That’s a Whole Bunch of Fence Going Up on Grand Junction’s Audubon Trail

Have you walked the Audubon Trail lately? Have you noticed the thousands of feet of fence being put up along the path? It's pretty hard to miss.

A massive fencing project is underway on the Audubon portion of Grand Junction's Riverfront Trail. For a few weeks now, two workers have been putting up chain link fence on the north side of the trail.

This is no modest undertaking. At present, I would estimate they've put in the better part of a half-mile of fence. So far they've been observed working ever day of the week.

I've tried to contact the Riverfront Commission to inquire as to what's going on with the construction. Unfortunately, no information has come back yet.

If you look north from various points of the trail, you notice "No Trespassing" signs. These have been there forever. There's private property all along this route. Years ago, members of my family owned property along the trail.

Some owners have already expressed frustration with various people using the land as a place to camp. If you walk this trail enough, you'll eventually see tents and "compounds" set up in area. Every once in a while you'll see a guy curled up in a sleeping bag on the private property.

If the objective is to keep transients out, I'm doubtful it's going to be effective. You can't run the fence forever. Ultimately, it comes to an end, and a person can simply walk around it. Take a look at the fencing on the north side of the Colorado River by the pedestrian bridge by Eagle Rim Park. That fence keeps no one out.

In any event, I love this trail. I would prefer the scenery not be obscured by fencing, but I guess that isn't my call.