The SCTC’s trail stewards, ably led by Tim Mayer, descended on Shiloh Ranch Regional Park’s Creekside Trail for two days of great work. On May 1, we tackled a pair of eroded sections that we discussed during last year’s trail stewardship training, as well as some smaller sections with ruts and berms. For the largest section, the crew removed a stump at the top of a short, steep grade and dropped the overall grade of the trail down over a 20 foot stretch to reduce erosion.
The problem -- a mudhole where the trail approaches the bridge. Our plan -- put in a French drain and build the trail up with crushed rock.
The crew returned on May 8 to address a boggy stretch just east of the bridge. Though the soil was now fairly dry, water seeping from the hillside where the trail passes across the nose of a small ridge had made the area difficult to traverse much of the winter. We installed a French drain above the trail to capture seepage and installed a turnpike with gravel on the trail itself. Regional Parks staff delivered a motorized compactor to make sure the new material would stand up to horse traffic — the old boot tool (or hand compactor) don’t cut it when there will be immediate heavy use.
At the end of the day, we had a great looking stretch of hardened trail and it should keep the trail more passable next winter and beyond. Thanks, trail crew!
The finished product
See additional photos from Tim Mayer
Robert Louis Stevenson State Park needs your help!
Join volunteers from the Rock Ice & Mountain Club, and REI from 10am-2pm on May 22, 2010 with much needed service projects such as trail maintenance, trash clean up and fence repair work. Parking is limited, so please carpool to the parking lot on Hwy 29 and join us afterward for a raffle and BBQ. Contact Harrison Hood at 707-217-4730. For more information, see the Rock Ice & Mountain Club site.
In partnership with: The Access Fund, REI and Hood Mountain Adventures.
Sponsored by: Calistoga Roasters, Calistoga Water, Marmot, Lagunitas Brewery and Trinchero Family Estate Wine, LowePro, CamelBak.
Post-Event Trailwork at Boggs: This Coming Saturday April 17th
9:00am – 12:00pm
RSVP!
(for those of you who don’t know French, that means e-mail me if you plan on coming: los@bikemonkey.net )
Regardless of weather, we are planning on making a strong appearance at Boggs on Saturday April 17th to perform post-event trailwork in partnership with Friends of Boggs. We will provide suds and tools.
You need to provide the following:
-
- McLeods
- Rakes
- Flat shovels
- Extra tools if you’ve got them:
- A 4-Wheel drive vehicle, if you’ve got one that can carry people
- Water to hydrate yourself
- Recommended clothing
- Well-fitting gloves
- Hiking or work boots
- Long-leg pants / work jeans
- Long-sleeve shirt
- Jacket or sweater in case it is cold
- Hat for shade
- Eye protection: safety glasses or shades
- Helmet — we’re working in close proximity to each other, head protection is a good idea
Bike Monkey will provide the following:
- Volunteer waivers
- Coordination of trail work areas
- Refreshments
- Pizza in Cobb after the work-day
May 1 and May 8, 2010: 9am-2pm
Contact: Tim Mayer 707-528-8089, email allwet@sonic.net
The Sonoma County Trails Council and Sonoma County Regional Parks Department need your help to complete some trail repairs in Shiloh Ranch Regional Park. We will work on two consecutive Saturdays (May 1 and May 8) to repair some sections of the Creekside Trail. This one of the best hiking trails in the park, but it needs some work.
On May 1 we will work on two sections that are too steep and narrow. We’ll widen the trail and reduce the grade so that the trail won’t be a slippery mess in the rainy season.
On May 8 we will fix a mudhole where the trail approaches a foot bridge.
Come join us on either day, or on both days. No experience is necessary. We’ll provide the tools and instruction. If you would like to help out please RSVP, and I will send you additional information. Feel free to call or email if you have any questions.
Contact: Tim Mayer 707-528-8089, email allwet@sonic.net
March
- Saturday, April 17: Maxwell Farms Regional Parks Stewardship. Earth Day creek cleanup. Contact Mallory with questions 343-5221 or maldavenport@comcast.net
- Thursday, March 18th: Hood Mountain Regional Park
- Saturday, March 27th: Hood Mountain Regional Park
April
- Saturday, April 3rd: Hood Mountain Regional Park
- Thursday, April 8th: Hood Mountain Regional Park
- Tuesday, April 27th: Hood Mountain Regional Park
May
- Tuesday, May 4th: Hood Mountain Regional Park
- Thursday, May 13th: Hood Mountain Regional Park
- Saturday, May 22nd: Hood Mountain Regional Park
June
- Saturday, June 5th – National Trail Day: Hood Mountain Regional Park
Hood Mountain workdays notes from Dave Chalk: All workdays are from 9am to 1pm. Most of the upcoming workdays will focus on finishing off the Merganser pond backpacking sites. Once those are completed we will move up and over the mountain to the second backpacking site located at Azalea Creek. This backpacking site has been around since the 1970s but hasn’t been open to the public since the 80s. It won’t need anywhere near the work put into Merganser. It’s basically all set to go with just a couple of workdays needed to spruce it up. Contact John Ryan (565-3356) for more information.
