THE BRIDGE TO SOMEWHERE AND THE WEISSPORT TRAIL

The Bridge to Somewhere, the Weissport Trail, and Protecting a Good Thing

This summer I spent a good deal of time biking the section of the D&L trail through the Lehigh Gorge State Park between Glen Onoko and Rockport. That section of trail accommodates a lot of bike traffic. One afternoon I counted 102 bikes coming towards me between Glen Onoko and Penn Haven Junction - about a six mile section. This was in my mind the first time I rode from Jim Thorpe over the new pedestrian bridge towards Weissport. It struck me that if the traffic in the glen gets reflected down into the Weissport trail, we may have a problem. But its solvable.

The Weissport section of trail is unique. For much of its length, there's water in the canal. The trail winds between the Lehigh river and the canal. There are a couple water crossings on the trail (the exact number depends on how much water is in the canal). The canal is used for fishing, picnicking and general relaxing. So the pedestrian traffic within a few miles of the Weissport trailhead is significant. The way the local community has embraced its trail truly proves that funding these trails improves the local quality of life.

The cyclist seems to be the problem child of family of locomotion. On the road the cars hate them for knocking seconds off their commute time. On the trails the pedestrians hate them because they are the 'cars of the trail'. Yet this is one section of trail that may require extra caution on the part of the cycling community. Group biking is a social event. Typically you don't ride in a group to travel miles in single file, at a pace below your ability. But it may be required here. 

Those 'assembling' groups of bikers to head over the bridge from Jim Thorpe should consider how large is too large? My guess is 10 bikes may be too much - especially if the group is not made up of experienced riders. There's a tendency for a bike to go where its rider is looking . This is true even on an open trail. An inexperienced rider will ride right into oncoming traffic - looking at what they want to avoid. There are sections of trail that two bikes passing in opposite directions have to be careful. Then there will be the traffic jams at the water crossings, baby carriages, someone that just landed a fish... 

I have no evidence that there is currently a problem on this trail. I've had a few 'what are they thinking' encounters, but they are at the noise level - not something that needs a solution. But this is the point. In this case, by being aware of the potential for creating a problem we can avoid causing it.

The pedestrian bridge at Jim Thorpe is a wonderful thing. I've already used it several times to bike from the east side of Jim Thorpe to have lunch in Weissport and Lehighton. There's a good chance it will help more communities share in the dining/lodging/entertainment pie. This can be done without sacrificing one group of users for another - assuming we recognize the potential for problems and bend a little bit to make sure everyone's experience is pleasant as possible.