Jasper National Park of Canada

Park Management

Jasper Trails Project

In the Loop - The Official Newsletter of the Jasper Trails Project

• Issue 1 - June 2006
• Issue 2 - October 2006
• January 2008

You're travelling where they're travelling.

Jasper National Park was granted $1.7 million from a unique Government of Canada fund to support ecological goals in Canada’s national parks.

Over the next three years, this money will be used to involve the Jasper community, trail enthusiasts and others in an initiative to reconfigure and expand the 190 kms of trails surrounding the town. This project also aims to upgrade existing trails and reclaim wildlife areas so that all users can enjoy excellent trails in the best possible locations – ecological and recreational.

Watch for opportunities to get involved! Jasper National Park is inviting all trail users to participate in a unique opportunity to give one of Canada’s great places the kind of trail network it deserves!

Jasper’s Trail Network
The Issue

Mary Schäffer © Whyte Museum of the Canadian Rockies

Parks Canada maintains over 190 km of trails in the area immediately surrounding the Town of Jasper.
These popular trails originated in the mid 20th century as horse trails, logging trails and recreational trails. They were developed at a time when people were not aware of wildlife needs or sensitive habitats, and the impacts popular recreational pursuits can have on them.

In recent years the numbers of recreational trail users and the variety of trail uses have increased, creating a number of problems:

• Sections of trail have seriously deteriorated, especially where soils are prone to erosion, or where rocks and roots are easily exposed. This has encouraged trail users to spread out, creating a braided network that is impacting vegetation.
• Many hikers, bicyclists and horse riders seeking solitude and better trail conditions have begun to use game trails. Research suggests that wary wildlife species such as bear, wolf and cougar avoid trails used by more than 60 people a month.
• With increased trail use and a greater variety of recreational activities being pursued, conflicts between the various users have become much more pronounced.
• Many existing trails are situated in the valley bottoms, critical habitat and important movement corridor routes for many of Jasper National Park’s wildlife species.

In 2001, representatives from various facets of the community formed the Jasper Trail Stewards. Together, the group developed ideals for ...

Ideal Trail and Trail Network Principles

Biking © Parks Canada

Aesthetic/Recreational

Trail Network

• The trail network caters to a diverse group of users.
• The trail network offers variety and choice for different seasonal conditions, uses and abilities.
• The trail network incorporates a variety of loops and links to the greater network.
• There are trails within the network that afford solitude; a place to experience wilderness.
• The trail network offers varied views and settings.
• The trail network provides educational opportunities, engaging trail names, and degree of difficulty ratings.

Trail

• The trail applies sustainable trail design principles.

Ecological

Trail Network

• The trail network provides areas for wildlife to move freely across the landscape.
• The trail network avoids areas of known high quality habitat.
• The trail network avoids sensitive habitats like grasslands, wetlands, and aspen and Douglas fir stands.

Trail

• The trail provides access to only one side of any lake or wetland.
• The trail crosses, rather than follows, riparian streamside areas to minimize impacts.
• A trail on a ridge stays on one side of the ridge top to prevent wildlife disturbance to both sides of the ridge. Ridge trails may intermittently sway onto ridge tops at aesthetically valuable locations to provide views in both directions.
• The trail surface disturbs as narrow an area as possible to help minimize the zone of influence.
• The trail skirts, rather than penetrates sensitive wildlife habitats like grasslands, wetlands, and aspen and Douglas fir stands.

Who's Using the Trails

Hikers © Parks Canada

Every year thousands of Park visitors and residents use the extensive trail network adjacent to the townsite of Jasper. They hike, mountain bike and ride horses to access the scenery and wilderness for which this particular section of Jasper National Park is renowned.

This concentration of activity in a sensitive environment creates a dilemma not uncommon in many national parks, both in Canada and around the world – how to offer visitors and residents the very best opportunities to explore a unique area in ways that also protect its ecological integrity.

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Giving Wildlife Room to Roam

Bears © Parks Canada

A healthy landscape that supports bears, wolves, cougars and the mix of plants and animals that they depend on is part of the attraction and satisfaction of living in and visiting Jasper National Park. Wildlife move through the landscape in search of food, shelter and mates. People use trails in these same areas for recreation, exercise and solitude. Large carnivores such as bears, wolves and cougars are wary of people and tend to avoid human activity and development. These animals need to have enough room to move and meet their needs without coming into conflict with people.

From 1998-2001 park biologists studied how human activity around the town of Jasper affects wildlife moving through the area. Remote cameras and trail counters were put up on trails that are part of the park’s official trail system, as well as on nearby game trails. Cameras triggered by a remote sensor showed exactly what kind of human use and which animals used the trails.

The Next Step- The Jasper Trails Project

Two committees will guide the project over its three-year life span:

1.The Planning Committee

The Planning Committee’s role will be to:

• finalize the committee terms of reference;
• develop and finalize a formal trail network plan;
• finalize the ‘ideal trail principles’;
• monitor the project work plan;
• develop communication, sign and interpretive plans;
• engage and update the community with progress reports.

The Planning Committee will meet frequently throughout the length of the project. Planning Committee members must demonstrate a willingness to dedicate the necessary time to attend meetings, training sessions and have prior and productive committee experience.

2. The Steering Committee

will be comprised of a variety of new and traditional partners from the regional and national stage, as well as one member representing the Planning Committee. The role of this committee is to advise and steer the project towards successful completion of the overarching goals. Its tasks include:

• developing project principles and a draft terms of reference for the planning committee;
• resolving conflicts that arise from the planning committee work;
• reviewing final plans to ensure project principles are being adhered to and objectives are being met.

It is anticipated that the Steering Committee will meet 4-5 times over the life of the project.

Three Parks Canada staff, a project manager, a GIS/monitoring specialist and a communications specialist, will coordinate and support the work of the two committees.

Project Targets

Phase 1:

Engage the community and establish core capacity– Fall 2005

• Recruit project manager, GIS/monitoring specialist and communications specialist.
• Establish the steering and planning committees.
• Develop communications strategy and committee terms of reference
• Create community awareness.

Phase 2:

Trail work and trail network planning – Winter 2005 through Summer 2006

• Trail work: begin with upgrades that are obvious and non-controversial.
• Complete development of GIS trail planning tools.
• Develop principles for the ideal trail.
• Implement monitoring and begin reporting on baseline conditions.

Phase 3:

Trail implementation – Summer 2006 through Spring 2008

• Committees complete the trail network and interpretive plans.
• Trail work: Trail crews and volunteers complete trail repairs, new trails, reroutes and decommissioning of trails in sensitive areas.