There is need of more and better trails on most of the National
Forests. They are of capital importance, because they are not only
the best insurance against fire, but one of the chief means by which
the Forests can be seen and used.
A general system or scheme of trails for the whole Forest should
first be carefully thought out and decided upon, and those of the
greatest immediate importance for protection and patrol should be
built first. Trails urgently needed may be made good enough for
ordinary saddle-horse or pack-train travel at once, with a view to
improvement and permanence later on.
The most important part of trail work, and that for which the
supervisor will be held directly responsible, is the preliminary
location of the line and grade. Construction work should not begin
until he is satisfied that the best route has been selected.
The maximum grade of all Forest trails should be 20 per cent, unless
the expense of keeping within this limit is absolutely prohibitive.
When it is found necessary to build switch backs, the turns should be
level and wide enough to give plenty of room for a loaded pack
animal.
Logs, snags, brush, or limbs that require turn-outs on a traveled
trail will be considered as marks of inefficiency on the part of the
ranger in whose district they are found.
Trails through timber should be well blazed. The forest Service has
adopted a distinctive blaze for trails on the Forests, consisting of
a blaze at breast-height, with a notch above, which should be used in
all future work. For the benefit of the traveling public, all Forest
trails should be equipped with signboards stating the name of the
trail, its destination, and the distance in each direction to its
terminal points.