Policy has to be to keep the trails good by not riding.
Guy called Graham who is a local and a member of one of the clubs – apparently he and other built the trails over the years.
To quote part of his email:
"The Cranham trails have been put in a very basic fashion so to avoid anyone noticing we are even there, (please note: we have never consulted anyone and don’t really want to as to not attract attention) we tend to do work in small groups, some times pairs or in my case on my own. As mentioned the last thing we want is groups of trail builders being spotted around the woods. we really do go in stealth mode and just clear narrow trails with a rake, it’s kept natural as poss. No more than a trail laid down by the animals really.
As mentioned the trails are taking a bashing but as in all the years I have been riding there, they soon sort themselves out once the dry weather arrives… and it will some day soon.
To be honest it’s all best left alone. Hope this helps us all keep Cranham as it is. Last thing we want is to be kicked out. The local ranger is aware of basic trails and rides them himself. Although major work may cause him concern."
I agree about managing it – The potential issue in the future could be one of widening of trails due to bad conditions – trails becoming more heavily used as they become more visible to people who haven’t got local knowledge – more riders being seen – locals complain – then trails closed down.
I think if this does happen then when is a good time to step in and show that while we are enjoying the woods we are also caring for them and making the use sustainable.
Similar work / discussions on Lecky has made biking more accepted by other users of Lecky – if there is a concern about use in Cranham then surely it needs to be addressed before it gets out of hand. (Perhaps)
I’m not close enough to it to really know but this is my perception and thoughts on it and not really sure if this would work in Cranham due to the nature of ownership over there.
