Trail Tamers

"Thank You" Message to our volunteers

2011-04-01T19:44:00.003-05:00

Here's a message that everyone who works on trails should be proud of! (The message was directed to members of the Central Texas Trail Tamers and others that have worked on trails in Bastrop State Park near Bastrop, TX.)

- On Fri, 3/18/11, Jennifer Bristol <Jennifer.Bristol@tpwd.state.tx.us> wrote:

From: Jennifer Bristol
Subject: Trails

Dear Volunteers- Today we had a fire that had the potential of spreading into the park, but thankfully did not. I wanted to extend a GIANT thank you to everyone who has helped us maintain our trails over the past few years. Not only do your efforts allow park visitors a means to journey through the Lost Pines and enjoy them at their own pace; you also assist with helping us maintain safe corridors to get ATVs and safety equipment into the woods. Today I was grateful for all of the hours of brushing and trail maintenance that you have done that allowed us to be able to quickly move along the trails and evacuate guests during this very busy weekend. Thankfully the fire did not (or has not) entered the park. However- if it had, the trails would have served as a holding line to try to contain the fire. Our trails are a vital asset to the park both as a means to enjoy the beautiful forest and as a means to protect the area from wild fires. Thank you again for all that you do to help maintain the trails at Bastrop and Buescher State Parks. We couldn’t do it without you!

I look forward to seeing you all soon on another trail work party day!

Jennifer Bristol

Resource Specialist & Pool Manager
Bastrop State Park
Bastrop, TX 78602
3005 HWY 21 East
512-321-3740

FEB. 2011 PRESIDENTS DAY WORK SESSION - Davy Crockett NF

2011-03-22T13:54:00.003-05:00

PROJECT REPORT By Raymond Fore:
We had 13 volunteers and two park employees work Friday, Saturday, Sunday, and part of Monday, (Feb. 17-21, 2011). Got a heck of a lot of work done that would probably not have been done through the usual Forest Service schedule due to staff and budget shortages.

Friday, the 18th, we removed several very large trees from an archeologically sensitive area. This meant cutting the trees into small enough blocks to be hauled by hand to the park road. The pieces were then loaded on a trailer and hauled to a dump site. Saturday, the volunteers were put into two teams. One team went to Walnut Creek camp site on the 4 C trail. That site had been hit by hurricane Ike and needed to be cleared. We also cleared a site for a new privy to be built to replace the previous one that had been destroyed by the hurricane. The second team went to the bridges in the Big Slough Wilderness area which is also on the 4 C trail. There they removed a cable hand rail and replaced it with rails built with 2 x 4x. All the lumber had to be hauled by hand since no mechanical devices could be used in the wilderness area. That meant walking a mile, round trip, to haul two pieces of lumber to the work site. There were over 100 pieces of lumber used. We also built new barriers to two new parking lots and removed many dangerous dead trees from around camp sites at Ratcliff Lake.

These are the Trail Tamers who showed up: Marvin Heller, Terence Donovan, Charlie Grant, Mike Rodgers, Bill Nelson, Wes Morrow. I know the other volunteers are not members.

We all enjoyed the work, the good food, the great camp fires, and the great bull that was spread pretty thick. All want to return to our next work session, so guess it went well. The group was hard working and the Forest Service is pleased with what we did.

TRAIL TAMERS FIRST GRAND CANYON ADVENTURE! (by Martha Spetseris)

2010-07-07T11:38:00.002-05:00

Another successful trip for the Central Texas Trail Tamers!

The Trail Tamers had a great time at the North Rim of the Grand Canyon. It was hard work but our members did a great job. The guys cleared about 2 miles of over-growth and debris from the main park road. Dorothy Lay and I can add road flagging to our resumes.

If you have only visited the South Rim, the North Rim is a revelation. The approach from the South takes you down through a large flood plain to a bridge over the Colorado River. You circle the stark beauty of the Vermillion Cliffs. Then you climb up to mountain passes at around 9000 feet. The passes are beautiful with spruce and aspen. There are pristine, alpine-like meadows. If you are lucky, you even get to see a stray herd of buffalo!

