in Blue Mound (Moderator: Walt Hougas)

I'm playing hooky from work on Friday and plan on riding Blue Mounds (anyone want to join in?), while I'm out there are there any maintenance tasks suitable for one unsupervised fella to knock out in a few hours?

There are a few fallen trees here and there (at least two small ones on Overlode, a couple on Pokerville, and probably some on Holy Schist). If you can fit a small handsaw in your camelback during your ride, that might be most helpful... the trails need to be ridden in now that they've dried up, so even just riding there will help things get packed in.

Walter might know of something better.

Thanks!

I'm playing hooky from work on Friday and plan on riding Blue Mounds (anyone want to join in?), while I'm out there are there any maintenance tasks suitable for one unsupervised fella to knock out in a few hours?

Hoping to get to some of those trees tonight after work. Mostly what is helpful is to stop and remove branches and other loose stuff from the trail. Maybe cut back some of the raspberry canes, but it's hard to know when to stop.

I'm planning to install a replacement sliding glass door at home on Friday. No actual experience with this job should make it interesting. Wish me luck.

Thanks Rich,
Walt

There is wild parsnip (among other weeds) to be cut by dam in Pleasure Valley (Over Lode trail). I did not have anything to cut things back on Saturday and was pretty much spent after the turn piking we did Sunday.

Thanks.

The parsnip may be out of my scope for the day but I'll take a saw and trimmers along and cleanup what I can over a few laps.

I rode Overload last night.  There's some smaller trees down and a few parts of the trail are a little overgrown.  I whacked my head (hooray for helmets) on a dangling branch thing.  (On the section that comes after the switchbacks, across the little bridge, up that damn really steep hill that I can never get up, but before you cross the road.  That probably made no sense.)

i know right where you're talking about.  Looks like there's potential rain in the forecast so that will be the ultimate decider on if i get out there.

I cut most of the trees that were down. I didn't get the one near the 2nd road crossing on Over Lode, but I cut 7 others.

Walt

Between Ron and I we managed to clear everything that the winds blew down except for pokerville. There are still a lot of small branches on the trail but nothing that can't be safely rolled over. I also trimmed back quite a bit of the branches on the classic loop. There are two trees down on holy schist that need a chainsaw but otherwise the trails are in pretty good shape and very dry.

After that I stopped by quarry ridge for a few laps and trimmed from the picnic table to the top of the sandy climb.

For what it's worth, I ran at Blue Mounds today.  Went backwards.  Took Homestretch to Holy Schist to Chert Dip to the Beginner's section.  It was about 90% damp with 10% being muddy/watery.  My feet mostly didn't make any tracks, but I wouldn't quite call it tacky yet.

There was one tree down on Holy Schist blocking the trail.  (See big red dot in GPS map.)  There was also a MASSIVE tree down that took a bunch of dirt with it from the beginner section, but it fell away from the trail.

- Mandy



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M^2, it looks like from your map, the tree you mark with a red dot is near the post marked F5 on my map. There's a feature (small sink hole?) that someone decided to call "Toilet Bowl" in the vicinity. Eventually I'll get the posts and signs installed so you can tell me where a downed tree is relative to the nearest sign post. Was Holy Schist the wettest part of the trail?

Thanks Rich and Ron for cutting branches and clearing storm debris. I appreciate the report. I can't get out there until my home project is more complete. Sabby the cat is very unhappy when the weather is good and she can't get out on the porch.

Walt

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Walt, it was near F5.  Big tree.  I wouldn't be able to hop over it on a bike, but then again I'm still a noob on two wheels that aren't my own.   

Holy Schist and the beginner section were the wettest, with a lot of other areas being mostly dry and fairly rideable.  I tossed quite a few blown down branches off the trail while I was out there. 

M^2, Rich,

Be sure to log your work hours. The tab is on the main page.

Walt