Trip Report: Rocky Mountain National Park. 8/25/07-9/3/07

by Jerome Collins, Executive Director and project leader

We left the “Y” between Hwy 71 and 290 in Oak Hill about 7:00 with Jerome Collins, Jan Adler, John Brown, Martha Davies, Robert Gross, Christina Johnson, David Schneider, Bill Swaim, Andrew Waters and Mary Zeitler in the van. Donna Hoffman rode with Dave Schneider in the chuckwagon pickup. That afternoon, with Jerome Collins at the wheel, Dave’s pickup lost the tread off the driver side rear tire about 10 miles out of Levelland, TX. We had the spare put on there, but had to drive to the next town to buy a new tire. We spent the night in Raton, NM, arriving about 11pm.

Sunday, Donna Hoffman, Christine Johnson and Jerome Collins bought supplies at the Costco outside of Boulder, while the van went on to RNMP. The chuckwagon drove into the Moraine campground at Rocky Mountain National Park about 3pm to find everyone had arrived including Debbie and Ralph Ploeger from Grand Junction, CO; Bill Warren drove up earlier with Lori Montgomery; Judy McMillen and Joanne Parker drove directly from Dallas.

Donna Hoffman was camp cook. Returning veterans of prior RMNP-CTTT work trips were Jan Adler, Martha Davies, Christina Johnson, David Schneider, Bill Swaim, Jerome Collins, Mary Zeitler, Ralph and Debbie Ploeger.

Monday through Thursday, seventeen volunteers in four teams worked on four different trail projects in the Wild Basin area of Rocky Mountain National Park (RMNP) next to St.Vrain Creek under direction from Dan Ostrowski, NPS trail crew leader and his trail crew members.

One team, Ralph Ploeger, Bill Swaim, and Jan Adler, built a 6’x8’ timber bridge over a small stream after widening the bed. http://www.flickr.com/photos/jeromecollins/sets/72157601941531063/

The Rock Crew: Bill Warren, John Brown, Martha Davies, Robert Gross and Andy Waters built a boulder stairway from the main trail to the riverbank. http://www.flickr.com/photos/jeromecollins/sets/72157601953721545/

Christina Johnson, Mary Zeitler, Lori Montgomery, Judy McMillen and Joanne Parker blocked social trails and cleared a new path using a wench to uproot stumps.

Dave Schneider and Jerome Collins worked on a short, badly eroded section of the upper falls trail. http://www.flickr.com/photos/jeromecollins/sets/72157601902770957/

Friday morning we all repaired fence around Bear Lake. We hiked up to Dream Lake for lunch. In the afternoon, everyone hauled dry aggregate uphill from Bear Lake past Nymph Lake to Dream Lake trail, since dirt is scarce at higher altitudes and mules or helicopters are expensive transportation for dirt. The job took a lot out of us and by 3PM, we were done.

Saturday was a free day. We broke camp, loaded the chuck wagon and took off for sightseeing, shopping, and lazing around camp. That evening Judy and Joanne, Andy and Robert, John, Chris, Donna, Dave and Jerome enjoyed a dinner in Estes Park. Amanda Laban, Adopt-A-Trail/Trainings Coordinator with Continental Divide Trail Alliance and her friend, joined us for the meal.

We did not refuel in Estes Park. We left Sunday morning at 7:40 a.m.and arrived about 11:30 p.m. in Lubbock, Texas. Eager to get back to Austin, we left about 6 a.m. Monday, Labor Day, to arrive in Austin about 3:30 p.m. Jerome and Mary Zeitler cleaned out the van and turned it in the next morning.

With grateful appreciation of the hardworking, easygoing crew of 2007, respectfully submitted by, Jerome Collins, Executive Director.