Jasper-area volunteers joined Parks Canada staff, the International Mountain Bike Association (IMBA), and the Jasper Trail Alliance to make needed improvements to a section of Trail 2b near Pyramid Lake Road, Sept. 12. This work was done as part of a visit by the IMBA Canada Trail Care Crew to Jasper National Park.
The IMBA trail crew is a two-person team of professional trail-builders and educators. For the last six years, Parks has had a partnership program with the IMBA to send the trail crew across the country visiting national parks and national historic sites with the goal of getting Canadians of all ages outdoors and educating them about sustainable trails.
The crew begins its travels each year in the spring with visits to Eastern Canada and then visits Western Canada during the fall months. More than 30 visits and events take place at Parks sites each year. Participation in the events is free and open to all non-motorized trail users. Additional visits are hosted across the country by IMBA Canada-affiliated clubs and other land managers.
Activities typically take place over four days and include a trail project assessment, an IMBA Trail Building School, a social night, and group ride.
Trail work is important as it allows Parks to facilitate positive visitor experiences by connecting visitors to treasured places all while ensuring visitor safety by repairing or replacing facilities that are damaged or at the end of their useful lifespan.
Trail work also plays a critical role in maintaining the ecological integrity of Jasper National Park. Keeping trails, boardwalks, bridges, docks and campsites in good condition ensures that park users can minimize their impact on environmentally sensitive areas by staying on official trails and campsites.
Jasper National Park has been fortunate to benefit from repeat visits from the trail crew.
The park provides accommodations for the crew during its stay, and all the tools for this year’s trail work were provided by the Jasper Trail Alliance.
This year’s IMBA visit to Jasper National Park was led by trail building experts AJ Strawson and Justin Truelove. The crew and volunteers spent a day improving drainage along a section of Trail 2b that had experienced water erosion.
Beginning with its first visit to Jasper National Park in 2007, the trail crew events have completed a number of projects including the re-routing of Trail 2b, lower Trail 3, and wildland trails as well as the construction of a connector between Pyramid Lake Resort and the Pyramid Trail (Trail 15).
Parks Canada
Special to the Fitzhugh
