damage done

Here's a link to an article about trail damage in the Foothills written by trail users and posted on the R2R site:
http://www.cityofboise.org/parks/R2R/Trail%20Damage%20in%20the%20Foothills.pdf (if the link doesn't work, go to the main page and click on "many trails are getting widened".)

fair article, calls out all users groups as culpable (which we all are) and has pretty graphic examples of damage. i see the same thing on corrals. much caused by people who insist on walking, running or biking 2-3 abreast rather than passing single file, or using the trail as it is meant to be.

i did get one question about how to not get off the trail if you feel someone is reckless- and the answer is that the most important thing is to be safe. following the suggestions is dependent on everyone using proper ettiquette. i would add, however, that if we keep ceding the trail people come to expect it and don't understand the problem. so i try to follow paula's suggestion and stop if that's more comfortable, but stay in the space of one person on one side of the trail and let the other person pass properly.

nice morning, 2 walk day. down to 1 leash at 9th, 4 in camel's back & most gone from military reserve. i don't understand people. the tags make it pretty clear that they are not free give aways, so this goes firmly in the ripping them off column.

2 very different experiences on the first walk. echo & i followed in 2 women with their dog on leash, so we stayed on too, well into the off leash area. on chickadee ran into a woman with 2 labs. i asked her to keep her dogs close she immediately got them on leash & in a sit stay by the trail i told her i was training, thanked her & had a nice conversation with her as we walked by with nary a glance in the other dog's direction. she even commented on how good echo was. again on red fox, asked a couple of runners not to let their dogs run up- they got them leashed, no problem.

then we met the mt biker with the black lab. i asked him to call his dog- he said he just wants to play- i said please call him, mine plays rough, he said that's ok mine does too- i said please call him. by now sitting in the sage with echo on my lap (really). then we had a very nice conversation- he really couldn't understand why i wouldn't just let echo go to play with his dog. i finally said it's nice that you understand about dogs that play rough, but not everyone does and i really prefer just to not go there at all. he looked sort of baffled, but said he understood & rode off. nice enough guy, nice enough dog. maybe i made some sense.


first out- 7 with, 5 without; second out 7 with, 8 without
happy thursday!