Directions: Meet in the Pythian Road parking lot (1450 Pythian Road) for all Hood Mountain workdays.
Trail stewardship season is here! We have several projects in the works for spring and into summer.
May
- Saturday, May 1 & 8: Creekside Trail maintenance, Shiloh Regional Park. In the first part of this two-day project, we’ll rebuild a steep and entrenched section, as well as several other problem areas. On our second day at Shiloh, we plan to build a causeway on the upper approach to the bridge to reduce erosion and make the trail more usable year round. Workday will be from 9am to 2pm. Meet at Shiloh parking lot, 5750 Faught Road, Windsor, CA. Contact Tim Mayer for more information or to sign up.
- Saturday, May 15: Helen Putnam Regional Park. Tread maintenance and improvements on Savannah Trail (or other trail TBD). Workday will be from 9am to 2pm. Meet at the parking lot on Chileno Valley Rd. Contact Tim Mayer for more information or to sign up.
- Sunday, May 16: Little Black Mountain Celebration: Save the date for a hike and trail celebration on Little Black Mountain, a Sonoma Land Trust property near Cazadero. Be one of the first to explore the trail (recently upgraded by SCTC) to the “Lone Antler Lookout” and experience the unfolding panoramic vista of Sonoma County’s beyond. This is special event open to SCTC and SLT members — a perk since this property is generally not open to the public. For more information or to sign-up, please email Sonoma Land Trust
June
- Saturday & Sunday, June 6 & 7: Pickin’ at the Point 2010. We return to Salt Point for a weekend project. We expect to work on the Stump Beach Trail and more. Free camping available for all volunteers — additional details TBA. Contact Rob Helms to sign up or for more info.
- Sunday, June 12: Americorp Trail, Sebastopol’s Laguna de Santa Rosa Preserve. Clear blackberries, willow and debris to reopen this trail near downtown Sebastopol. Details TBA. Contact Geoffrey Skinner to sign up for more info.
The fifth annual Boggs 8 Hour Solo and Team Mountain Bike Race takes off at early on the morning of April 3rd. Each year this mountain bike race has sold doubled in size until last year when it sold out to the tune of more than 400 participants. While the race is sold out, it’s not too late to join in the fun. Volunteers are needed for the following:
- Registration – 6am
- Food service – evening
- Rest stop – couple of shifts during the day
- Beer/waste monitoring (with Ken Wells)
- Clean up
A portion of the proceeds for refreshments goes to the Trails Council — if we can put together enough volunteers to help out, so your service will directly support our programs. Please contact volunteer@bikemonkey.net to sign up or for questions. See the race page for additional event details
Happy New Year to all!
2009 was a productive and eventful year — in rough order:
- Trail Stewardship Training at Shiloh Regional Park, led by Rob Helms, Tim Mayer and Geoffrey Skinner
- Trail stewardship projects at Annadel and Sugarloaf State Parks
- Partnership with Regional Parks for trail construction at Hood Mountain
- Trail design and construction at Little Black Mountain for Sonoma Land Trust
- Temporary trail construction at Glen Oaks Ranch for Sonoma Land Trust
- National Trails Day at Salt Point State Park–campground and trail stewardship projects
- Council bylaws revised and adopted by Board of Directors
- Winter and springtime dog hikes
- Hard working crews led by Tim Mayer built a terrific pair of causeways on Spring Creek Trail at Annadel (see story below)
- Successful reconsideration request for multi-use designation on Stump Beach Trail at Salt Point SP
- Rob Helms steps down as Executive Director
- A great tool party gets all tools in shape for the 2010 season
As we look to the coming year, we are still working to firm up our calendar, but look for:
- Stump Beach Trail and other projects at Salt Point for National Trails Day in June
- Trail stewardship on the Creekside Trail at Shiloh Regional Park
- Stewardship workshops
- Ongoing stewardship at Annadel
…and many more opportunities to get outside and give back to the parks. Please check back on our trails blog for current opportunities and news.
The Stewards’ Docent and Community Education Program will continue for 2010 and they are sponsoring the first of three State Parks Volunteer Orientations on January 9th at 9:00am at Armstrong Redwoods. The new year is a great time to learn how you can volunteer in our State Parks. Stewards manages a wide variety of education and stewardship volunteer opportunities in our parks — check the Stewards website for more information on this and other volunteer opportunities. Join the fun and make a difference!
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