Factors influencing informal trail conditions: Implications for management and research in Urban-Proximate parks and protected areas

Abstract

With growing urban populations in close proximity to natural environments, recreation resource managers in parks and protected areas (PPAs) are increasingly confronted with challenges such as high levels of visitation and severe resource impacts. Additionally, urban-proximate PPAs, particularly informal trails in these areas, have received little research attention relative to more remote PPAs and formal trails. The formation of informal trail networks in urban-proximate PPAs can lead to extensive resource impacts such as loss of vegetation cover and soil erosion. Use-related, environmental, and managerial factors have been found to influence trail conditions and degradation on formal trails. We use a well-established rapid assessment field protocol and GIS-derived calculations to analyze informal trail conditions, and the factors influencing those conditions in a high alpine urban-proximate PPA. We find informal trail networks are extensive and that informal trails are influenced by use-related, environmental, and managerial factors in a similar fashion as formal trails. Additionally, results from predictor effect plots allow us to derive valuable management implications focused on where to concentrate use and minimize environmental impacts. Our study concludes with implications to further advance research related to informal trails, such as the need for sound sampling designs and the potential of trail research as a basis for further analysis on environmental susceptibility.