| Safe Trails: All Users Are Equal |
by Erick Wikum
A friend of mine who is an excellent cross-country skier once came upon clearly novice skiers as he skied along a trail. As he approached, the skiers jumped off the trail to get out of his way. He stopped. "There's no reason why you have to get off of the trail for me," he told them. "You have the same right to use the trail as I do."
And so it should be with the Little Miami Scenic Trail. Trail Mail recently received an email from a trail user who stopped to help a mother and young daughter who had both fallen while biking. Fortunately, neither was hurt, but the mother shared a troubling story. "A short time ago two riders approached us while riding side by side and taking up much of the trail. The riders were going very fast and left us little room in our own lane. My daughter wrecked and is very scared now. This is her first ride on a bike trail." The email author surmised that that ride would be the daughter's last for quite some time.
Little Miami Scenic Trail users are a diverse bunch. I am the type who dons lycra and primarily uses the trail for training. Most of my workouts are long, slow affairs, but a few involve intervals and recovery. Whether slow or faster (the trail's posted speed limit is 20 mph), I have adopted the following rule for myself to respect the rights of fellow trail users: At all times be courteous and safe.
Passing children, families, horseback riders, etc. at high speed is neither courteous nor safe. My workouts take a back seat to the enjoyment and well-being of others. I slow to a crawl (in the language of boating, I go "slow, no wake") when passing these groups and clearly announce my presence well in advance with "On your left." I adopt a similarly slow speed when navigating congested portions of the trail, especially near Loveland on weekends and near trailheads.
My rule fits well with the rules and etiquette described on the FLMSP web site as well as special rules Ohio DNR has established for the Little Miami State Park.
By all means, get out and enjoy the Little Miami Scenic Trail. But when you do, remember that, unlike in George Orwell's Animal Farm, "all trail users are equal, and none are more equa
l than others."
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| Patriotic Prepping |
by Rick Forrester
 On the weekend before the Fourth of July, seven volunteers celebrated the future beauty of the United States by prepping over
700 trees for the upcoming fall tree planting. Tom Burroughs, Cindy Kessler, Rod Gossett, Barry Novack, Tom Daulton, Amy Forrester, and Rick Forrester donated over 24 hours of total volunteer time on Saturday performing much-needed maintenance work. Sorting, re-locating, re-tagging, weeding, fertilizing, and watering were all completed during the absolutely beautiful summer day. It was a great way to demonstrate all the volunteers' patriotism. Go Red Oak, White Ossier Dogwood, and Blue Spruce!
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| Boy Scouts Volunteer & Learn |
Two Boy Scouts from Mason's Troop 500 helped complete the installation of top rails on the fence at mile marker 52.5 last week. Spencer Gerdes and Adam Baumgardner learned some valuable skills along with their service, as FLMSP Fence Crew leader Rich Easterly taught them safety and the proper use of tools required in fence repair: circular saw, drill, generator, hammer, speed square, and measuring tape. Thank you, Spencer and Adam, for giving back to our community!
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Tricky Fence Repair Complete
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| Plum Run fence before repair |
The unsafe, leaning bridge guarding the drop to Plum Run near South Lebanon is now repaired and sturdy. Our fence crew and board agreed that professionals were needed because of the dangerous drop-off, so FLMSP contracted with Eads Fence Co. for the repair at mile marker 31.5. Eads dug holes around the existing upright posts, replaced some and reset others, and then leveled and cemented them all. Four structural steel angle supports were mounted to the concrete culvert for reinforcement. Photos below show the completed repair.
FLMSP's investment of $3,117 was a small price to pay for the safety of our volunteers and all trail users.
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| Volunteer Opportunities |
Hotline Monitors: We badly need volunteers to monitor the FLMSP Trail Hotline. Just carry your phone and answer calls or messages regarding trees down on the trail or other non-emergency issues, and then contact the appropriate party to handle the problem. We'll furnish the information you need. Please contact our
Volunteer Coordinator
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Trailwork "Up North"
Saturday, Aug. 19,
8 to 10 am at Roxanna New Burlington R
oad. We'll be heading south on the trail, pushing back the brush and cleaning up the fences for as we can go in 2 hours.
Wednesday , Sep. 13
, 9 to 11 am at mile marker 10.3 (between Roxanna-New Burlington and New Burlington Rd.) We'll be clearing out a tangle of branches that's building up in the creek before it becomes a blockage and the water flows over the trail instead of under it. We'll attack it with loppers, pole saws, and bow saws, and stack the branches up on the bank a few feet away.
Market to Market Relay workers:
Saturday Sep. 9
, 9:30am to 2:00pm at Corwin. FLMSP is sponsoring the Corwin exchange point for the Market-to-Market Relay that runs along our trail. About 10 volunteers are needed to announce the runners as they come into the exchange point, help control traffic, and let the attendees know about the Friends organization. Contact Dick Feldman at [email protected] or 937-307-4012.
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Friends of the Little Miami State Park is a nonprofit organization devoted to the preservation and enhancement of the Little Miami State Park. We assist the Ohio Department of Natural Resources with development planning, capital improvements, and safety concerns, as well as providing most of the maintenance of the park.
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| Trail Taste Adventure: Padrino |
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