VIC Let's Fix Up the Main Yarra Trails
- Thread starter periperi
- Start date
Then pull your finger out of your arse and do something about it.Lobby council or local government.Don"t wait for others to do what you want.Do it yourself.
scratchy
Farkin Activist
Perhaps not the nicest welcome to Farkin seeing as it is his first post.
Welcome PeriPeri, if your first post on Farkin is about fixing trails I wish you a long and happy stay on Farkin (opps Rotorburn).
There needs to be some investigation of who has responsibility over those trails.
Does anyone know?
Welcome PeriPeri, if your first post on Farkin is about fixing trails I wish you a long and happy stay on Farkin (opps Rotorburn).
There needs to be some investigation of who has responsibility over those trails.
Does anyone know?
shake_rattle_and_ roll
Pumpin'
The condensed verdict.
Unfortunately the Yarra trails are in limbo (yes, a similar limbo to the one they've been in for the last 10yrs) at the moment. Fortunately there are steps (albeit baby ones) that are being taken to address the issue as an official user/ mtb volunteer group working in conjunction with Parks Vic. The dialogue has been positive thus far, however obviously there are a host of associated issues that need to be addressed simultaneously. First and foremost mountain bikers need to be acknowledged as a legal and legitimate user of the trail network before Parks will even consider addressing it. The official stance by Parks, despite the acknowledgement of these trails being maintained by a handful of riders, is that 95% of the Yarra trails are either illegal, or are illegally being used by mtbers.
The trail networks have been maintained for many years by an older crew of trail smurfs who have done the best they can given the limitations of working under the cover of darkness given most of the trails illegality. Other than a very small section of trail running along the Yarra boulevard, Parks have had very little to do with looking after any of the trails due to being an under resourced management body.
Once something a little more concrete has been established an official thread will be started to keep the Melbourne/ Yarra Trail riders informed. In the meantime please refrain from building any new sections of trails and please keep 'maintenance' to a minimum.
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we have been trying to get permision from parks to build a dh trail but every time i talk to them i get told that in the near future they will be talking with people and bike clubs to organize some tracks, but because it is studley/fairfield park i am afraid it will probly only be xc 
me and a few mates have been building jumps along the trail and around the area for a while now. it really is a case of get in the riding before there flattened by council or idiot cross country riders (no offense). Often it is just explore and you'll find some jumps or an interesting trail. Whatever downhill there is usually goes for twenty seconds and can be real boring, however i hear there is plans around kew golf course to build a mountain bike park although im not sure.
sammeh
Likes Dirt
the trails on the yarra that are ..shall I say "broken" "overgrown" or not maintained, are that way usually because the owner has found a better (usually more secret) place to build, with better resources, or otherwise the council or nation park rangers have told him to stop...If you look hard, listen around, there are still many great trails and jumps along the yarra, For example, I know of a smaller DH/Freeride track being build as well as a few sets of jumps, although most of them, (probably all) are illegally constructed, they are there, but not necessarily easy to get to, look around the ivanhoe/kew area and I'm sure you will find something
scratchy
Farkin Activist
The best advocacy gives other riders a way to participate. How do people get involved? Who do they talk to? Is there a club they can join and assist?
That is the most important part and shouldn't be left out, condensed or otherwise.
thelankyman
Likes Dirt
Now I have not ridden the Yarra Trails in a while but i know that Fat Tyre Flyers did regular rides on the trails after work on Tues or Wednes. I imagine that they would be the one to speak to regarding what to do to maintain the trails or what they do to maintain the trails.
I do not endorse illegal trail building esp on such a visible public open space. BUT if the trails are there already and are not being shut down then i see it as a good thing for MTBers to maintain the trails. I am not talking about building new trails but filling in pot holes, fixing erosion and making them more sustainable and safer to ride. I know that the section next to the freeway could be pruned (though prob shouldnt be) and making a more stable surface without grooves.
Regarding the MTB park proposal, I wouldnt hold your breath. These things are notoriously slow esp without someone special taking a particular interest in it.
I do not endorse illegal trail building esp on such a visible public open space. BUT if the trails are there already and are not being shut down then i see it as a good thing for MTBers to maintain the trails. I am not talking about building new trails but filling in pot holes, fixing erosion and making them more sustainable and safer to ride. I know that the section next to the freeway could be pruned (though prob shouldnt be) and making a more stable surface without grooves.
Regarding the MTB park proposal, I wouldnt hold your breath. These things are notoriously slow esp without someone special taking a particular interest in it.
shake_rattle_and_ roll
Pumpin'
Agreed Scratchy, although a novel concept at this point in time. The best advocacy does indeed involve riders, but only when the ground work has already been done to understand all of the issues involved by all of the user groups and stakeholders that may be affected, and a plan drafted and formalised that addresses these issues. I must iterate that no one will be/is being excluded from this process, we just need sufficient time to get a few things in place first so as to be effective in what we're trying to achieve vs being ham-fisted (no offence Spanky) or haphazard about it.
