South Skyline Association

Here is another chapter in the continuing saga about what could or should happen to Castle Rock State Park, which is currently undergoing a General Plan. People wake up! We are so lucky to have the choice at this time to help in the decision-making process of what should happen to our park during the next 25 years, and not let ourselves be overrun by events, as has happened in other park districts. I am specifically referring to the influx of thousands of mountain bikers who are trying to take over the usage of all trails, with no regard for other users.

I am assuming that most people (residents) up here on Skyline came here to live for the same reasons that I did, give or take a little bit here and there. However, I will clarify a little. First of all, about seven years ago, I couldn't tolerate the valley any longer, partly because I had grown up in the country; secondly, I needed somewhere to keep my old horse - she has been my faithful friend and I wanted her to have a peaceful retirement somewhere where I could watch her daily, and take her out for peaceful trail rides whenever she (or we!) felt up to it. I am a hiker and equestrian, for those of you who don't know me. My husband was also keen on the idea of living away from the frantic valley, so we bought a property where we could keep horses, overlooking Castle Rock State Park. The beauty and the advantages of the Park are most likely known to anybody who is reading this, but I will enumerate, just to see if I strike any chords. There is a wonderful natural habitat for common and exotic creatures, plants, trees and wildlife in general ... at all times of the year. There is wonderful scenery, changing from day to day, even hour by hour. Nobody in their right mind could possibly be bored by it.. and I watch it everyday. There are historic sites, and natural phenomena; did you ever see the Lion Caves? And on, and on. And there are the trails. We have trails of several different types, which extend for miles, giving access to all these things I have mentioned above.

We live in a unique environment here on Skyline Boulevard at Saratoga Gap, with access to several different Park districts:

	Castle Rock State Park
	Midpeninsula Open Space Preserve
	Sanborn County Park

We owe it to ourselves and future generations to protect our surroundings, especially as we see development and encroachment every day. As little as five years ago, I could hike or ride a horse along the Saratoga Gap Trail to many points north, and enjoy the natural bounty of a beautiful preserve. Not any longer. The trails have been overtaken by mountain bikers, who care for none of the things I have written about. They look on Saratoga Gap Trail as a challenge, and this is the crux of the problem. Bikers are indulging in a sport - not recreation. What is of most concern is that they are determined to find a way to get into or onto all or as many trails as they can, and they are using aggressiveness to gain their objectives. They have stated that one of their goals is to ride bikes from the Skyline to the Sea using park trails, and this, neighbours, means using the Toll Road (which as you know is in Castle Rock State Park). The situation we now find ourselves in with the Saratoga Gap Trail, being unable to hike or ride in safety, is what will happen to the Toll Road if we do not protect it. The very things which probably attracted you to live up here close to the parks will be disappearing if you do not speak up and help to protect them. More of this topic later.

If you have read this far, and are feeling some identity with what I am saying, let me please be more specific about my interests. I am a local resident, hiker and equestrian. I have been a member of the Castle Rock State Park Advisory Board for approximately three years, a member of the Trails Sub-Committee, and also the newly formed Volunteer Patrol Group. I am also a member of the Midpeninsula Open Space Volunteer Patrol Group. Typically, we not only hike or ride the trails, but we get involved in trail clearing and maintenance projects also. Anybody who reads this and wishes to get involved in these groups can contact me for further information. Bottom line, we need all the help we can get to protect what so many take for granted. As an equestrian, I have very deep misgivings about the current push by the biking community to gain access to all trails. You will see and hear the term "multi-user" trails which means that anybody is able to use them regardless of their width or safety. With such diversity of users, conflicts among different groups can have potentially serious safety consequences. Although most other trail users have ultimate control over their mode of transportation, equestrians are aboard a 1,000 lb animal with an inbuilt instinct to flee. On the back of a startled horse, attached only by gripping thighs, a rider is in an extremely dangerous position. To a horse (and rider) a mountain biker screaming around a blind comer at breakneck speed looks like a nightmare from hell: alien, silent and horrifyingly fast. Chance encounters between horses and bicycles pose a far greater threat of injury and death. Most horses, by nature, are nervous, cautious animals. Mountain bikers are, more or less, risk-takers. When these two very different users meet unexpectedly on the trail, results can sometimes be disastrous. By the way, I and my horse, are the survivors of a fairly serious accident caused by a biker riding with his head down, round a comer on a narrow trail with a vertical drop off the side!

Well as I said in my first paragraph, please take the time to look around you, observe your environment. Remember why you came to the mountains to live, and make sure you help to protect what you value.