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A trail of national prominence in the Grand Tetons is poised at an important crossroads — and advocates in Wyoming want to ensure park officials take the path best cycled.

Imagine you’re a future visitor to this stunning expanse in the Cowboy State. Which would you prefer?

Option #1: You and your family take in the magnificent mountain vistas as you pedal along a paved trail, far enough from the highway that the automobile traffic barely registers in your relaxed mindset.

Option #2: You take in the buzz and fumes of other families’ Winnebagos, dodge flying gravel and hope the thousands of motorists speeding by at 55 miles per hour, a mere 20 feet away, save their texting for later and keep their tires on the road.

The Friends of Pathways are fighting for Option #1.

According to Tim Young, the group’s executive director, the proposed path from Gros Ventre River to the small town of Moose will be a critical link in the evolving network threading through Grand Teton National Park. But the design for the six-mile stretch leaves much to be desired. Current plans peg the path a mere 20 feet from the highway (pictured below). The advocates from Jackson Hole are urging officials to push the path back to at least 50 feet, to serve the safety and comfort of visitors.

“The first eight miles of pathways from Moose to Jenny Lake opened in 2009 to rave reviews,” Young says. “Park visitors love the pathways — all kinds of people are cycling, walking, and rolling in wheelchairs and trailers that would clearly never be out on the road. When we hosted an event this summer with U.S. Senator John Barrasso and Congressman Cynthia Lummis, they proudly called this a world-class pathways system.”

To expand this vital resource, Teton County and the Town of Jackson secured $5 million in federal and local-voter-approved funds to construct additional miles. “This US 26/89 pathway is a key corridor,” Young explains. “It links the Town of Jackson, the regional population center, with Moose, the park headquarters. It also connects to numerous other destinations, like the National Wildlife Art Museum, resorts with visitor lodging, and park campgrounds.”

Because it’s flat, open sagebrush, shifting the path to a safer distance wouldn’t complicate construction or hike the cost. To make sure officials do the right thing, Friends of Pathways has started an online petition to show national support for the 50-foot separation.

“Speaking up for quality design in national park pathway projects is critical,” Young says. “This is a precedent-setting, nationally visible project and it’s important for all of us.”

Click here to add your name to the petition.