VICTORIA -- Dilapidated staircases, collapsed boardwalks and broken bridges; that’s one avid hiker’s description of the Juan de Fuca Trail.

Aaron Weisgerber, who recently traversed the trail with his wife, says it is suffering heavily from lack of upkeep over the last decade.

Now, he’s taking action.

The outdoor enthusiast has started a petition asking BC Parks to repair the aging infrastructure, which he says is dangerous.

“The condition of the trail is pretty poor,” the petition-creator says. “The un-manicured sections are quite bad. Even the boardwalks and stairs they have built probably 15 to 20 years ago are crumbling and missing several steps, which really creates more of a hazard than there being nothing there in the first place.”

He says there were many spots where he and his wife had to scramble up steep inclines because the steps were too damaged to use safely. He says his wife fell at one point and sustained some bruising, but adds it could have been worse.

The Juan de Fuca Marine Trail is a rugged and increasingly popular hiking trail that stretches 47 kilometers between China Beach and Botanical Beach on the southwestern coast of Vancouver Island. https://bcparks.ca/explore/parkpgs/juan_de_fuca/

Other hikers along the trail near the trailhead at China Beach stated the same concerns as Weisgerber.

“You have to watch where you are putting your feet,” says Russ Moir, a regular hiker in the area. “You can’t trust all the stairs.”

He adds that people are taking a chance when using the trail.

Moir also points out that the deteriorating boardwalks and stairs are forcing people off the trail to avoid using them, thus creating much wider trails in some places and adding to unnecessary erosion.

Weisgerber says some sections of the trail have been closed since March 3 due to "downed trees." He says he thinks staff need to be assigned immediately so the trail can be reopened before the busy hiking season begins.

The avid hiker hopes to get at least 500 signatures on his petition and pressure BC Parks to carry out the required repairs before someone is seriously injured.

The petition can be found here.