Adventure "Vandals" Add More Single Track in Forrest Park

With 5100 acres, Forrest Park, within the city limits of Portland, OR, is one of the nations largest urban forests. The park has an amazing variety of natural fauna and wildlife including a native Cutthroat Trout population and 63 mammals including including a population of Bobcats. A mix of old and second growth forest, this park has been a key player in helping to establish Portland as one of the nations Mecca's for green living and outdoor adventure. With this being said, it came as a surprise to me this morning when I heard that "Portland Officials" were now "hunting" for a group of mountain bikers who have taken it upon themselves to build a new mile of single track mountain biking trail within the boundaries of the park.

To the "Portland Officials" credit I do believe that it is imperative to keep this park alive and healthy but to what extent do we limit the creativity of the people using the park as a place for safe and environmentally friendly recreation. The argument that the officials make is that in their creation of the trail these bikers have disturbed the native wildlife and destroyed some of the natural fauna including the habitat of the Northern Pygmy Owl and the destruction of multiple western red cedars.

I don't know how realistic it is that the "Portland Officials" will ever actually apprehend the trails creator/creators but with more and more people in Portland taking it upon themselves to enjoy the unique beauty of an urban temperate rain forest I doubt that this will be the first altercations of recreation vs environment that we hear about in the near future.