UAF plans addition of walking, snowshoeing trails

Submitted by Marmian Grimes
Phone: (907) 474-7902
12/18/06

Winter trail users at the University of Alaska Fairbanks may soon notice something new: designated walking and snowshoeing trails.

UAF Chancellor Steve Jones in late November approved a three-phase plan that would establish a network of designated walking and snowshoeing trails in the North Campus area. The network will include upgraded existing trails, as well as more than three miles of new trails, many of them parallel to existing UAF ski trails. The plan is the result of months of meetings and planning by the UAF North Campus subcommittee and is designed to minimize conflicts among multiple trail users at UAF, including those who walk or walk their dogs, cross country ski or snowshoe, said Luke Hopkins, UAF North Campus manager.

"Every year there are winter issues about conflicting uses on a single trail,"? Hopkins said.

Walking and snowshoeing damage the tracks and smooth surfaces of the ski trails, he said. Fast-moving skiers and slower walkers on the same trail can also pose a hazard for both parties, he said. "What this plan has done is put multiple uses side by side on winter trails."?

Hopkins emphasized that the walking trails are not yet complete and walking on ski trails is still prohibited. The university plans to install signs indicating walking trails when improvements are completed, he said.

The university hopes to begin the first phase of improvements this winter, adding 6-foot-wide walking trails alongside ski trails on UAF’s West Ridge and off Farmer’s Loop. The second phase would continue improvements to the Pooch Loop off Farmer’s Loop, an area designated for winter dog walking, and the third phase would continue improvements to West Ridge trails, where dogs are prohibited in the winter.

The plan would make no change in the number of ski trails in the North Campus area, according to Rich Boone, chairman of the North Campus subcommittee.

"I think there was a great fear in the skiing community that we were going to take trails away,"? he said.

The subcommittee’s plan is a testament to the value of gathering input from the public and trail users, who relayed both the importance of maintaining UAF’s historic ski trails and developing a means for non-skiers to use the area during the winter, Boone said. "We obtained a lot of comments and good ideas from people."?

The result is a plan that stands to improve the trail system at UAF and help alleviate conflicts, he said.

"I think we have a good plan because of the input,"? Boone said. "I think we can have coexistence between the two groups without any conflict at all. It helps generate an atmosphere of mutual respect."?

CONTACT: Luke Hopkins, North Campus manager, (907) 474-2648 or via e-mail at lhopkins@fs.uaf.edu. Rich Boone, North Campus subcommittee chairman, at (907) 474-7682 or via e-mail at ffrdb@uaf.edu. Marmian Grimes, UAF public information officer, at (907) 474-7902 or via e-mail at marmian. grimes@uaf.edu.

ON THE WEB: http://www.uaf.edu/mastplan/northcampus/index.html