Mary Hills/Sochacki Park: Be Careful!

[christopheram]

If you live in the northwest part of MPLS, Robbinsdale, etc., you may enjoy detouring through the Mary Hills/Sochacki trails on your way to see the closed gate at Theo first-hand. Recently there has been a lot of what I call "trail terrorism" going on. The bridge across the little creek has been rigged so that you can get your front wheel caught between the boards if you're not careful. Watch your speed on that one! Also, dead trees, logs, and stumps are frequently appearing lengthwise on the tread after blind corners, and sticks are being strung across the trail in spots where you can really hurt yourself. I took one in the helmet the other day, and thankfully it wasn't wedged into the brush very tight.

Whoever is doing this has obviously given up on the rational approach to communicating his deficiencies and is out to hurt cyclists, trail runners, etc. Please be careful out there!

[egoo]

Chris, I took a big fall on that bridge a couple weeks ago when the boards split on me. The rib still hurts. A couple of nails and a crossboard underneath would fix it. Hopefully.

[jag]

This has been going on for a few years. Just have to ride knowing that a surprise may pop up anytime. Just keep pulling the stuff out of the way. I talked to some of the regular hikers and they help pull the stuff off the trails too. I think I have almost caught the funny people that do this a couple times. And don't ever trust any bridge in that spot. I'd rather not have a bridge there at all. Go into it ready to lift your front wheel just in case.