Ample opportunity was presented several months ago (ie Aug or Sept08) when there was a thread created urging riders and users of the Yarra parks and trail network to sign up/express their support of mtbing for inclusion in the Yarra Parks recreation planning proposal for the Yarra Bend/Studley Park/ Fairfield area. Unfortunately, going by the numbers and the direct feedback I've received from Parks Vic, the response from riders was incredibly underwhelming. Naturally it's disappointing, though somewhat indicative of the general attitudes of mtbers. If it's there (the trails), then there's generally only a few who exercise there voices and actions in order to preserve it, but you can be guaranteed that it's only when the trails are gone that riders will spk up- usually to take a swipe at the council or Parks Vic for shutting down the trails that they couldn't be bothered to speak up and be accounted for in the first place. And yes, as you can guess, the apathetic nature of the Yarra's mtbing fraternity tends to be one of the single most frustrating elements in this process, but we're slowly getting there.
There was a handful of us from the Fat Tyre Flyers who were involved in forming a proposal put forth to Banyule City Council back in 2004, which was momentarily embraced by the council at time. So much so that impact assessments were carried out, extensive consultation and collaboration with Parks Vic and Banyule Parks and Gardens undertaken to address and resolve their shortfall in resources, planning and maintenance agendas put in place, and the formal ok for construction of a legal dirt jump facility. The first phase of the project got off the ground with the beginnings of the DJ facility started, however unfortunately it was this very council that was embroiled in a major scandal and as such the powers that be in Banyule's council body were forced to resign from their positions, and the new council scrapped all new projects that the previous council were engaged in. End game 2004.
So to sum it all up, it's back to the drawing board to refine what was done in 2003/2004 and as such things are still very much in their infancy at the moment. Hence why there hasn't been a thread created calling for feedback and support from the mtb community just yet, as we're still in the process of ascertaining the exact issues from Parks Vic's and council's perspective that will potentially mar the advancement of mtbers as a recognised and LEGAL user of the trail networks. Given the extent of progress in the past and the lack of active involvement from mtbers to come to the table, it's imperative that we process all of the info available to us and account for it so as to effectively assess and plan for the numerous variables that work against us as a legitimate user group. Remember, although you probably wouldn't know Scratchy, we're talking about a stretch of trail networks that shadows a 25km+ stretch of river, encompasses 3 different council jurisdictions and just so happens to thread through some of Melbourne most established and affluent suburbs.
As previously stated, a thread will be created once we've shored up a few of the clear pitfalls and there's a structure in place that will allow us to start a much more public dialogue that involves the greater mtb audience who utilise the area.
In the meantime, I'd like to thank all of those who have taken the time and utilised their initiative by PMing me regarding their willingness to help in a variety of capacities. Snozza, Bruce, Peter, Ben R etcetcetc. Likewise a big thanks to those of you from interstate who have been supportive and helpful with regards to shedding light on the issues you've faced and ways of managing them with your own council endorsed mtb facilities. You're time has been incredibly appreciated and invaluable.
Stay tuned. In the meantime tread lightly and please do not carry out any works other than general maintenance of the high traffic trails. Oh and a big shout out to those of you who are training in the Ivanhoe area and are cleaning up your act; went for another 5hr ride through the area and for the second weekend in a row I haven't crossed a single Gu or energy bar wrapper- the trails look amazing without the rubbish, just how they ought to be!
Happy rolling.
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shake_rattle_and_ roll
Pumpin'
Please do. Hopefully we'll have something to report on by then.
mtb101
Likes Bikes and Dirt
Let's build a list of sections in need of repair. Just so we all know what we are talking about here, (anyone know a common naming scheme for sections of yarra trails?)
Spoke to council guy, funny thing, most trails you think are illegal are not, trails are on Melbourne Water waste land, they could be ours - shared use of course, we need to maintain them whether we like it or not!
1. Freeway trail section, just down from Paper Mills Bridge, (great fun/challenging section) trail is deteriorating - we need to rebuild sides, not too much work really. Probably need to reinforce some sections and remake other parts.
Spoke to council guy, funny thing, most trails you think are illegal are not, trails are on Melbourne Water waste land, they could be ours - shared use of course, we need to maintain them whether we like it or not!
1. Freeway trail section, just down from Paper Mills Bridge, (great fun/challenging section) trail is deteriorating - we need to rebuild sides, not too much work really. Probably need to reinforce some sections and remake other parts.
cheif
Likes Bikes
im just curious, what dose happen when you are caught raking out a section of track, of buffing up a sweet tranny or placing a few carefull rocks? if it is not major works and just a bit of love for some existing trails, do we get a old man yelling at us, some sort of fine, worse still loose your spade/rake?
mtb101
Likes Bikes and Dirt
it's community service, nobody really says anything, not cutting new trails, rather optimizing old ones for the better protection of the environment and safety. My mate in the states says his group has trail building days on their favorite trails. We need to think more like this.