HELENA — It's that time of year when folks will be hitting the trails.
Whether hiking, biking, or taking the dog for a walk, the City of Helena is kindly asking people to stay on trail.
"We were getting a lot of trail braiding, which is social trails where people are cutting the switchbacks. And this causes a fair amount of resource damage. If you can imagine an area that just has a spaghetti bowl of trails going all over the place — it's not going to be very pretty. Part of our job is to protect the resource," says Tyler Wock, Assistant Manager, City of Helena's Open Lands Department.
(Hear from the City of Helena why it is important to be respectful out on the trail)
Mountain bikers and hikers alike can agree on one thing: preservation of the Montana Wilderness is of the utmost importance.
Shred MT is a shuttle service that gives rides to people from downtown to the trails. Don't be fooled by the name; the shuttle advocates for conservation.
"We think keeping people on trail is super important. It keeps high-traffic areas low impact - where you can continue to use these public lands," says Bob Horne of Shred MT.
The message from the city is simple. All people using the trails are encouraged to be thoughtful of others out there.
