Action Alert: Waterloo Recreation Area

[DeJ]

Email sent.

[bender13]

Response from Ron Olson:

Per your e-mail of April 25, I can appreciate your concerns relative to the potential for resource damage that may occur as a result of the equestrian event scheduled at Waterloo Recreation Area. We take our stewardship responsibilities very seriously, but, we must also balance those responsibilities with our mission to provide outdoor recreation opportunities for the citizens of Michigan. At times these dual responsibilities may conflict. Therefore, I have outlined the steps that have already been taken as well as the planned review of the trail conditions that will take place following the event.

The Waterloo/Pinckney trail ride scheduled for this Saturday was approved as a one time use permit by the Unit Manager. He submitted the use permit for approval through the Stewardship and Management Planning units for approval before authorizing this event. He also has plans to document the impact to the trail following the event. The permit was approved in December 2010 following internal review. This activity is not intended to be an ongoing use.

The event will involve up to 100 horses using the trail for the event and the ride will stop at Green Lake and not go into the Pinckney Recreation Area. Ten equestrian riders from the group rode the trail a few days ago to scout the area and make sure the trail was suitable for the weekend event. The Park Supervisor hiked the trail over the weekend after the equestrians were finished scouting and did not see any trail damage from the 10 horses.

I believe that the DNR has demonstrated due diligence concerning the potential impacts of this event and has met it’s obligation to the citizens of this state concerning the balance between use and protection of the natural resources entrusted to the DNR.
Also photos have been taken of the trail area and if there is any unexpected damage the use permit requires the Equestrian group to correct the problems with in 2 weeks. Yes the planning process is underway to create a long term plan to address Waterloo trail use including mountain biking, horses, hiking etc. We have talked to the leadership of the Michigan Mountain Bike Association about this event and they are aware of the requirements placed upon the group for this event. Please if you have concerns to contact us so these issues can be addressed appropriately.

I am sure others have received the same response.

Jeff

[J.knight]

Not to stir the pot, but has anyone contacted whomever is the IMBA rep for our area? Does IMBA have an official position on horses? Maybe it is time for them to show us how much MMBA members are getting for their money.

[dauber76]

Response from Ron Olson:

Per your e-mail of April 25, I can appreciate your concerns relative to the potential for resource damage that may occur as a result of the equestrian event scheduled at Waterloo Recreation Area. We take our stewardship responsibilities very seriously, but, we must also balance those responsibilities with our mission to provide outdoor recreation opportunities for the citizens of Michigan. At times these dual responsibilities may conflict. Therefore, I have outlined the steps that have already been taken as well as the planned review of the trail conditions that will take place following the event.

The Waterloo/Pinckney trail ride scheduled for this Saturday was approved as a one time use permit by the Unit Manager. He submitted the use permit for approval through the Stewardship and Management Planning units for approval before authorizing this event. He also has plans to document the impact to the trail following the event. The permit was approved in December 2010 following internal review. This activity is not intended to be an ongoing use.

The event will involve up to 100 horses using the trail for the event and the ride will stop at Green Lake and not go into the Pinckney Recreation Area. Ten equestrian riders from the group rode the trail a few days ago to scout the area and make sure the trail was suitable for the weekend event. The Park Supervisor hiked the trail over the weekend after the equestrians were finished scouting and did not see any trail damage from the 10 horses.

I believe that the DNR has demonstrated due diligence concerning the potential impacts of this event and has met it’s obligation to the citizens of this state concerning the balance between use and protection of the natural resources entrusted to the DNR.
Also photos have been taken of the trail area and if there is any unexpected damage the use permit requires the Equestrian group to correct the problems with in 2 weeks. Yes the planning process is underway to create a long term plan to address Waterloo trail use including mountain biking, horses, hiking etc. We have talked to the leadership of the Michigan Mountain Bike Association about this event and they are aware of the requirements placed upon the group for this event. Please if you have concerns to contact us so these issues can be addressed appropriately.

