jakejones•11d agoProlific Poster

Update: Hiked the old trail up to Lake Serene in Washington last week and it's totally different now

I first did that hike maybe 8 years ago, and back then it was just a rough, muddy path with a few faded ribbons tied to trees. You had to really pay attention or you'd lose the trail. Went back last week and the whole thing is a proper, graded path with stone steps, wooden bridges over every stream, and clear signs at every turn. It's way easier on the knees, for sure, but it felt kinda... tame. I miss that old feeling of finding your own way through the woods. The view at the top is still amazing, but getting there used to be half the adventure. Now it feels like you're just walking up a very long staircase. Has anyone else been on a trail that got a big makeover and lost some of its old charm?

3 comments

3 Comments

parker_palmer4411d ago

Remember reading about how they manage trails in national parks. They call it "recreational carrying capacity" which is a fancy way of saying how many boots a path can take before it turns into a wide, muddy scar. That old, wild trail you loved probably got loved to death. The stone steps and bridges are a trade-off, they protect the ground from all of us. It stops the hillside from washing away, but yeah, it sure does change the feel. Makes you wonder if the best way to save a place is to change it into something else entirely.

evan_green5210d ago

Got totally lost on a trail once after they added all the boardwalks. Felt like a mall. What helped was just picking a spot to sit for a minute. Stopped trying to follow the signs and just listened. Found my way by the sound of the creek I remembered. Sometimes you have to ignore the new stuff to find the old place.

susanb3411d ago

I know what you mean. My sense of direction is so bad, I'd probably still get lost on the new fancy trail. What's the point of all those signs if I still can't follow them?