[pct-l] Mountain Bikes on the PCT?

[lorna at ptera.net]

I hiked the CT this summer.  Mountain biking is allowed on that trail, 
except for in the wilderness sections.  (There are designated mountain bike 
routes around the Wilderness Areas.)  Some parts were very popular with the 
mountain bikers, and it was NOT a relaxing hike.  Only one couple stopped, 
and yielded to me, the hiker, as the signs said they should.  All of the 
rest did not.  They really did act like they ruled the trail.  I might be 
getting old and cranky, but I was starting to be really irritated by having 
to step off the trail all of the time.  I KNOW it was easier for me to step 
off, but still!  Plus, I was surprised, and the adrenaline shot through me, 
several times by bicycles sneaking up from behind.  I was a mountain biker 
for a few years.  It's a blast.  However, you constantly have to pay 
attention to the trail and you're whizzing by so fast and you don't see much 
scenery until you stop.  I know without a doubt that they DO erode the 
trail, and make it dustier, especially around the corners.  The tires create 
gullies so much faster than feet do.  If I was doing more trail work, I 
would be discouraged if I knew mountain bikers would soon be ruining the 
trail that we just fixed.