RANKING TRAILS BASED ON NATURAL HAZARDS INSTEAD OF DIFFICULTY: A CASE STUDY OF STARVED ROCK STATE PARK

Starved Rock State Park in North-Central Illinois is not topographically flat as are many glaciated areas of Illinois—its deep canyons and steep valley walls provide the backdrop for a diverse variety of natural hazards. Geologic hazards include steep canyon walls, flooding with erosion events, loose or unconsolidated rock, and rock falls. Other hazards include falling tree branches, uneven and overgrown trails, and slippery, ice covered paths in the winter. ArcGIS was used to record locations of both hazards and injuries along the trails. These features were spatially joined and a weighted sum computed to create a hazard score for each trail; the values ranged from 5 to 184. These hazard scores were divided into three categories—least, somewhat, and most hazardous. This is a new way to rate trails – not by difficulty, but by how hazardous they are. The Illinois Canyon Trail was the most hazardous with a score of 184. The high score is due to its large number of rockfalls. My next step is to partner with the park to increase visitor awareness of hazards and encourage the public to be more careful where and when they hike. A Trails’ Hazard Rating map might be available to visitors in the future.