We camped in the heavily wooded North Rim campground. After work we enjoyed dutch oven meals, ranger lectures and trips up to the lodge to watch the sunsets. We all did some hiking. I think David hiked almost every trail on the North Rim! It was a wonderful experience and I hope we get to go back next year.

Here is a link to the photos that I took: http://www.flickr.com/photos/merlin604/sets/72157624421254808/

Bastrop State Park Trail Projects

2010-01-13T09:08:00.001-06:00

Trail Tamers at Bastrop State Park (report by Vick Hines, Crew Leader)

The Bastrop State Park project was a great success despite the weather and OU Weekend. We had about 25 folks helping out and put in over 180 hours of trail work. It looks as if we now have a good relationship with BSP, and hope to have other working weekends in the Spring and throughout next year. The following gives the details.

Summary of Trail Tamers work 11/28 - 12/5/09:
Trail Tamer crews worked 179 hours. Social trails located mainly inside PR1A were renaturalized. All other trails were brushed and social trails were renaturalized. Approximately 10 percent of problem slopes on the trail system were graded, side burms removed and drain swales installed. At least 10 creek crossings were cleaned and channelized and crossing aids installed. Two relocations were completed totaling 150 yards of improved trail. Several relocations are recommended for your consideration in addition to currently scheduled relocations.

11/28: 15 volunteers @ 6 hrs ea. = 90 hours
Red, green, white, black trails; renaturalized social trails.
Black Trail; installed drain and burm.
Blue trail E. of power line; Brushing and creek crossings, general trail maintenance, relocation of washed out trail section, renaturalization of old trail,

11/29: 3 volunteers @ 6 hrs ea. = 18 hrs
South Blue trail, Harmon Rd. to power line and Blue north, power line to Harmon, brushing, burm and drains, social trails, campfire debris removal.

11/30: 1 volunteer @ 6 hrs = 6 hrs.
Black trail, burm and drain (removal of concrete pour preventing proper drainage), Grey trail, burm and drains.

12/1: 1 vol @ 5 hrs = 5 hrs
Roosevelt’s Cutoff, brushing; N. Blue trail West to old road, brushing; S. Blue trail W. of Harmon Rd., deadfalls and social trails.

12/2: 1 vol @ 5 hrs = 5 hrs.
N. Blue trail from Harmon Rd. E., brushing and drains.

12/3: 2 vols. @ 5 hrs = 10 hrs.
Blue trail loop E. of power line, 5 creek crossings channelized and rocked, social trails concealed, brushing.

12/4: 2 vols. @ 5 hrs = 10 hr.
N. Blue trail E. of fence line, drains and burms on downslope.

12/5: 7 vols @ 5 hrs = 35 hrs
Green trail, relocated c. 120 yds of trail with dips and drains, relocated trail marker post, renaturalized old trail, channelized and rocked 3 creek crossings, removed debris from creeks.
Suggested Trail Relocations

Blue Loop E. of power line: At the far eastern end, after the southmost creek crossing, the trail is easily confused with a fire break and the approach to the creek crossing is heavily eroded. Recommend a relocation diverging from the existing trail approximately 35 yards west-southwest of current intersection with the fire break and rejoining the existing trail at or near the current creek crossing. This location would permit a lower gradient as it descends to the creek and would avoid confusion with the fire break entirely. Check steps would still be required for the descent.

N. Blue Trail approx. 0.25 to 0.5 miles E. of Gotier Trace Remnant. Several sections of this trail are 0˚ to the slope. Recommend replacing these sections with properly graded side hill segments.

N. Blue Trail, 0.25 mir. W. of Harmon Rd. receives surface and near surface runoff from both Harmon Rd. and an adjacent slope. Recommend relocation up the slope with an undulating side hill trail rejoining the existing trail at the next drainage west.

S. Blue Trail from the power line to 0.25 mi.W. of the power line is 0˚ to the slope and heavily guttered, ending in a poorly drained area that includes the last several yards of the new relocation which diverts the trail from the nearby pond. Recommend constructing a side hill trail from the power line north of the existing trail, intersecting the latest relocation on high ground.

