Kimberley Nature Park Society members and other interested parties met to discuss issues around trails in the park last Thursday.

?It was a good meetings,? said Nature Park Society President Kent Goodwin. ?There were about 20 to 30 people and a good cross section of hikers, bikers, dog walkers. Bob West-Sells did a great job of facilitating and we got lots of feedback and input.?

One of the issues discussed was the appearance of unauthorized trails in the park in the last few years.

?It was an interesting discussion and it took a while. But in the end, some recommendations will be sent to the Nature Park Society that some of the unauthorized trails will be put to bed and others fixed up and made a part of the trail system.?

While unauthorized trails may not seem to be of much concern, Goodwin says there are many problems with them.

?Most importantly, this is a nature park and we have a conservation mandate. We have a process to determine ecological and safety concerns. If someone just builds a trail they could go right through the only patch of mountain lady slipper orchids for example.

?Plus it?s Crown land, there?s archeology to consider. The province reviews trail routes and tells us if there are archeological concerns.

The last time we built two small trails, we had to hire an archeologist.?

The other issue is safety. Unauthorized trails may not be built to standards and could erode or prove unsafe for hikers.

However, Goodwin says the Society has decided to legitimize two of the unauthorized trails.

?We will have to jump through all those hoops though, so it could take some time,? Goodwin said.

All in all the meeting was a good one, he says, though there are always competing interests.

?The Nature Park has always had tension between the conservation focus and the human use focus. But I do believe we came to a consensus.?

Goodwin says the most encouraging new development to Nature Park Society members is the formation of the Kimberley Trails Society.

?The Trails Society is looking for the development of mountain bike trails outside the Nature Park. We don?t believe the Nature Park is an appropriate place for a mountain bike playground. Trails do need to be developed outside the park to take the pressure off.?

Finally those in attendance discussed trail etiquette, from bikers coming up silently and quickly behind hikers, to dog walkers not cleaning up after their pets. The Society is looking at signage on trail etiquette at park entrances.