When thinking about trail safety in Montgomery County’s vast array of outdoor assets — its trails, parks, and open spaces — most residents think of avoiding bodily harm. And while reminders about slip-and-fall incidents or bicycle tumbles are always valuable, the Pa. State Police is warning about another hazard, as reported by Joe Zlomek in The Sanatoga Post.

Crime data show a recent upswing in thefts from cars parked for access to Montgomery County’s recreational areas.

In Skippack, for example, victims whose cars have been breached and valuables taken have been pouring into the Troop K Barracks.

Some of these crimes, according to law enforcement officers, result from park users’ laxity, leaving valuable items in plain sight or forgetting to lock vehicles.

Skippack isn’t the only Montgomery County site concerned with trail safety.

Perkiomen Township, for example, had a rash of vehicle break-ins on Nov. 10 on Gravel Pike near Harrison Road. Thieves had a lucrative outing that day, absconding with more than $2,000 in cash, a $35 purse, and a $100 diaper bag from three separate cars.

Green Lane Park in Upper Frederick Township has also been the site of parking-lot poaching. That same Nov. 10 day, park visitors reported a rear-car-window smash with a designer purse — and the credit cards it held — gone.

Additional information on these breaches of trail safety is at The Sanatoga Post.