S. Blue Trail from Scout Area to Roosevelt’s Cutoff is heavily guttered due to poor location. Several superior locations are available for each problem segment.

Roosevelt’s Cutoff. The southern 150 yards of the trail are 0˚ to the slope in sugar sand and heavily guttered. Recommend relocation east to rejoin existing trail at next drainage.

Grey Trail, E. of intersection w/ Red Trail is currently down-slope in an old road bed and heavily guttered. Recommend relocation up slope to N. 25 to 50 yards.

Big Bend or Bust!

2010-01-13T08:33:00.003-06:00

Trail Tamers experience Big Bend (report by Pat Dixon, Crew Leader)

The Central Texas Trail Tamers visited Big Bend national park Oct 17-24, 2009 to help maintain hiking trails and park features, as well as enjoy the beautiful surroundings. The week was well spent.

This was a personal quest for me. After residing in Texas for over a decade I had not been to Big Bend. It seems every year some conflict arose. This year I finally made it.

I arrived at the park on Sunday Oct 18 and hiked the 5 mile Lost Mine trail, which was well worth the effort. We setup camp later at the Remuda bunkhouse that evening, which is in the Chisos Basin lodging area. Our crew of 13 people had all arrived.

Monday morning we had a safety session with trails crew supervisor Eric Walker. The Friends of Big Bend provided us breakfast at the Chisos Basin lodge. We then set out for some brushing work on the Window trail. We had a nice lunch at the Window which is a waterfall with a precipitous drop.

The following day we split into 2 crews lead by park service representatives. Our crew was lead by Laura Hicks and we went to Pine Canyon to build some erosion mitigation structures. We hiked all the way up to the waterfall for lunch which is a beautiful area. On the way out Jerry Levenson got 2 flat tires. We removed the wheels and left the car behind for the night. The park maintenance shop was able to repair both tires that afternoon.

The other crew lead by Collin Carroll went to the Rio Grande village area to clear brush from the old hotel building at Hot Springs. The vegetation had grown thick around the structure and it took a lot of work to thin out the undesired growth.

On Wednesday the crews returned to the same work assignments. The Pine Canyon crew used cedar logs to build water bars. The weather was great, cool and comfortable with low clouds surrounding Casa Grande and surrounding peaks. The other crew continued work at Rio Grande.

On Thursday the crews returned to there respective places but after lunch the Pine Canyon crew went to Rio Grande to meet with the other crew and have a concluding gathering with Eric Walker. We were given volunteer patches and served cold drinks and Eric complimented us on our work.

Friday was our play day. I did a 15 mile hike on the South Rim loop, which was fantastic. Again the weather was perfect. Other TrailTamers found other diversions. We travelled that evening to Terlingua to have dinner at La Kiva.

We broke camp and departed Saturday morning.

Our cook Martha Spetseris did a great job. Experienced TrailTamers know that the cook is the most important member of the crew and we made it through the week happy and healthy.

We saw quite a bit of wildlife. There were several black bear spottings. We had a crew of javelina visit us one evening at the Remuda. A mountain lion walked past our cook tent one evening. We saw 2 mountain lion crossing a road near Chisos Basin lodging area. We saw a fox on the drive to Terlingua.

In conclusion, we got significant work done which was appreciated by the park service hosts and had a very enjoyable time in the great weather and beautiful surroundings.

Trail Tamer participants:
Pat Dixon (crew leader)
Martha Spetseris (cook)
Tina Drake
Richard Drake
Bill Swaim
Charles Grant
Donald Edson
Dorothy Lay
Jerry Levenson
Lin Risner
Loren Ramshur
Lorenzo Perez
Vick Hines

Photos:
From Jerry Levenson:
Go to http://www.flickr.com/photos/pigomatic and look for the folder named "CTTT at BBNP, Oct 2009". When viewing a picture in Flickr, you can hit the "all sizes" button for a larger view.

