Quote Originally Posted by DebW View Post
Wow. Good for you to undertake the building of sustainable trails. I help maintain and manage hiking trails where bikes and horses are not allowed. So we only have to manage for foot traffic and natural erosion. How are trails built to handle bike and horse impact? Can you describe mechanized trail building?
Hikers, horses, bikes, the concepts of sustainable trail building are pretty much the same. You consider topography, fall line, potential for erosion, soil type and so on. Bikers usually like a twistier trail, horses need a higher corridor... those are the main differences.

Mechanized trail building is good in some situations - you can put a lot of trail in fast, and I do believe it really depends on what kind of terrain you are on, and what kind of soil. Not every one has access to that kind of equipment or the funds to hire it. Our club is lucky to have 2 Mcloeds and 6 Pulaskis.

The whole concept of a sustainable is trail is that it is appropriate for many users with a mimimum of maintenance.
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