Editor:
There is a stretch of trail south of 30th Sideroad in Mulmur that should be a beautiful place to walk through the woods, appreciate a piece of local history and, for much of the year, enjoy a beautiful waterfall.
Instead, what you increasingly see is destruction. Deep ATV ruts have been carved into the hillsides. Soil has been stripped away, tree roots are exposed and the top of the waterfall area has been badly damaged. Garbage has been left throughout the bush. Broken glass is scattered through the area. An old stone bridge has been covered in graffiti.
What should be a quiet natural area now carries the signs of repeated abuse.
I want to be clear: this is not an argument against every person who owns or enjoys an ATV.
There are many responsible riders who respect private property, stay where they are permitted, clean up after themselves and genuinely care about maintaining access to trails. Those riders should be among the most frustrated by what is happening here.
Because this is exactly how access gets lost.
When a small number of people repeatedly tear up trails, ride where they are not supposed to, leave garbage behind and damage natural or historic features, municipalities and landowners are left with few options. Roads and trails get closed. Barriers go up. Enforcement increases. And everyone – including responsible ATV owners – loses something.
It does not have to work this way.
ATV clubs, municipalities, conservation organizations, landowners and trail users should be able to work together. Responsible ATV organizations often include people who understand trail construction, drainage, erosion and stewardship. They should be among the strongest voices speaking out against destructive riding.
If riders want municipalities and landowners to consider greater access in the future, stewardship has to come first.
That means calling out riders who are damaging property. It means helping clean up garbage and broken glass. It means respecting closed roads and trails. And where damage has already occurred, perhaps ATV organizations could even offer volunteers to help repair it.
The ruts did not appear overnight. The erosion is substantial, and every heavy rainfall will make it worse.
The graffiti, garbage and broken glass tell another part of the same story: somewhere along the way, a place belonging to the whole community has been treated as though nobody is responsible for it.
That mentality needs to change.
There is room in rural Ontario for hikers, hunters, farmers, ATV riders and many other users of the countryside. But sharing that landscape requires respect.
A beautiful waterfall and a piece of local history should not be destroyed simply because nobody stepped in soon enough.
If we want access to these places, we also have an obligation to leave them in better condition than we found them.
And when members of our own community are damaging them, we should be willing to say something.
Jesse Stevens,
Creemore.