From Vick Hines:
http://s25.photobucket.com/albums/c70/vickrhines/Big%20Bend%2009/?albumview=slideshow&track=share_email_album_view_click

From Pat Dixon:
Photos and video
http://www.flickr.com/photos/44653950@N00/sets/72157622592627513/show/

Video of Monday morning safety orientation:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/44653950@N00/4079730995/

Video of Thursday concluding meeting:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/44653950@N00/4079756977/

Awesome Apache-Sitgreaves

2009-07-18T11:51:00.026-05:00

The first week of July was PERFECT for heading to the pristine forests of eastern Arizona. With the number of 100+ degree days setting records in Texas, we were eager for cooler temps! And cooler they were! Upper 70s to low 80s during the day, and lows in the 50s at night. Imagine sitting around a campfire with a light jacket on while everyone is sweltering in Texas!!

Here is how things turned out:

Before leaving Texas, our host said they'd been having an early "monsoon" season, so we anticipated daily rainfall. However, we only had a brief bit of rain during our first night in the woods. After that...nothing!

Dave and I left Austin on Thursday morning with the group's food & cooking gear in our vehicle and Martha Spetseris from College Station as our passenger. Pat Dixon & his passenger, Zack Slachter from Fort Worth, met us in Junction, TX and we caravanned from there.

After an overnight stop in Deming, NM and a quick visit on Friday morning to the unique Catwalk of Whitewater Canyon outside Glenwood, NM, we arrived a couple of hours later at Don & Janie Hoffman's place that's tucked in a remote part of the forest at the end of a dead-end dirt road near the Blue River.

Don was retired from the Forest Service in Alpine, AZ & recently contracted with them to be our volunteer crew leader. He & his wife recommended that we rendezvous at their place where we camped in their meadow, used their bathroom & kitchen, played horseshoes and explored the area.

Since we arrived fairly early, Dave & Pat took off to go fishing and Martha, Zack & I hiked up the creek behind the Hoffman's place to look for a small Indian ruin they told us about but dark clouds began forming overhead and thunder became noticeably louder, so we headed back.

Andy Waters & Robert Gross left Austin on Friday & joined the rest of us at the Hoffman homestead early Saturday afternoon, and had plenty of time to climb the mountain overlooking the Hoffman home. Robert recommends NOT doing that in sandals!

On Sunday we fixed a big breakfast for everyone, including our hosts, then loaded the vehicles & headed out. We stopped in Alpine to pick up some items & met Myron Burnett, the Forest Service guy who would be hauling our gear on his pack animals. Then, off we went!

On the way, Don showed us a scenic overlook of the Black River from a high bluff & graciously agreed to take group photos with everyone's camera. Afterward, we piled back in our vehicles for the soon-to-be bumpy ride to the Fish Creek trailhead.

When we arrived, we unloaded the gear & had to cram all the food & cooking equipment into 4 hard panniers so they weighed about the same. Other items were put into soft panniers and, when everything was as balanced as possible, they were strapped onto the two mules & one donkey. We put on our backpacks & started down the trail.

At one point, Black Jack (the donkey) decided to head back up the trail but Pat, who has no experience with animals, caught him & after talking with him a bit, was able to lead him back down the trail. What a great photo that would have made!

After hiking a mile or so, we arrived at base camp. Don told us we were in the exact same spot as our previous Trail Tamer trip in 1999, & he was right on! There were lots of "fond" memories of that trip. For me, especially, it was a really big adventure!

Myron & the mules arrived ahead of us so, after setting up our own tents, we helped unload the gear & set up the kitchen & cook tent. Don carefully dug a campfire pit, following leave-no-trace ethics, & we started the evening meal & talked about the work he wanted us to do in the coming days.

On day one, we headed down the trail brushing out & clearing a HUGE amount of overgrown vegetation, especially at creek crossings. The trail hadn't been maintained for at least 5 years. The whole area is fairly moist with moss, ferns & wildflowers everywhere. Oh, did I mention lots of POISON IVY?! We also noticed a lot of diversity in the size & types of trees. Don said this whole area had somehow escaped the ax & had never been logged. Amazing!

