Trail Designation Inventories

IMBA believes in responsible management of recreation that fairly addresses environmental and social issues. One method, a trail designation inventory, attempts to record all trails in a system and categorize them by use. Recently, several national forests, the BLM and state park systems have undergone trail designation inventories. Many other public land agencies will soon perform similar surveys. As trail designation inventories becomes more widespread, IMBA offers a summary of their benefits and limitations.

When performed correctly, a trail designation inventory can be a useful method of managing all types of recreation on public lands. A proper inventory commits the time and resources necessary to capturing user-created trails and other unofficial routes. Often trails that are important to mountain bikers and other trail users, sometimes are not catalogued and therefore left out of the official trail system. Once the inventory is finalized, bikes will be banned on trails left out of the inventory.

To be fair and effective, trail designation processes must identify all existing trails, offer a consideration of their suitability and determine whether they should be brought into the system. IMBA opposes unauthorized trail construction, but recognizes that mountain bicyclists, like hikers and equestrians, sometimes intentionally or unintentionally create unauthorized trails. While intentional unauthorized routes should not be condoned, some trails unintentionally follow game trails, spur paths to scenic vistas, or abandoned fire road corridors. Many user-created trails have been on the ground quite a long time, are popular and are generally sustainable. IMBA believes these routes deserve consideration for inclusion into the official trails system.

A trail designation process that focuses solely on official system trails fails to capture established, suitable user-created routes. When such routes are not identified, the result significantly harms bicyclists or other trail users by banning them from travel on suitable but non-inventoried trails that are currently in use. The best solution is to limit bicycling not to system trails, but to existing trails unless specifically prohibited. This policy allows for maximum public enjoyment while still acknowledging a land manager's right to prohibit bicycles from inappropriate trails.

Similar to the trail designation inventory, some national forests have convened area-specific travel management planning processes wherein they inventory all routes in a particular area, then decide which routes are appropriate to add to the official trail system. This process also limits bicycling to official trails, but normally guarantees inventory of user-created routes. One primary drawback to travel planning is the small portion of land it covers, leaving user-created trails outside the planning area susceptible to closure via the forest management plan. To resolve this issue, a management plan should either generally only limit bicycling to existing trails, or it should limit to existing trails until formal travel planning occurs. Travel management planning should have full NEPA compliance at the level of at least an Environmental Assessment.

The more restrictive policy of limiting bicycling to official trails can be acceptable to bicyclists if implemented correctly. To achieve equitable recreation management, travel planning and trail designation inventories must be thorough and involve the public in both identification and classification of routes. With proper public collaboration, restricting users to the resulting official trail system is usually adequate.

IMBA's Recommendations for Trail Designation Inventories:

Trail designation processes must include a full inventory of all official and unofficial trails currently used by all users.
Trail designation processes must include a determination of which unofficial trails could and should be brought into the system as official, classified trails.
Rather than limiting management to official trails, bicycles should be allowed on all "existing" trails and roads unless specifically prohibited (e.g. Wilderness, etc.). The Forest Service and BLM generally adhere to this "open unless closed" policy, while National Park Service trails are often "closed unless designated open."
Any inventory should involve a collaborative process that is fairly and equally applied to all users.
During trail designation inventories or travel management processes the land manager should institute a temporary order allowing use on non-system routes while a final designation process is considered.

Definitions

Trail Designation Inventory: The process of creating an official inventory of all system trails within a park, forest, or other management unit. These inventories sometimes fail to include established, sustainable user-created trails. The use of trails or routes not included in the inventory is prohibited.
System Trail: Any trail or route recognized by the land agency and included in their trail designation inventory.
Non-System Trail: A trail or route that is not included in the trail designation inventory and the use of which is therefore prohibited.
Often called "user-created," "unauthorized" or "social" trails, these are routes created by users rather than by official trail construction. They are often not recognized by the land manager. Some, though, are unintentional extensions of game trails, spurs to scenic viewpoints, or abandoned fire road corridors.

