This weekend, I took the time to see how the rainstorm had affected the Trinity Trails. The trails themselves were clean in the main areas, but the river crossings were covered in dirt and debris. In addition, the trails were filthy once I got past the trailhead. Since I was on my bike, I had to slow down significantly to avoid falling. During this ride, I thought about Abbey’s anti-car talks within the Industrial Tourism Chapter. On my entire 4-hour ride, I was never on a trail or in an area for a significant amount of time that didn’t have a view of a road for cars. While I understand this is extremely hard in such a large metroplex like DFW, it would be nice to fully immerse in nature while biking. I don’t think that is easily possible while on a road bike, but some paved trails away from main roads would be nice. That being said, I noticed an extensive trail network for horseback riding over by Benbrook Lake. They had a map of a few different routes people could take alongside a rural road. Due to this, I became convinced that Benbrook Lake is a good example of Industrial Tourism done well. They have plenty of roads, so people who may have a hard time walking can easily access the lake or camp sites. On top of this, they have more secluded trails for horseback riding and hiking. While this isn’t exactly something that would please Abbey, I think it is impressive that we can accomplish things like this right next to one of the largest metroplexes in the county. I noticed wild turkey, turtles, hawks, and deer, so they have not been driven away...yet?
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