Trail riding is the most popular horseback activity and is growing. More people trail ride their horses than any other competitive discipline. Why not? As obvious animal lovers we naturally love the outdoors and everything that goes with it. Or do we?

Traveling from one location to another giving clinics and trail riding with groups the same complaint comes up again and again. We love the trails we just don't want to share them. This is nothing new. All three major trail user groups feel the same way. Hikers don't want to be bothered with stepping off the trail for horses or stepping in their poop. Biker's surely don't want to slow down or stop on that down hill run just because a horse might spook. But we as horseback riders enjoy a sort of privilege while on the trail because the other two groups have to yield to us. The problem is that there are more of them than there are of us. Also, because of our inherent independence they are better organized. What this means is that we are in danger of losing our privilege.

Since I also enjoy being a part of the other two groups I subscribe to some of their literature and belong to some of their groups. As of late there has been a lot of rhetoric about banning horses from the trails. The way they are going about this is very clever. Instead of just banning the horses from the trails they are making the trails unusable to the horses. Terms like "armoring the trails" and "bringing the trails back to a state of natural beauty". What these terms mean is that the trails will have more rocks and logs and will be narrower.

So how do we as horseback riders battle these techniques or trickery? I could say we should get organized but then I would be repeating what all our local groups have said. There is no denying the good that the Back Country Horseman of California has done. Even our local Sonoma County Horse Council has been very effective in keeping our trails open as well as opening new ones. But what else can be done?

Be more proactive on the trail. Yield to bikers and hikers when the opportunity arises. If your horse poops on the trail, is it too much to kick it off to the side? Talk to people. Thank them for yielding to you when they do. Ask them if they are having a good day or a nice time. Bring a pair of clippers with you and clear the trail when you can. Clean up the parking lot once in a while.

As of late I've been practicing these things more aggressively than in the past.  I've gone to the park without horses but rather a fork and wheelbarrow just to clean up the parking lot.  I've picked up the trash along the trail and packed it out.  I look ahead on the trail and move over if I see a bike or group of hikers coming.  More often than not these actions go unnoticed by individuals or the rangers - but when they do notice it makes a big impact.  This may all sound like I'm tooting my own horn, but in fact, it's all very selfish.  Sharon and I love to trail ride and we don't want to lose that!

If we all do our part to support our local and state organizations we have a much better chance of keeping our parks and trails open to all of us!  Happy trails!