Loch Raven trail dispute spurs 'emergency' meeting
Bike Maryland, the organization formerly known as One Less Car, has called what it describes as an "emergency" public meeting to discuss trail restrictions in the woods surrounding Loch Raven Reservoir.
The meeting, apparently prompted by some run-ins between mountain bicyclists and Baltimore Department of Public Works rangers, is scheduled for 7 p.m.-9 p.m. TThursday night at the Timonium Fairgrounds' Fasig-Tipton Building.
This appear to be another chapter in a long-running dispute between mountain bikers, who want free acccess to the trails in the woods surrounding the reservoir, and the department, which wants to preserve the quality of the drinking water supply.
Carol Sildorff, executive diirector of Bike Maryland, said she fears the department is unilaterally moving to enfoce a series of 1998 rules that had been shelved for a dozen years. She says bikers should have access to trails and denies their activities are causing erosion -- pointing to deer, invasive species and illegal dumping as the main threats to water quality.
Department spokesman Kurt Kocher said the problem isn't the dozen miles of legal trails and forest roads where he says bicycles are welcome. He said the problem is about 34 miles of unauthorized trails that have been cleared in the woods surrounding the reservoir. He said rangers are issuing warnings -- but no tickets yet --- on those unauthorized trails.
According to Kocher, DPW spokeswoman Celeste Amato is planning on attending the meeting to outline the department's position. So it could get interesting, whether your interest is water quality or trail access for mountain bikes.
Comments
"Kurt Kocher said the problem isn't the dozen miles of legal trails and forest roads where he says bicycles are welcome. He said the problem is about 34 miles of unauthorized trails that have been cleared in the woods surrounding the reservoir. "
This is quite disingenuous considering that:
1. Many of these unauthorized trails have existed for greater than 20 years, and some for significantly longer then that. Many, longer than the existence of mountain biking itself.
2. Water Quality has not suffered in this time as a result of these 'unauthorized trails'. The resolution of DPW's bathymetric studies cannot even 'see' recreational trail use activity. This point is continually ignored.
3. There is no proof that mountain bikers are responsible for the proliferation of these 34 miles of unauthorized trails, in fact, Mr. Kocher attended the very task force meeting where this misconception was repeatedly corrected by a neutral third party.
4. DPW has stated that mountain biking causes excessive erosion, and hence should be restricted. Despite scientific literature that states mountain biking is no different than pedestrian foot traffic.
None of this adds up. This is where the 'real' problem exists.
This problem cannot be solved until DPW makes adequate sense of the relationship between these points, recognizes the needs of all its trail users, and begins to manage the watershed the same way it's historically perceived by the public.
Sincerely,
Dave Blum
Posted by: Dave Blum | October 29, 2010 12:51 PM
Mr. Dresser, I am grateful for your numerous articles bringing attention to issues facing road bicyclists. Oftentimes, those articles result in heated discussion on the comment boards regarding cyclists rights and the impacts on both bicyclists and drivers. Forgetting about all the "for and against" regarding road bicycling, isn't one of the most obvious solutions for more bicyclists to get off the road, quite literally? Doesn't it make great sense for the numbers and quality of trails in the Baltimore region to increase, rather than the other way around?
The DPW is planning on closing trail access at Loch Raven to ALL users (not only mountain bikers but hikers, joggers, fishermen, bird watchers, etc.). What is the rationale? Does is make sense? Who or what is really behind this? What solutions are and are not being considered? How do the neighbors feel? How do those living in the surrounding areas feel? Why isn't the golf course or the over-development in the surrounding region being criticized?
signed - an occasional road biker but avid mountain biker who is absolutely outraged at the current situation.
Posted by: KRL | October 31, 2010 8:53 PM