Twelve Years to Understand One Trail
The first few summers that I lived in our valley was an exciting time of exploration. Everything was new and I wanted to experience the surrounding outdoors and public lands to its fullest, whether it was heading into the Holy Cross Wilderness for a backpacking trip or mountain biking on many of our local trails. Trail apps and websites existed but there were few and far between. Latitude 40 maps were a main source of trail information at the time.
I still have one of my first maps from the early 2010s. Wanting to push myself and explore beyond the trails I normally used, I pulled it out and selected a route I had never ridden. On paper, it looked like a great option for a challenging loop close to home. I remember it being remote and often questioning whether I was even on the right trail. I also remember that it was early June and quite muddy in places.
Twelve years later, my understanding of that route is completely different. I now know that it is an unauthorized trail through critical elk calving habitat. It also crosses land that is not open to public access. The White River National Forest requires bicycles to remain on legally designated routes. At the time, I knew none of this. I did not understand the rules I was breaking, that I was trespassing or how my presence was likely affecting wildlife.
“I did not understand the rules I was breaking, that I was trespassing or how my presence was likely affecting wildlife.”
Ernest Saeger, Executive Director
Why These Trails Keep Showing Up
I believe this is the case for most, but not all, trail users who recreate on unauthorized trails. They simply just don’t know. These unauthorized trails exist for many different reasons. It could be that people want a shorter or more direct route between point a and point b. It could be that there is a missing gap in connecting one trail system to another. It could be the desire to have a trail directly in your backyard instead of having to travel to a trailhead. It could be that a specific user experience is demanded by the public so they decide to create it on their own.
Many unauthorized trails in our valley have been around for decades and predate current land management rules. Many were created by historical agricultural or ranching operations. Many were first created as game trails by wildlife. Demand for recreation has grown faster than our official trail system, while technology has made unauthorized routes easier to discover and share. Understanding why these trails exist does not make their impacts less real. As more people find and use a route, a faint path can become an established trail before land managers have evaluated whether the landscape and wildlife can sustain it.
The Impact I Didn’t See at the Time
Those impacts can include and are not limited to vegetation loss, erosion, degraded water and aquatic habitat, the spread of invasive plants, habitat fragmentation and wildlife displacement. In my case, I was almost certainly disturbing wildlife, particularly elk. Colorado Parks and Wildlife maps this area as elk calving habitat, and I rode through it during a critical time of year. There was no sign explaining that. There was no seasonal closure gate to stop me. I was riding directly through their habitat, while the trail itself further fragmented it in a larger area that is generally undisturbed. It pains me to think of the negative impact I had while having no understanding of it at the time.
The trail also follows what appears to be an unsustainable fall line alignment, channeling water downhill and accelerating erosion. As users move around ruts, mud and other eroded sections, the trail begins to braid and widen, causing further soil disturbance and vegetation loss.
Close and Restore, or Review for Adoption
Deciding what to do with an unauthorized trail is rarely a black and white question. The VVMTA’s generally approach these trails in one of two ways, 1.) close and restore them, or 2.) review them for possible adoption into the official trail system.
Our default and preferred approach is to close and restore unauthorized trails. We do not encourage legalizing them because doing so can set a precedent that building first is a path to approval. We strongly support the systems land managers use to proactively plan for community trail needs. Those processes require time, environmental review and public engagement for good reason. At the same time, the time required can help explain why some unauthorized trails are created. People may become impatient or frustrated and decide to create a trail on their own. That frustration may reveal an unmet need, but it does not justify bypassing the planning process.
Weighing Both Paths
Both paths require careful consideration. First, we look at the environmental factors. Is the trail in an ecologically sensitive area? Does it cross critical wildlife habitat or affect a watershed? Who owns the land, and can the necessary permissions be obtained? We also try to understand the human and social side. Does the trail provide a meaningful community benefit by connecting a neighborhood to a destination or an existing trail system? Are there few legal trails nearby, causing residents to create their own access? Or does it serve a narrow purpose that provides little benefit to the broader public?
Over the past ten seasons of our Adopt A Trail program, volunteers have closed more than 763 social or unauthorized trails. Many are short connections to existing trails, shortcuts to avoid switchbacks, or small paths leading down to a creek. Too often, closing them becomes a cat and mouse game, with users reopening the route soon after it was restored. We have also encountered and heard from many people who are angry when their favorite backyard unauthorized trail is closed.
What Adoption Actually Requires
That is why education must be part of the framework and support whatever decision is made by the land manager. If a trail is closed, people need to understand the environmental, legal or management reasons behind that decision. If it is adopted, users need to understand the review, construction and continuing management required to make it an official trail.
Adoption does not necessarily mean approving the existing alignment either. If a trail is adopted, the official trail may need to be designed and constructed on a more sustainable alignment and grade. It will also require maintenance, management, signs and potentially gates for seasonal wildlife closures. On federal land, adoption must comply with the National Environmental Policy Act and other environmental and cultural reviews as well.
Planning Ahead, Not Just Reacting
Managing unauthorized trails cannot be limited to reacting after they appear. We also need to look ahead. Planning should begin by understanding what the land can sustain, not simply where people want to go. What protections do wildlife, water, vegetation and sensitive habitats need? Where are existing unauthorized trails already fragmenting habitat or placing too much pressure on a watershed? In some places, the answer may be to close and restore trails, limit access or determine that no additional trails should be considered.
The goal is not to create more trails. It is to comprehensively review the unauthorized network, protect the landscape, manage the access that can be sustained and reduce the likelihood that new unauthorized trails are created. In a landscape as heavily loved as our valley’s, recreation access and conservation must be planned together.
The VVMTA’s mission is to maintain, create, and advocate for sustainable trail systems that connect people to nature, promote environmental stewardship, and strengthen community well-being. The VVMTA is the trusted and enduring leader in trail based recreation, connecting a diverse community to well loved trails, supporting health, quality of life, and economic vitality, while championing a model of access and stewardship of our public lands that benefits everyone.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is an unauthorized trail?
An unauthorized trail, sometimes called a social trail, is a route that was not planned, approved, or built by a land manager. These routes often form from repeated foot or bike traffic taking a shortcut, following an old game trail, or connecting two points without going through official review. They exist on public and private land throughout Eagle County.
Why does VVMTA close these trails instead of adopting them?
Closing and restoring is the default approach because legalizing a route can set a precedent that building first is a path to approval. Land managers use planning processes that include environmental review and public engagement for good reason, and VVMTA supports that process rather than working around it. Adoption is reserved for routes that meet a genuine community need without unacceptable environmental cost.
What happens to wildlife when people use these routes?
They can fragment habitat, disturb sensitive areas like elk calving grounds, and displace wildlife that depend on undisturbed terrain. Most have no signage or seasonal closures, so trail users often have no way of knowing they are passing through critical habitat. Seasonal trail closures exist in part to prevent this kind of unintentional disturbance on the official trail system.
How can I help address unauthorized trails in Eagle County?
The most direct way is joining an Adopt A Trail crew, which closes and restores social and unauthorized trails across the valley every season. Staying on designated routes, respecting posted closures, and reporting unauthorized trails to VVMTA or the local land manager also help keep the network sustainable.
