A member of the Menesetung Trail Association board has approached Huron County council for a little help with an erosion problem.
Mike Dawson said the Maitland River is shifting its course near the north end of the Menesetung Bridge and that's leading to some erosion beneath the Tiger Dunlop Trail. In February, a flood situation cut into the bottom and damaged some parts of the lower trail.
Dawson said their engineer suggests that if there's ongoing erosion, it could start to threaten the upper trail, and there could be a serious slump.
"The immediate issue is just to find out what we can do, so hiring this river engineer is what we're looking to do just so we know what we're looking at, what the possibilities are," he said. "We've been in contact with a company in Waterloo and they're prepared to do some work this fall to study the situation and give us a feasibility report."
Dawson said the bridge itself has been protected with some shielding but if there's erosion in behind that affecting the trail, eventually that could create problems for the bridge.
He has asked county council for about $3,000 to cover part of the cost for the engineer and council approved a motion to include that in its budget deliberations.
Mike Dawson, Menesetung Trail Association (photo by Bob Montgomery)