What Clubs Need To Know About The Trail Inspection Process

The main goals of the trail inspection program are trail safety and maintaining trail maintenance standards. The most basic assumption guiding development of the inspection program is that trail inspections are to be objective and informational. As a result of trail inspection training classes, each inspector is an expert in the focus of all inspections. Focus items for this year's inspections are: compliance with intersection signing guidelines, trail hazards and obstructions, and trail/map inconsistencies.

All inspector training classes will be finished by the middle of November. All inspection assignments for individual inspectors should be completed by the first part of December. By the middle of December, each club should receive a contact from the inspector assigned to their trails. Only funded trails will be inspected. Each inspector will have a map showing funded trails in the county and will know which specific trails to inspect. Assigned inspections will not exceed 50 miles, so if your club is maintaining 150 miles of funded trail, you could be contacted by up to three or four different inspectors.

When the club is notified of an inspection, it will be asked to participate in the actual inspection. Club participation means that it may send one (1) representative to accompany the inspector. This person will ride along with the inspector, but the inspector leads the inspection ride.

It is up to the club and the inspector to mutually agree to a specific day (any day of the week is fine), time, and place to meet.   Assignments are made so that the Inspector is riding on unfamiliar trails.

Compliance with Intersection Signing Guidelines

Each District Director and Trails Fund Coordinator was sent a copy of the booklet that details intersection signing guidelines.   It is also posted on the state association website. Any club that has not received these guidelines needs to contact their District Director or County Trails Fund Coordinator as soon as pmsibJe. Jf that is not surWvRS&J, then the club needs to contact the NYSSA TGSA Trails Coordinator at jenvai@adeiphia.net.

The trail signing manual published several years ago by Parks is still in effect. The intersection signing portion of that manual is amended to account for the two new changes in intersection signing, which are:  1) intersection identification on the guidepost and 2) an accurate trail number sign on each trail leading away from the intersection.

The Inspection Report

Each inspector will have an inspection report to record observations, which will be shared with the club representative through the course of the inspection. The report will note intersections that are in compliance with guidelines as well as those that are not. For intersections not in compliance, evidence will be cited on the inspection report and photographs taken for documentation. There are six (6) categories in the intersection guidelines, producing 22 coded deficiencies that might be identified on any intersection.