Bridle Path Easements
Fact Or Opinion? - You Decide!

L'Esprit tract owners are permitted under the Declaration to horseback ride on 20+ miles of bridle path easements, as shown on the record plat of L'Esprit, but not on private property.
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The Declaration uses the term 'bridle path', not 'trails', when referring to L'Esprit's recorded bridle path easements.
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Most bridle path easements are 10’ inside of property boundaries, while others are 15' adjacent to and parallel with the north bank of Harrod's Creek.
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Owners of land made available to the public for the recreational purpose of horseback riding, and without charge, are protected from, "…action for the recovery of real property, including establishment of prescriptive easement…", pursuant to KRS 411.190.
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LPOA does not have the legal authority to designate as prescriptive easement a L'Esprit tract owner's non-easement private property on which that owner has permitted access for the recreational purpose of horseback riding, pursuant to KRS 411.190.
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Legal criteria for adjudicating in court the enforcement of a prescriptive easement, all of which must be met, do not apply to recreational horseback riding.
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Land made available to the public for the recreational purpose of horseback riding, but which isn't a recorded L'Esprit bridle path easement(s), should not be marked with L'Esprit bridle path easement signage or included on any L'Esprit bridle path easement map. ​
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​​​A tract owner’s property includes any bridle path easement, and the Declaration requires that individual owners, "…shall be responsible for the maintenance, upkeep and care of the property owned by them." LPOA can spend members’ funds on repairs, but not maintenance, of bridle path easements. Further, no members' funds should ever be spent on non-easement private property.
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LPOA should post signs that identify where to enter/exit each section of a bridle path easement, as well as post a warning sign regarding any ‘dangerous latent condition’, as defined in Kentucky statute, if LPOA doesn’t temporarily close that section for safety reasons.
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High Country Conservation, LLC's 2022 writeup to LPOA about bridle path easements states, in part, there are, “…some significant areas of disrepair.” It continues, again in part, “In our judgment, this is mainly because it’s highly likely the trails [sic] weren’t designed in any real way but more likely just added on as property boundaries with easements. Due to that, they climb in and out of drainages along straight property boundaries. Each trail [sic] as it drops in and climbs out of each drainage will get worse as the trail [sic] gets steeper.” ('bridle path', not 'trail', is the correct term.)
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An existing bridle path easement can only be relocated on the original tract, based on a specific process outlined under Article 2.03 of the Declaration.
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A bridle path easement can only be added or removed by changing the record plat of L'Esprit with 75% acreage approval to amend the Declaration.
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