Our sincerest condolences to the family of the bike rider who lost his life due to a loose dog on the river trail. It is truly a preventable tragedy.
As Durango residents for the last 38 years, we have learned to avoid the trail during the warmer months, as the population boom has seen an obvious increase in bikers and unleashed dogs. This combination has caused us countless encounters that have threatened us and our dogs. The fact that a person and dog(s) have died is abhorrent.
It is the reason we always carry (and have used) dog spray when we do walk the trail with our dog. It is also the reason we will now start carrying bear spray instead, as a bigger deterrent. Julie Dreyfuss' comment, “Our animal protection officers need the community to police themselves, because there’s only two of us on duty at any time,” will most certainly be taken to heart and is just asking for a more violent end to an encounter.
Obviously, more human patrols and actual enforcement of the rules would help. Stop “educating” rule breakers. At the very least, it is way past time for the city to put up more signs posting rules and speed limits on the trail. Yellow paint down the middle of the trail would help, as would signage instructing bikers to announce their approach to pedestrians.
Durango is lucky to have this gem, but the dangers far outweigh the benefits at this point. Do something now!
Jane and Dave Dunn
Durango
