|
Reflections on the Trail
By Dennis Taugher
Winter is a good time to think about the past year. The trails are closed by rain or snow. It’s cold, maybe dark, and time in front of the fireplace gives us a chance to reflect.
Hooligan Trail Spence Mt.
KTA had a good year. We continue to be well accepted by the community. We received new funds to continue building new trails at Spence Mountain. ODOT gave us a final approach permit to our Spence trailhead. An industrial-size kiosk was finished. The entry log shows visitors from all over the Northwest and beyond. We hope you know that we are not solely a mountain bike club. The new trails are built to mountain bike standards to attract those riders. But the trails also benefit runners, hikers, casual walkers and skiers.
Trail Maintenance Days were up an astounding 67%: 1396 hours vs 836 hours. About 90 people were recorded on trail logs. Trail crews worked at Moore Park, Spence Mountain, Pacific Crest Trail, Crater Lake trails and Brown Mountain (near Lake of Woods) where hundreds of trees were cut up and dragged off the trail. Thanks to all who helped. Come join us this year. Maintenance is our most important mission.
An exciting upcoming project is the Moore Park Master Plan. City Parks has partnered with KTA to bring in a consultant to survey existing trails, suggest improvements to them and suggest new ones. We hope to use the report as a working trail guide for the next five years.
A superb example of many groups working together is the proposed Jail Trail (to be renamed) that will give walkers a safe way from Foothill Blvd up to the flat area near the County Jail. KTA helped with the design of the trail. We hear this will break ground in the spring.
We had an excellent annual meeting early December at Gaucho Collective. It was a fun social gathering with a short meeting in the middle. We hope to have some outdoor events that combine fun, food and a ride or two. Look for the Second Annual Klamath Mammoth Bike Ride this spring. The route will be on part of the Great Klamath Circle.
We have been blessed with strong community support, from both businesses and individuals. But professionally built trails are expensive. We are looking for a motivated person to help us attract and retain members. We’ll help with this important effort. For more information contact us at info@klamathtrails.org.
|
