EvergreenMTB - Support Improved Trails in Snohomish County Washington
Support Snohomish County's Master Plan with Improved Bike Trails in Lord Hill
Snohomish County is working on a 20-year Master Plan effort for Lord Hill Park—a 1463-acre park located between the communities of Everett, Snohomish, and Monroe. Evergreen‘s draft concept map and proposal creates a bike priority zone and improves the quality of existing trails for a much-improved rider experience—but we need your voice!
Evergreen’s proposal prepares this unique, multi-use park for future growth, reduces potential for trail user conflict, and sustainable redesigns and rebuilds present trails, reducing erosion and runoff in order to protect the park’s sensitive ecology.
Use this example form letter to express your support for Evergreen’s proposed trail network. Recent media reports about our proposal for Lord Hill has spurred some local residents to protest the master planning efforts. We need your help to show County Council and the Parks Department that you support their efforts.
Please email your comments this week (sample text below):
Tom Teigen, Tom.Teigen@snoco.org
Parks Director, Snohomish County Parks and Recreation
Amy Lucas, Amy.Lucas3@co.snohomish.wa.us
Senior Park Planner, Snohomish County Parks and Recreation
Nate Nehring, Nate.Nehring@snoco.org
District 1 (Stanwood, Arlington, Darrington, Marysville, Lake Stevens, Granite Falls)
Brian Sullivan, Brian.Sullivan@co.snohomish.wa.us
District 2 (Tulalip, Everett and Mukilteo) – Council Chair
Stephanie Wright, Stephanie.Wright@snoco.org
District 3 (Edmonds, Lynnwood, Woodway) – Council Vice Chair and Operations Committee Chair
Terry Ryan, Terry.Ryan@snoco.org
District 4 (Bothell, Brier, Mill Creek, Mountlake Terrace, Lynnwood)
Sam Low, Sam.Low@co.snohomish.wa.us
District 5 (Bothell, Monroe, Snohomish, Lake Stevens, Sultan, Gold Bar, Index) Lord Hill is in Mr. Low's District!
Dave Somers, Dave.Somers@co.snohomish.wa.us
County Executive
"Dear _________,
I’m writing to express support for the Department of Park and Recreation’s efforts to develop an updated Master Plan for Lord Hill Park, and for taking the initiative to create a 20-year vision for this well-loved multi-use park.
I strongly support the Parks Department and the Evergreen Mountain Bike Alliance’s (Evergreen) draft proposal to include recreational priority zones within the park, and to provide user-specific trail networks to improve the recreational experience for all park users.
Evergreen’s proposed concept map reroutes and rebuilds poorly designed informal trails into a well-connected and easy-to-navigate trail network. It focuses on concentrating bike use in the NW section of the park to reduce user conflict that could arise from increased park usership over the next 20 years. The plan also ensures that trails are more sustainably built with better drainage and erosion control.
I strongly believe that this master plan effort is needed to prepare the park for sustainable future use, to repair currently unsustainable or wet trails, and to best cater to increasing multiuse events.
I have been following recent media about community concerns. My understanding is that the Master Plan will actually protect the park’s ecology, habitat, and user experience over the next 20 years and that it will prevent the user conflict and unsustainable trail design issues raised in the media.
Evergreen’s plan to design and build bike-specific trails for various rider levels and styles will ensure that Snohomish County mountain bikers can enjoy this park for years to come. Including some directional bike-only trails allows for advanced riders to safely enjoy a downhill trail without the worry of hikers or equestrians (and vice versa) thereby eliminating user conflict. All other multi-use trails within bike-priority zone would be multi-use and built with good line of sight to avoid user conflict. Evergreen also supports the equestrian priority zone as proposed by local equestrians.
Mountain biking is growing fast. If the County does not prepare a well-balanced plan, additional riders will continue to visit Lord Hill and venture out on trails that are increasingly busy and not designed to handle that heightened use. This growth could increase erosion, runoff, as well as user conflict in the future. The current draft plan will ensure this doesn’t happen.
In my personal opinion, Evergreen is collaborating to help protect the park’s equestrian history and has proposed a balanced solution given the current lack of mountain bike trails in Snohomish County.
Thank you for helping to preserve and protect the County’s park.
Sincerely,"
Author Info:
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Evergreen knows well how many people live in Snohomish County and how little trails there are for mountain biking and is advocating for an improvement and small expansion of trails at Lord Hill.
From your perspective, can you list off which existing trails should largely remain untouched?
It forever changed the way I feel about any park that shares bikes and equestrians.
I have friends that ride horses and have similar passion with their sport as I do with mountain bikes. Nothing against equestrians but everything against trying to build an area where both passions habitat.
Just my $.02, Long live Duthie.
My worst interactions on multi-use trails were always with Horse Riders save for 1 excellent interaction North of Ellensburg, WA. The guys I rode with all had a strict policy of killing the engines and dragging the bikes as far off the trail as soon as we saw horses. We always got the death glare from all of the riders. The worst interaction was one spill I had that resulted in me tearing my meniscus and being trail side for an hour or so until the Advil kicked in enough for me to limp myself and bike back to camp. We had several groups of horses pass within feet, not a single one said "Hello, hi, can we help?" etc.
On the other hand, whenever encountering MTBs on mixed-use trails it was always positive or at least neutral. We always gave right-away to up hill cyclists and exchanged hellos and went our separate ways.
I now live/work near Bridle Trails State Park and I can say that save for Duthie, no other group has ever got such special treatment as the horse riders that occasionally use that park.