Gettin' It Done!

Tools of the Trade~

National Trails Day!  A super sunshine morning to meet up at the Pilchuck Glass School parking for our work party!  A combination of Trailduster's & Cascade Horse Club members, along with neighbors & a couple representatives from a local bike club.

Where do we go from here?

As Linda has mentioned often, the hardest part of the job is organizing all the volunteers & sending then out to the various trails!  We ended up with a good group - probably close to 20 people & several that knew the trails well enough to head out & attack the trail of their choice!

Discussing the sign-in sheets~

We had to sign hold-harmless releases for the tree farm, then sign in to our respective BCH Chapters.  Paperwork out of the way - it wasn't long before we'd dispersed!  Butch & I had planned to work on one of the trails that leaves the Monument.  Heavily overgrown & tree branches in your face when you're riding.

Butch on the trail~

 With Butch using the weed-whacker ahead, I took my pruners & started in on the trees.  What a job!  I cut each & every one way back to the truck of the tree!  I'd get one done, turn back to look - & see everything I'd missed!  With the branches removed - it gives the blackberry vines one less thing to climb.  Where I could I walked back in & cut the blackberry at it's base - which might slow it down for a week or two :-)

Looking back at my work~

I don't know how far I got - not far enough - not out of the trees, but to where I stopped - this trail will not have to have limbs cut for a long while!  We headed back to the parking area after noon. 

There were a few horse trailers in the parking lot, several riders I knew rode back in.  I know all too many people who ride here frequently - who have never - to my knowledge attended a work party...  I personally would have a hard time justifying my use of this private land - without volunteering at least one day a year to maintain the trails - but that's just me.

On the door of the BCH Trailer~

Lunch was set out & boy did it look good!  Another big thank you - to the ladies who provided the wonderful food.  Homemade potato salad, baked beans, hot dogs, chips, mellons etc.  The ice cream treats - really hit the spot!

I loved the bandana on the inside of the door to the BCH Tool Trailer :-)  Really a Super day's work for a super crew of people, none too busy to volunteer their time to keep our trails open!

To the Creek~

Through the big woods~

I'd been wanting to ride down to the creek for a while - it's about a 12-mile round-trip - the shortest way I know to get there.  At the trail-head, I was surprised to find several rigs already there.  The day was overcast & muggy.  Going through what's left of the big woods - is always so pretty.

Coyote Ridge Trail~

We ended up on the Coyote Ridge Trail - overgrown but passable.  All the blow-down had either been cut, or had ended up on the ground - easy to step over.

Candy Flower~

The little tiny Candy Flower was in bloom all along the sides of one of the trails we were on.  The southern trails don't see the use the the one's higher on the mountain do, since the trail-head was moved years ago.

On the trail~

 During last years trail-clearing party - we'd worked on several of these trails & they've stayed in good condition.  Not that there isn't plenty of work that needs doing this year!  Winter weather was harsh, lots of wind & plenty of clearing to be done at the upcoming work party on Sat.  So far, only eleven people have RSVP'd - the usual group of hard-core dedicated riders who continue year after year to make giving back part of their schedule.

Through the young Cedar Trees~

I love the section through the Cedars - it's amazing how much they've grown just since last year.  From what I've been told, the tree farms are planting more Western Red Cedar - they see it as the next big cash crop.  It takes so much longer to grow to any size - that it will be interesting to see how many years these trees stand.  (If I'm around to see it! :-)

At the creek~

We were both glad to get to the creek for our lunch break.  Farah loves standing in the water & yawning :-)  On the rocky shore, I took off my boots & waded in, while Farah again attacked the reed canary grass growing along the shore.  I wonder if I could count her hours?  :-)

Low flow~

The creek is down, no surprise there, amazing how quickly the snow on the Cascades has melted away this year.  The Glaciers were melting off last season, so anything that accumulated this winter, didn't have the usual base.

Our route~

We headed back & only took one wrong turn to find the trail we wanted.  We had to make some time, since we had a Traildusters meeting in Everett.  As we galloped up the hill, a little bunny came out right in front of us!  Farah slowed & put her head down as he hopped as fast as he could for almost 100ft. before turning off on his bunny trail :-)   Back at the bio-fuel field - a large, nice, healthy looking Coyote was standing off in the trees.

Once home, I had just enough time to give Farah an overdue bath!  We were both soaked by the time Butch pulled in the drive!