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	Trail Designation Inventories IMBA believes in responsible management of recreation that fairly addresses environmental and social issues. One method, a trail designation inventory, attempts to record all trails in a system and categorize them by use. Recently, several national forests, the BLM and state park systems have undergone trail designation inventories. Many other public land agencies will soon perform similar surveys. As trail designation inventories becomes more widespread, IMBA offers a summary of their benefits and limitations. When performed correctly, a trail designation inventory can be a useful method of managing all types of recreation on public lands. A proper inventory commits the time and resources necessary to capturing user-created trails and other unofficial routes. Often trails that are important to mountain bikers and other trail users, sometimes are not catalogued and therefore left out of the official trail system. Once the inventory is finalized, bikes will be banned on trails left out of the inventory. To be fair and effective, trail designation processes must identify all existing trails, offer a consideration of their suitability and determine whether they should be brought into the system. IMBA opposes unauthorized trail construction, but recognizes that mountain bicyclists, like hikers and equestrians, sometimes intentionally or unintentionally create unauthorized trails. While intentional unauthorized routes should not be condoned, some trails unintentionally follow game trails, spur paths to scenic vistas, or abandoned fire road corridors. Many user-created trails have been on the ground quite a long time, are popular and are generally sustainable. IMBA believes these routes deserve consideration for inclusion into the official trails system. A trail designation process that focuses solely on official system trails fails to capture established, suitable user-created routes. When such routes are not identified, the result significantly harms bicyclists or other trail users by banning them from travel on suitable but non-inventoried trails that are currently in use. The best solution is to limit bicycling not to system trails, but to existing trails unless specifically prohibited. This policy allows for maximum public enjoyment while still acknowledging a land manager's right to prohibit bicycles from inappropriate trails. Similar to the trail designation inventory, some national forests have convened area-specific travel management planning processes wherein they inventory all routes in a particular area, then decide which routes are appropriate to add to the official trail system. This process also limits bicycling to official trails, but normally guarantees inventory of user-created routes. One primary drawback to travel planning is the small portion of land it covers, leaving user-created trails outside the planning area susceptible to closure via the forest management plan. To resolve this issue, a management plan should either generally only limit bicycling to existing trails, or it should limit to existing trails until formal travel planning occurs. Travel management planning should have full NEPA compliance at the level of at least an Environmental Assessment. The more restrictive policy of limiting bicycling to official trails can be acceptable to bicyclists if implemented correctly. To achieve equitable recreation management, travel planning and trail designation inventories must be thorough and involve the public in both identification and classification of routes. With proper public collaboration, restricting users to the resulting official trail system is usually adequate. IMBA's Recommendations for Trail Designation Inventories: Trail designation processes must include a full inventory of all official and unofficial trails currently used by all users. Trail designation processes must include a determination of which unofficial trails could and should be brought into the system as official, classified trails. Rather than limiting management to official trails, bicycles should be allowed on all "existing" trails and roads unless specifically prohibited (e.g. Wilderness, etc.). The Forest Service and BLM generally adhere to this "open unless closed" policy, while National Park Service trails are often "closed unless designated open." Any inventory should involve a collaborative process that is fairly and equally applied to all users. During trail designation inventories or travel management processes the land manager should institute a temporary order allowing use on non-system routes while a final designation process is considered. Definitions Trail Designation Inventory: The process of creating an official inventory of all system trails within a park, forest, or other management unit. These inventories sometimes fail to include established, sustainable user-created trails. The use of trails or routes not included in the inventory is prohibited. System Trail: Any trail or route recognized by the land agency and included in their trail designation inventory. Non-System Trail: A trail or route that is not included in the trail designation inventory and the use of which is therefore prohibited. Often called "user-created," "unauthorized" or "social" trails, these are routes created by users rather than by official trail construction. They are often not recognized by the land manager. Some, though, are unintentional extensions of game trails, spurs to scenic viewpoints, or abandoned fire road corridors.


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