EAGLE, Idaho — The City of Eagle has approximately 30 miles of trails and eight miles of Greenbelt, and people are taking full advantage.
According to the city’s Trails and Pathways Superindent, Steve Noyes, use of the trail systems has gone up since Gov. Brad Little’s stay-at-home order was issued in late March.
“What we’ve seen on the trails is very encouraging,” Noyes said. “The use is way up - it’s not just the weather, it’s obviously this shelter-in-place situation that we have."
Experts have said that spending time in nature - even a short walk - can reduce stress levels, acting as a crucial balm at a time when anxiety levels are spiking.
Noyes agrees.
"Anxiety and stress are the number one things that are being treated in this crisis, and that can have a long-term effect," he said. "If we’re not able to keep these facilities running during this, I think we’re doing a disservice, but we have to do it safely."
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Noyes said that excessive use could complicate the city’s decision on whether or not to close their trails. Recommendations from the Center for Disease Control or Gov. Little will weigh into that decision as well.
But there are a few simple things trail users can do in the meantime to ensure the trails will not close.
“Keeping space from one another: When people are passing you on the trail, make room for them," Noyes said. "Be courteous, be polite. People are under a lot of stress. Keep dogs on leashes. I know people are, but these are just reminders.”
The trails in Eagle have only been closed once in recent memory, according to Noyes.
“We had a flooding incident all along the Greenbelt in 2017,” he said. “The banks were unstable, a lot of them were being undercut, and we had to shut the trail systems down, and boy, that a was a loss to the community.”
RELATED: Boise trails, many other open spaces remain open, but monitoring of social distance to increase
Noyes said he does not want to see the trails close again, and trusts that people will keep up their good social distancing practices.
“Trail users, in general, are people that pitch in, they get behind a cause, they understand what needs to be done, and we’re seeing it out there,” he said. “We get a lot of feedback, we have a lot of positive support, and we just really feel like there’s an awareness factor out there that’s going to keep us able to maintain this kind of service to the community.”
The City of Eagle is currently using traffic counters to monitor the number of people using the trails.
Restroom hours have been modified to 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.
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