Don had brought a 2-man crosscut saw but ended up wielding a chainsaw because of the sheer number & size of the dead-fall across the trail. A couple of crew members followed him to move the freshly cut sections off the trail.

Each day, the distance & number of creek crossings from base camp to our last trail-clearing location increased until, finally, some of the crew reached the Black River where Fish Creek joins it & forms a nice swimming hole that they enjoyed!

Once the lower trail was completed to Don's satisfaction, we turned our attention to the part that we hiked in on, & spent the last work day on that section. We actually worked our way back up to the trailhead & left our tools there, then hiked back down to our basecamp for the last time.

Don was truly happy that we completed the whole trail (5 miles from the trailhead to the river), & was impressed with the "outstanding" work we did. Even though the Black River was about 4 miles from our basecamp, no one complained too much about the daily hike back & forth. However, on the last day of work on the lower trail, one of the crew jokingly referred to the hike as the "BaDon" death march.

The beautiful terrain along with daily, refreshing dips in pristine Fish Creek, & nearly perfect weather was more than a person could ask for. For the most part, wildlife avoided us but Robert & I saw a couple of elk cows, & Pat caught a trout. The most excitement came when Martha & Andy saw a BEAR on the trail ahead of them!

There were no real problems except for a couple of leaky tents on the first night, Robert's encounter with a hornet that caused his hand to swell up, and the pesky BUGS that seemed to prefer my flesh & blood to the others! But, amazingly, no one ended up with a case of poison ivy!

Upon returning to the Hoffman's place on Friday afternoon...we showered & changed into clean clothes, then were treated to some mighty fine BBQ chicken with all the trimmings & plenty of liquid refreshment. It was so nice sitting on the Hoffman's front porch, taking in the surroundings & watching the guys playing a game of horseshoes. Robert & Andy decided to head home, but the rest of us camped in the meadow once again. In the morning, after a breakfast of pancakes & coffee, we said our good-byes and hit the road.

My sincerest appreciation goes out to my dear husband, "Chef Dave", for preparing those delicious meals; and to our talented friend, Pat Dixon for sharing his campfire rendition of "Oh, Danny Boy", among other things. I also appreciate "Super Woman" Martha Spetseris for being such an enjoyable & energetic go-getter; and Zack Shlachter (the "young-un" in the group) who is such a delightful young man & knowledgable in an amazing range of subjects.

Then there's Andy Waters & his buddy Robert Gross who were the source of much laughter mixed with interesting stories told around the campfire. We all worked hard but we also had a doggone good time! And, of course, our thanks goes out to Don Hoffman who was an excellent host and crew leader, and his wife, Janie, who was so gracious for once again allowing a crowd of people to "take over" her home for a few days.

We captured a bunch of photos and placed them on FlickR.com. We also added captions that can be seen if you select the "Show Info" menu item at the top of the screen. Select the link below to check them out:

Click here for FlickR photos of the trip

A Great Thank-You Letter from the staff at Davy Crockett National Forest!

2009-02-20T20:16:00.025-06:00

I would like to tell EVERYONE, that I
personally appreciate all the hard work
and great sense of humors.

It truely is a pleasure to work with CTTT;
each time is a new wonderful adventure.
I hope that everyone had a great time and
got to do some things that they wanted. I
hope everyone will come again soon...And
enjoyed the NEW folks!!!! I have enclosed
some pictures of the crews working.

Sorry, I did not get pictures of the crew
(George, Jim) repairing ADA trail nor of
crew installing new Portal sign (Steve/Earl)
and also built 2 new boat racks. Neither
did I get the infamous Group picture.
I truely failed on that...My apologies.

Happy Trails.
Pearlie

Pearlie Green
Davy Crockett National Forest
18551 State Highway 7 East
Kennard, TX 75847
PH: (936)655-2299 Fax: (936)655-2817
email: pearliegreen@fs.fed.us

Trip Report - Davy Crockett National Forest (Feb. 14-16, 2009)

2009-02-17T19:29:00.001-06:00

Hey gang,

Again, another great work session! Not only did we complete all of the primary projects but also several secondary ones. Pearlie and Merlinda are well aware of how we work and at the first of the week when I told them that we had 20 signed up, panic. Both got together and luckily came up with additional projects. Everything looked great and could only have gotten this way by your hard work and pride in what you do. Thanks.