I am sure others have received the same response.

Jeff

By what standards did he see no trail damage? How will they correct any damage?

Jason, get your clicker out so you can count exactly how many horses go past. It will be interesting to see if they stay under their 100 horse allotment.

[jajones]

Here is my response to Ron's mass email, which is pretty much my same earlier Forum post...

...........................................
Ron,

Thank you for your response. Pursuant to your request to bring up any additional concerns, I have the following:

1. How will damage be assessed?

2. How will it be repaired?

On #1....given that natural resources management is (or, can we at least all agree "should be") predicated on science, what scientific method will the DNR use to assess impact? Quantitative method such as measurement of soil displacement before and after, or, qualitative method such as visual before/after pictures and video? Will these be documented and analyzed? Or, are we talking about someone from the DNR who has little experience with trail building and maintenance walking out there and eyeballing a couple sections to simply give a "looks good" or "needs some work"?

Which leads us to #2....repair. The most likely scenario for damage would be the typical way that equine use damages sandy loam trail. The hard, compacted upper strata of the trail tread is perforated, with the hooves sinking down a few inches, creating a "post hole" that exposes the softer, noncompact lower layers. On flats, these post holes don't readily or quickly fill in and recompact. They are too deep to recompact. So, they sit and you have a beachy, turned up and pock-marked surface. The holes and bumpiness of the trail tread are exacerbated by rains. The whole trail ends up being a soft, beachy and bumpy mess. On fall line hills (of which this section of Waterloo has plenty -- many over 20 percent grades), the post hole pock marks churn up the soil, providing a rich mass of new loose sediment to be swept to the bottom of the hills after even the lightest of rains. Not only does this create a new and speedy erosion channel in the trail tread -- it also creates a nice new beach at the lower hill bases. So, this begs the question....How will WHA "repair" this damage? Will they be bringing re-smoothing and compacting trail tread? Will they be hauling sandy back up hills and laying geoweb/geotextile to resolidify them? Or, will they just be rerouting sections until the next time they have an event on sensitive trail? If someone from the DNR can opine on this -- either the scientific method that will be utilized to assess damage, or, the nature of the repair excepted by the WHA, I think there are many that are interested in listening. 400 hooves, 1 day, 2 passes (out and back) and all this in Spring after a week of heavy rain. That's 800 continuous post holes. That's a lot of work and remediation for WHA.

I appreciate do appreciate your time and efforts despite my disagreement with the Department on this issue.

Jason

[Washington Rider]

Jason,
Thanks for the background info on Waterloo, very helpful. If you guys ever held a chapter meeting, this would be a good topic for John and myself to participate in (hint, hint).

Ron copied us on the email he has been sending along with his thanks that we are being proactive yet respectful of their efforts to manage this situation. Please collect the input from everyone who helps evaluate the damage and let us know how it turns out. John and I can reach out to Ron and his staff next week to find out some of the answers to your questions on how they will evaluate the damage as well as any action steps being taken.

I realize I'm an outsider to this and there is a lot of history behind this issue. John and I (the advocacy team, in this case) have held three quarterly meetings with Ron and his executive staff in Lansing to foster a partnership and work on issues such as this and Ft. Custer. For whatever it means to you, I have been very impressed with their responsiveness as well as their understanding of what the MMBA brings to the table in terms of resource management and stewardship. Having Ron personally respond to this matter is a sign of this, IMO.

Thanks for being our eyes and ears on this one.

[dennismurphy]

a couple thoughts

1. I think the science shows horses damage trails more than bikes but.. that said

2. This now appears to be a one time activity much like the biking on that same section - a one time activity.

I think that those in the area concerned about damage should watch and review but perhaps in this one instance the DNR needs a bit of slack? after all if they gave the bikers a one time pass on a hike-only trail it's tough for them to reject horses

caveat- we may indeed find that the one time activity is indeed too damaging..

