{"id":16552,"date":"2025-09-14T00:55:50","date_gmt":"2025-09-14T00:55:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/durango-official-weighs-in-after-equestrians-complaint-about-boggy-draw-cyclists\/"},"modified":"2026-03-31T03:58:36","modified_gmt":"2026-03-31T03:58:36","slug":"durango-official-weighs-in-after-equestrians-complaint-about-boggy-draw-cyclists","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/durango-official-weighs-in-after-equestrians-complaint-about-boggy-draw-cyclists\/","title":{"rendered":"Durango official weighs in after equestrian\u2019s complaint about Boggy Draw cyclists"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

\"Sam
Sam Dayzie rides Italian Canyon trail in the Boggy Draw area near Dolores. Dayzie, a former competitive racer, was one of the first to establish the trail by linking up old cow trails.<\/span>du1-i-syn<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>

Earlier this summer, Jessie Kileen was riding her horse along the Boggy Draw trail north of Dolores. The trail system is quiet, traversing fields of sagebrush and pi\u00f1on-oak forests along the edge of McPhee Reservoir, which provides views of the La Plata Mountains and Southwest desert.<\/p>\n

But what was supposed to be a peaceful ride in a beautiful place turned into an argument when a mountain biker, riding quickly along the same trail, failed to announce himself or slow down, she said.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe spooked my horse, and so I asked him to slow down and to talk to me, and he started to yell at me and wouldn\u2019t slow down,\u201d Kileen said. \u201cI blocked the trail with my horse to settle my horse down, and instead of yielding to us, he cycled around us, yelling at me the whole time, and it was just so unnecessary.\u201d<\/p>\n

Kileen said apart from a few heated words, both her and the rider went home that day without injuries. However, the encounter came after a series of similar run-ins, where Kileen or her friends who ride horses were not yielded to bicyclists while out riding the trails around Durango.<\/p>\n

\u201cI used to ride Dry Fork on my horse a lot, and I haven\u2019t for a couple of years because there\u2019s just too many bikes,\u201d she said. \u201cIt\u2019s dangerous for them, you know. If someone came up on my horse fast with a bike, they could get really hurt.\u201d<\/p>\n

Natural-surface trails around Durango like Boggy Draw, Twin Buttes and Horse Gulch are all nonmotorized multiuse trails, meaning recreators can hike, bike, run or ride horseback on them \u2013 all at the same time. According to Durango Parks and Recreation Natural Resource Manager Owen Tallmadge, there is an established etiquette that applies when using public trails, no matter how someone were to use them.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe way it goes is that everybody yields to horses,\u201d Tallmadge said. \u201cAnd then beyond that, bikes yield to pedestrians, like hikers and runners. If you\u2019re on foot, you know the bike is always supposed to yield. Then if it\u2019s bike-to-bike, the downhill traffic yields to uphill.\u201d<\/p>\n

Tallmadge said the guidelines were developed to reduce conflicts between people while out recreating on public trails. It is part of the social fabric to be courteous, respectful and safe while enjoying the outdoors.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re all pretty fortunate just to have the access and ability to get out on trails, and we\u2019re all out there for essentially the same reasons,\u201d Tallmadge said. \u201c\u2026 We\u2019re having fun or relaxing \u2013 getting away from things. So yeah, why be upset with other people out there?\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Pam
Pam Brownlie, left, Susie McGarry and Renelle Stewart enjoy horseback riding and mountain biking on the trails around Durango. Multiple types of uses are allowed, and it is up to users to be respectful and courteous of each other, said Owen Tallmadge. (Photo Coutresy of Jessie Kileen)<\/span>cca<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>

Tallmadge said the trails are a shared resource, and that if people work together to ensure everyone can use them in a courteous, respectful way, everyone will reap the benefits.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy suggestion to resolve that conflict is simply to take a step back and look at a little bit bigger picture,\u201d he said. \u201cTry to change your mindset about why you\u2019re out there, versus being upset that you\u2019re having a conflict with somebody.\u201d<\/p>\n

With that said, Tallmadge acknowledged part of the responsibility trail users have is to be aware of their surroundings. There are some trails that were built specifically with mountain bikes in mind, ones with berms and jumps that make hiking unpleasant. But, when using trails that see heavy traffic \u2013 whether by hoof, foot or tire \u2013 it is important to remember ethical trail use, he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis goes both ways,\u201d he said. \u201cI think everybody needs to recognize that their presence and their activity impacts everybody else\u2019s and we\u2019re all in it together.\u201d<\/p>\n

For Kileen, who is also a cyclist and longtime member of the Durango community, the more important thing is talking to each other while on the trails. Communication helps people and animals know where each other are, how to proceed down a trail and lower tensions.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think the biggest thing is, please speak to us and call out if you\u2019re coming up on us,\u201d Kileen said of horseback riders. \u201cIt is great to hear them for our safety, for their safety and also for hikers. If we\u2019re coming up on a hiker, they should call out to us as well as hold their dogs. We should talk and decide how to pass each other safely.\u201d<\/p>\n

More information on how to traverse the trails can be found at https:\/\/www.durangotrails.org\/trail-etiquette\/<\/a><\/p>\n

sedmodnson@durangoherald.com<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

official reminds recreators to be mindful of all users<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":16553,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[28,658,1300,977,976,1916],"naviga_topic":[],"class_list":["post-16552","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","tag-headlines","tag-hiking","tag-horseback-riding","tag-mountain-biking","tag-outdoor-recreation","tag-trail-running"],"acf":[],"author_name":"dh_admin","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16552","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=16552"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16552\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":20264,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16552\/revisions\/20264"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/16553"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=16552"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=16552"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=16552"},{"taxonomy":"naviga_topic","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/naviga_topic?post=16552"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}