[pct-l] horse encounter tips

[dsaufley at sprynet.com (dsaufley@sprynet.com)]

Mara, 

Thanks for your thoughtful questions.  Hoping all is well with you.  There is proper etiquette for all things, I agree.  I am responding back to the PCT-L since there might be someone out there who really doesn't know what to do when encountering horses on trail.

To answer your question, yes, horses have the right of way (even with automobiles although you'd never know it if you ever ride a horse down a road where cars travel).  Horse riders, like anything else, should have control of their animal, but it's not always the case.  Some tips to keep in mind when encountering horses on the trail to prevent them from spooking:  

-   Stop at at safe distance.

-   Greet and talk to the rider, and ask them what they'd like you to do.  This does two things:  you find out the rider's preference and what works or doesn't work with that particular animal (and boy, can they be different).  You also let the horse know you are a human.  This is especially important if you have appendages like a backpack, umbrella, or bike.  The horse may literally not recognize you as human, and your voice helps them identify you.

-   Unless a rider tells you to, it's never a good idea to go onto the uphill side of the trail -- horses have a natural fear of things taller than them, and being flight animals, you could imperil the rider and horse.

-   Stand still and talk to the horse in a soothing voice as it passes you, for the same reasons stated above.

-   Don't move off too fast after you've been passed by the horse; let a little distance happen and then move out without jerky or rapid movements.  

Hope this helps.

-=Donna Saufley=-

-----Original Message-----
From: Mara Factor <m_factor@hotmail.com>
Sent: Dec 3, 2004 4:40 PM
To: dsaufley@sprynet.com
Subject: Re: Re: [pct-l] bicycles

Hi Donna,

Please notice I am replying privately to your email.

I'm pretty sure to those common trafic courtesy rules apply primarily to 
people using the same locomotion.  Hikers to hikers, bicyclists, to 
bicyclists, etc.

I'm not sure those rules always apply across locomotion types.  There are 
times when I've been on trails that have allowed mixed use where they post 
signs stating the rights of way.  In all cases, hikers and bicyclists must 
yield to horses.  I think bicyclists have to yield to hikers, too.

As a horseback rider, can you confirm this?

I think it also has to do with maneuverability.  For example, when boating, 
boats underway with motors must yield to sailboats and sailboats have their 
own rules based on tack.  That said, even though a tanker knows they must 
yield to sailboats, everybody knows they don't have the maneuverability to 
go around a sailboat so the sailboats try to stay out of the way.

Similar principals probably apply when dealing with horses.

Also, everyone should always be moving in control.  Bicyclists, even if they 
are moving faster than hikers or riders, should always be able to stop in 
time to give people enough time to get out of the way, and to keep from 
startling horses.

If you feel this is worth posting to the list, feel free to reply to the 
list, but I just wanted to ask you about the rules of rights of way for 
riders on horseback.

Thanks,
Mara

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Visit my Travels and Trails web site at:

http://friends.backcountry.net/m_factor
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~



>From: dsaufley@sprynet.com
>Reply-To: dsaufley@sprynet.com
>To: Trekker4@aol.com, pct-l@mailman.backcountry.net
>Subject: Re: Re: [pct-l] bicycles
>Date: Fri, 3 Dec 2004 13:16:17 -0800 (GMT-08:00)
>
>What ever happened to common courtesy,
>
>slower traffic yielding to faster traffic
>
>uphill traffic yielding to downhill traffic.
>
>I was raised to believe these were the guiding principles of using roads 
>and trails.  They apply to all.
>
>It's interesting to me that to some it's about possession, and who makes 
>who stop.  A prevailing attitude that "my activity is better than your 
>activity."  Get out, it's mine.  But remember, we reap what we sow.
>
>The exists etiquette and rules, the problems occur with those who break the 
>rules and ignore the etiquette. And the fact that lack of enforcement is 
>the real culprit.  Unchecked, people do the damnest things, no matter what 
>area of life you're talking about.  Laws and enforcement are necessary 
>components of society, and they're sorely lacking outside of our urban 
>areas.  Vigilanteism is a very dangerous thing.
>
>Bikers don't belong on the PCT, but this discussion has ranged beyond the 
>PCT to any and all trails and a broad comdemnation and antagonism toward 
>mountain bikers.  There's bound to be ugliness that springs from that type 
>of attitude and behavior, whether perpetuated by hikers or bikers.   Can't 
>we all just get along?  Perhaps this thread should be shut down.
>
>-=Donna Saufley=-
>
>-----Original Message-----
>From: Trekker4@aol.com
>Sent: Dec 3, 2004 12:25 PM
>To: pct-l@mailman.backcountry.net
>Subject: Re: Re: [pct-l] bicycles
>
>     Non-motorized bicycles definitely cause lots of trail wear, from tire
>slippage on any uphill or downhill with much of a slope. Anyone, who hikes 
>any
>part of the Colorado Trail open to bicycles, sees it all day, every day; 
>I'm
>sure I'll see it on my 1/3 PCT next spring, especially close to the 
>cancerous
>jungle areas, Greater San Diego and Greater Los Angeles.
>     On the CT, when I heard a bike careening up behind me, I picked a spot 
>to
>step off, but didn't immediately; I'd slowly turn around and pretend to be
>looking for a spot to step off the trail, forcing them to come to a 
>complete
>halt if possible. Sometimes I'd hear a faint, never intelligible yell from
>someone behind me; I've never heard 1 bicyclist with enough sense to yell 
>loud
>enough to be heard over his noise, my boot noise, and the noise attenuation 
>of a
>frame backpack. When they came towards me, I'd always take my sweet time
>stepping off the trail. Sometimes it was fun trying to get them to talk, 
>when they
>were pissed about being stopped, or nearly stopped.
>     One guy did sort of crash his bike to avoid hitting me; he was pissed;
>but I just said, "Hey, you were going way too fast for a blind hill; it's 
>your
>fault." He came over the top of a hill on a soft trail, and I never heard 
>him
>in time.
>     This spring, when I'll have my first digital camera, I may take photos 
>of
>illegal bicyclists; if I do, I'll try to email the pics to the appropriate
>agencies, knowing they probablywon't followup. I'll also make sure the 
>bicyclist
>sees me taking a picture of him and his license plate, if there is a plate.
>I've taken 35mm slides of illegals on the AT, but never followed up.
>     One guy on the AT threatened me; I took my pack off while we were 
>jawing,
>put my camera inside the pack, his license plate went onto my microcassette
>(which he didn't see), pulled out my small pepper spray (which he didn't 
>see &
>which I only carry for 2-legged animals, ie hitchhiking), and played George 
>W
>Bush (before his time to be the first openly warmongering US President) by
>saying, "Come on." I told him he'd have to hit me first, so the law would 
>be on
>my side; I've never hit anyone in my life, but I would have sprayed him as 
>a
>last resort. He never got off his motorcycle; and yes, I was somewhat 
>uneasy;
>fortunately he wasn't much larger than I am.
>     Wayne Kraft, however did your hiking poles get into those spokes and
>wheels? You must have slipped trying to get off the trail. Wow, I wish I 
>used
>poles, so I could slip like that!
>
>Bob
>Big Bend Desert Denizen
>(Naturalized Citizen, Republic of Texas)
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