Just my .02

(what ever happened to cent signs? )

[jajones]

a couple thoughts

1. I think the science shows horses damage trails more than bikes but.. that said

2. This now appears to be a one time activity much like the biking on that same section - a one time activity.

I think that those in the area concerned about damage should watch and review but perhaps in this one instance the DNR needs a bit of slack? after all if they gave the bikers a one time pass on a hike-only trail it's tough for them to reject horses

caveat- we may indeed find that the one time activity is indeed too damaging..

Just my .02

(what ever happened to cent signs? )

It is a one time event -- with 800 hooves going over a very poorly cut fall line trail with some of the biggest singletrack grades I've ever seen, and it is mostly sandy loam.

Imagine what would happen if 800 hooves went over some of those back bowl sections of Yankee in a day, Dennis. Think that would be much of a problem for the trail?

[jajones]

So, the event happened.

Our crack team spent a good part of the day filming and taking pre-ride analysis yesterday, and we did the same today during the ride. We have video, and will also have some quantitative analysis of the trail tread impact using a soil durometer.

All I have to say is, "Wow!" I knew the event would mess up the trail, but I had no idea how bad the damage would actually get. They tore the bejeezus out of it. But, hey, don't take my word for it. We've got a lot of video. It is going to take some time to get up and posted, but to get things rolling, I've got the first two posts up on YouTube.

The first clip is a video of a hill we locals like to call MOAH (Mother of All Hills). It is a steep, fall line hill not unlike some of the old school sections you'd see in the Hills of *beep* at the Poto. This first clip is what MOAH looked like yesterday. Enjoy it, because MOAH died after the event today. (be patient on the footage, I'm a novice videographer)

MOAH Pre-Horses (yesterday)



Here is the post-mortem video, complete with equestrians, one of whom says to me, "Move, I don't want to run you over." To wit -- What would happen if a biker told a hiker the same thing?

MOAH Post-(many, but not all)Horses (today)



Need I say more? I don't think so. But, I'll be showing more. Showing more to the DNR too, if they will look. The interesting thing is going to be what the DNR says and does. Will they do a "mea culpa"? Will they possibly have the gaul to suggest there was material adverse impact?

Time to get outraged, people. Time to demand the DNR stop treating equestrians like they are compatible with multi-use on Southern Michigan trails. Get writing, or, they will be doing this to your favorite trail soon as well!

[jajones]

p.s. Sorry for the heavy breathing in the video. Cam was a little too close to my face.

[cmkovick]

Jason,
Thank you for the time and effort you have put into this. Seeing for my own eyes today the damage just one day of use causes is just sad for our trail systems and what may become of them if more access is allowed. I sure hope it the DNR has a response we want to hear. I have sent my emails and would be interested in helping out any way I can.

Please keep us posted on any response from the DNR.

Chuck

[pfox90]

*Threats of physical retaliation will not be tolerated here, one more and you will get a lengthy recess from the forums.

[c0nsumer]

I think the footage of the horses actively churning the soil is interesting. I've been on plenty of horse trails, but I hadn't actually seen horses walking on trail before and I didn't realize that the action was so vigorous.

[xcrdr]

*Threats of physical retaliation will not be tolerated here, one more and you will get a lengthy recess from the forums.

Easy there buddy. No bikes in prison. Not the horses fault. I grew up riding horses and dirt bikes. I did not ride my horses on trails built by others. That's what is crap about all of this and Custer. Lots of dirt and land out there. Horse trails are easy to build you just mark them and keep riding them. They do not require the love, care and forethought that a mountain bike trail does.

[G.Cook]

Great job J.
A reasonable person would think that this would be proof enough of what a horse can do to single track and ban them from further access . But then I remember we are dealing with the DNR , who were just made fools of by the horse folk , and my cynic alter ego tells me they won't get it and just say "so , we have to commision a study to really gauge the affects of equestrian
use on single track hiking trails to really find a definitive answer " .