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This website has information about the Trail Ninja trail building services. Builders of low impact environmentally friendly single track trails.

The site also provides information on trail design and building techniques. You can find design specifications for trail structures such as bridges and causeways as well as design techniques for technical trail features such as ladders and jump gaps.

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Welcome

I am the Trail Ninja. I plan, design, build and maintain multi-use hiking, cycling and equestrian trails. My trails are natural surface trails and have an extremely low environmental impact. I don't cut down or build into live trees and I design my trails to flow with the landscape and vegetation.

I believe that a successful trail system depends on the environmental and social sustainability of the trail. A well-designed trail will cause minimal damage to the surrounding landscape and require minimal maintenance over time. The trail system should also provide the trail user the experience they are seeking.

Most trails and trail systems developed as a means of travel . Beyond "getting from here to there", little thought was given to the potential long-term effects of the chosen route or the experience provided along the way.

I have put in thousands of volunteer hours building and maintaining the trails on Vancouver Island. If you have ridden or hiked on the trails off Laburnham Rd. west of Qualicum Beach, Malcolm Park in Whiskey Creek, Top Bridge Park in Parksville, Hammerfest in Errington or the Cumberland Community Forest, you may have seen my work.

All this trail building costs a fair amount of money for building materials, tools and vehicle costs to get to the various trails around Oceanside. To be able to spend more time building and improving the local trails, I am offering my services as a hired gun.

I have personally built over 20km of mountain bike singletrack in the Oceanside area since 2005. Yeah, that's a lot.

If you have a trail project and need help or someone to consult with, I am available for hire. You can email me at steve@zapbc.com or phone 250-752-4372.

What is sustainability?

Sustainability on natural surface trail corridors is defined as the ability of the trail surface to support currently planned and future uses with minimal impact to the natural systems of the area. .

• Sustainable trails have negligible soil loss or movement.
• The sustainable trail will allow the naturally occurring plant systems to inhabit the area, recognizing required pruning and eventual removal of certain plants over time
• Sustainable trails will not adversely affect the naturally occurring fauna.
• Sustainable trail design will accommodate existing and future uses while only allowing appropriate uses.
• A sustainable trail will require little rerouting and minimal maintenance over extended periods of time.

For more information on how to plan a sustainable trail system, visit the Resources page.

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