Horse damage to bridge

[bushwhacker]

It appears that someone on horse back rode up the Foxglove trail, over Devils Rest and exited at that short cutoff
spur trail that gets you to the Mult. Basin Road. Not exactly sure where they entered. I just picked up the horse tracks
at the Foxglove junction so it must have been some where between Angles Rest and the Foxglove junction.

Any way the issue is that they went across one of those small bridges and you can tell where the horse broke through
the bridge in a number of places. This would be the first small bridge as you come down from Devils Rest headed East.
The pictures show the bridge and where I tried to get a picture of the horse track on the opposite side (East side) of the bridge.
These looked like pretty recent tracks. Like within the last day or two. Amazed that the horse didn't get injured.

I did swing by the Forest Service Info center at Mult. Falls and report this and will be forwarding these pic's to them as requested.

[Guy]

Yikes, lucky the horse didn't break a leg.

[Splintercat]

Were there other signs of horses on the trail (e.g., shoe prints or manure)? I can't imagine a competent horse owner riding across a bridge like that... much less on a trail that isn't open to horses. Could it be simple vandalism..?

Tom

[Lurch]

if it was a horse I think it's more likely they they came up/down palmer, possibly through bridal veil plateau.

[bushwhacker]

Were there other signs of horses on the trail (e.g., shoe prints or manure)? I can't imagine a competent horse owner riding across a bridge like that... much less on a trail that isn't open to horses. Could it be simple vandalism..?

Tom

I followed the horse tracks up from Foxglove and over Devils Rest. They were pretty obvious due to the soft ground. Here's a couple of feeble attempts at pictures of the horse tracks at the East end of that bridge.

I talked with the FS again yesterday afternoon and I guess they sent a ranger up there to check it out. Not sure was all they can do other then to put up some signs and hope that who every is doing this can read. This isn't the first time I have seen horse tracks through this area.

[trailupdater]

The Forest Service and Multnomah County Adult Community Services crew was up there today taking it apart. Re-building will happen tomorrow.

[Peder]

The Forest Service and Multnomah County Adult Community Services crew was up there today taking it apart. Re-building will happen tomorrow.

Wonderful and so many thank yous!

[trailupdater]

The bridge has been replaced. The interesting thing is that the cedar sills, which were last installed in 1994, were completely solid, so we were able to reuse them. They stay so completely wet all year that it is an anaerobic environment and fungus cannot grow. Typical wisdom says to keep your sills out of ground contact, but in this case they did fine completely wet.

[bushwhacker]

I was through there myself today. Looks fantastic! Should be good for the next 100 years Thanks for all your effort.

[miah66]

Or until the next horsepacker comes through.