Inspired by those who use his community’s trails, West Bragg Creek resident Eric Lloyd decided to spearhead an ambitious project to improve the popular trail system.
Eric Lloyd, special projects coordinator for the Greater Bragg Creek Trails Association (GBCTA), launched the West Bragg Creek All Season Trail Plan to improve, protect and expand the trails, while reducing impact on the local watershed and minimize the environmental impact of recreational use by the growing number of people utilizing the trail system.
The West Bragg Creek trail system, which originated in 1978 as part of the initial development of Kananaskis Country, has grown from 45,000 visitors in 2009 to 135,000 visitors in 2014, who use the trails for cross-county skiing, snowshoeing, hiking, mountain biking and horseback riding.
In 2009, to address the need for multi-use trails, the GBCTA signed a 10-year partnership agreement with the province to develop and fund the West Bragg Creek All Season Trail Plan, as well as to do volunteer ski-track setting and trail maintenance.
“It was clear that the users wanted all-season trails, and the original trails were never managed for that,” said Lloyd. “These are well-designed sustainable trails that don’t erode through the use of modern design and construction.”
The five year project, which is 80 per cent complete, has raised $650,000 over the last four years, and has added an additional 62 km of new trails, expanding the West Bragg Creek trail network to 108 trails.
According to Lloyd, the monies raised from private donors, including funding of $125,000 from the province’s Community Facilities Enhancement Program, and a recent grant from the federal government, would be used to upgrade and repair the West Bragg Creek trails.
In early February, the Government of Canada and the National Trails Coalition committed $26,000 in funding to the GBCTA towards the West Bragg Creek All Season Trail Plan.
“It is great that the federal government is providing us with some financial support and we are hoping that there will be more,” said Lloyd.
“I believe that the final steps required to complete the expansion and upgrading of the West Bragg Creek trails to a worldclass, non-motorized trail system will be accomplished through the volunteer and financial support of many hundreds of trail users and dozens of collaborating organizations, including the National Trails Coalition.”
Macleod MP John Barlow said the federal government and the National Trails Coalition have partnered to make available $10 million between 2014 and 2016 to build and improve multi-purpose trails across Canada.
“Recreation trails are a very important part of communities, because their use leads to healthier lifestyles and improved quality of life,” said Barlow.
Lloyd said the project, which has garnered 12,000 volunteer hours, is successful due to the collaborative efforts of the hundreds of volunteers and many supporters of the GBCTA.
“The West Bragg Creek trail project is a worthwhile program that will promote outdoor activities, healthy lifestyles and be an economic boost to the area,” said Barlow. “Therefore, I will be supporting them on an ongoing basis by helping them access potential federal grants and funding whenever possible.”
“It is incredible to see how this community organization, with such a dedicated group of volunteers, took on a task of this magnitude,” Barlow added. “I have a lot of respect for the group for the work they’ve done.”
Barlow said it is important for other trail organizations and community groups to be made aware of the funding available through the National Recreational Trails Program, as the government is planning to fund between 150 to 200 projects across Canada over the next two years.
To apply for grants from the National Recreational Trails Program visit infrastructure.gc.ca/prog/nrtp-psrn-eng.html.
For more information on GBCTA and the West Bragg All Season Trail Plan Implementation Plan visit braggcreektrails.org.
