BC Trail Tracker
Most of my efforts for the Federation have been put into developing the BC Trail Tracker over the past three months. The vision is to have a location where hikers can get up-to-date information on trails and where our trail champions can find out what work needs to be done. Thanks to Mike Stewart from the Valley Outdoor Association and Manrico Scremin from the ACC Vancouver Section for their input and help.
2021 was particularly hard on some trails and access roads. The flooding that closed the Berg Lake trail last summer and then the heavy rainstorms in November are just two events worth mentioning. Hiking last weekend on the Baden-Powell trail in North Vancouver I saw a couple of large trees that had broken in high winds or under snow loads and damaged stairways and a bridge.
In the past, hikers have had no location to report problems with trails. BC Parks does have one email address where they take comments but neither BC Parks or Recreation Sites and Trails BC have much of a budget for working on trails.
BC Trail Tracker will provide a single location where hikers can report problems and check for updates on when work might be done.
I’m also hoping that our members can write fantastic trail descriptions for the BC Trail Tracker. Some clubs and member organizations have great websites with information about trails in their area. The Caledonia Ramblers and the Vancouver Island Trail Association are two highlighted in the Tracker.
We also want the Trail Tracker to be used to encourage more people to give back to our community. We need trail champions to review the reports in their area and find volunteers to fix the issues.
So please check out the BC Trail Tracker! Add your favourite trail. Add a trail condition report after your hike.
We are in a beta mode working to fix issues and make the tool better. If you are interested in helping, please send us a comment or sign-up to become a trail champion or volunteer
Trail Updates from Chilliwack
The Chilliwack Outdoor Club has told us about access issues caused by a forest
service road that was washed out on Nesakwatch creek. That road leads to the popular Slesse Memorial trail and popular climbing routes on Slesse and Mount Rexford. We are waiting for an assessment to see if the road can be re-routed but that will be very expensive and the provincial government doesn’t have any budget for repairing roads that are mostly used for recreation.
In March, 10 club members took a chainsaw safety course sponsored by Recreation Sites and Trails BC.
The club has been busy fixing small sections of the Trans Canada Trail along the Chilliwack River where flooding washed away short sections of the trail. The Club also reported issues in Manning Park where flooding washed out some bridges and moved the Skagit River in one place to prevent access to the bridge.
