It was a striking picture published last week. The lieutenant governor of Colorado was captured riding a bicycle at Phil’s World, the popular trail system that winds among the sage, piñon and juniper just east of Cortez.
Joining Donna Lynne were Montezuma County Commissioner Larry Don Suckla, Cortez City Manager Shane Hale, Executive Secretary of the Colorado Commission of Indian Affairs Ernest House, Jennifer Jardine of the Bureau of Land Management and Chris Kehmeier from the Colorado the Beautiful project.
A generation ago, a similar lineup – with the likely exception of Kehmeier – might have been pictured there, but certainly not perched on mountain bikes. The group photo may have featured hard hats and trucks parked at an open gate complete with a cattle guard. The occasion? One to mark new access for natural gas development, perhaps.
The photo summed up the generational shift in our views over multiple use of public lands. Constructed, legend has it, by a rogue rider named Phil and embraced first by the Kokopelli Bike Club and then by Cortez, the county and the BLM, Phil’s World now draws enthusiasts, and dollars, from all over the country.
The photo also emphasized the underlying reason for the gathering. The ride was held to mark the completion of a preliminary analysis of the Paths to Mesa Verde Trail.
The 20-mile non-motorized link between Cortez and Mancos, with connections to Phil’s World, Southwest Colorado Community College and Mesa Verde National Park, is a long way from being completed. But as a featured part of Gov. John Hickenlooper’s Colorado the Beautiful trail program, it is well on its way.
The 10-foot-wide, hard-surfaced trail faces a series of hurdles: Surveys and negotiations to determine the route, environmental studies and cultural assessments, and probably some objections from private landowners who are not happy with the prospects of cyclists, hikers and maybe even horseback riders passing near their property.
We know the ancients linked the villages and cultural centers of this region with major trails long before the advent of motorized travel.
This is one “back to the future” concept that we are happy to support.
