently. When they are cleverly hidden under a rock, I know it was deliberate. I hope the water stations encourage re-use, or even (gasp) buying a real canteen!

Mar 23rd - 11:10am | Nick Costanza

Arches has these at their entrance and also at the entrance to Devil's Garden. It was really great a couple of years ago when we ventured out in 102 F heat. At least we were able to stay hydrated.

Grizzly Bear Shot and Killed By Hikers In Denali National Park and Preserve

Mar 23rd - 17:46pm | Anonymous

Bears and animals have the RIGHT to live. Humans are animals.

Mar 23rd - 17:42pm | Anonymous

Animals have the right to defend themselves. If a bear came onto your property you would be threatened. The bear was only defending its home. Humans need to respect other animals. I don't think that humans realize how much animals respect us.

Coalition of National Park Service Retirees, National Parks Conservation Association Oppose Bike Race At Colorado National Monument

Mar 23rd - 17:28pm | Ron Saunders

IT'S A TIE ! Can I do that ? Great discussion and so dag gone respectfull it almost makes you sick. Didn't think there were any people like that left. Got to go to that place and see those folks for my self.

Invasive Exotic Plants on the Appalachian Trail

Mar 23rd - 15:24pm | James in Virginia

The invasive plant control program sounds vibrant. Hope it all goes well. Wish us luck as we get started the week of Earth Day, April 14 in the Northern VA area.

Maine North Woods National Park: Has The Time Arrived?

Mar 23rd - 13:05pm | Anonymous

Not trying to be rude people, but being a young logger in the North Maine Woods, this would mean no cutting as I understand it. This would have unforseen consequences to you guys. I am one of thousands of hard working men that would lose their jobs. Sure, Plum Creek has done foolish things in the past, and Irving Woodlands sometimes does extensive clear cutting, but Irving has invested billi

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