The new path from the restroom to the viewing deck at the Neches Bluff is ready for use. It meets ADA specs. The viewing deck has had a lot of use. It is our hope that with this path and the new restroom, it will get more. Thanks to Mike Rodgers and his crew for that project. Those working on that project besides Mike were, Raylene Welch, Bob Weglarz, Martha Spetseris, Derly Rivera, Vick Hines, and Pearlie Green, ranger. Looks great!

Hurricane Ike managed to take out the Forest Service portal sign on Highway 7. Steve Baker and Earl Connors rebuilt, and painted the base. They then attached the new sign which really looked good and should be there for years to come. They also managed to build several boat racks at the lake, and rebuild a table that was destroyed by the storm. Merle Monroe, Merlinda's Dad, also helped on this project Sunday. Good job guys.

The ADA trail within the lake proper was also damaged by Ike. George Boemerman and Jim Britt repaired the trail by replacing all the landscape timbers that needed replacing and repacking road base in the holes left when trees on the trail fell. The trail still meets ADA specs. Good job you two.

There are 7 bridges on the northern part of the 4 C Trail that receives a lot of damage from Ike. The bridge crew of Ivan and Judy McGowan, Chuck Lundstedt, Andy Waters, Dwight Riley, Merlinda Schory and Dad Merle, and Raymond Fore made up the Saturday crew. We rebuilt over 100 feet of bridge and replaced almost half of the foot treads in the 400 feet of the seven bridges. The Sunday crew of Riley(just Riley), Andy, Terence, Derly, Mike, and Pearlie added hand rails over the 200 or so feet of the bridges. The most difficult part of this task was getting the materials to the job site which was a half to three quarters of a mile from the nearest road. The completed project looked good and should provide safe crossing to hikers for years to come.

Sunday morning, Chuck Lundstedt and crew began updating the pads within the RV loop. They pulled up the leading edge of each camp pad and put in road base to build a ramp. The leading edge of the sites were made of concrete blocks approximately 4 " x 12 " x 36 ". Heavy work but with the aide of a tractor, most of the sites were completed. This will make getting in the campsites with RVs easier. Good job, crew.

Since we couldn't run off all members Sunday, a Monday morning crew of Steve, Earl, Jim, Terence, Derly, Chuck, Pearlie, Merlinda, Merle, and Raymond completed the task started the day before. We completed restructuring the campsites within the RV loop. This crew finished off the work session with bar-b-que sandwiches from a local stand in Ratcliff. Good eating. Good job.

I'd like to thank all of you for the hard work each of you did. There was a lot of good fellowship in the evenings and even during the workday, a lot of joking and bull. That makes for good work and good memories. The campfire helped. So did the good food, beer, wine, and crazy stories from storytellers George Boemerman and Earl Connors. We'll see all of you next year. Again thanks for making my job easy.

Ray Fore

Thank-you Letter from Sierra Club!

2009-02-05T19:46:00.004-06:00

Work Day at Bamberger Ranch Preserve - Oct. 25, 2008

2008-11-22T20:57:00.004-06:00

On a beautiful & warm October day, seven Trail Tamers, plus two other volunteers, headed out to the Bamberger Ranch Preserve to begin working on a new water conservation project that the owner, J. David Bamberger, has created. We drove up to the top of one of the many plateaus on the preserve where a bulldozer had scraped up dirt and rock following the contours of the plateau. Our task was to rake the dirt and rock into long, high berms on the downslope side so that when it rains, the water would be stopped from running down the slope and carrying soil with it. The idea is to "trap" the water so it will soak in and percolate through the honeycombed rock in order to recharge the "hanging aquifers" located on the preserve. Everything about the preserve is unique and these aquifers are simply another thing that's different.

We completed a lot more work than was anticipated and when it was time to go, we drove back down to the old general store for a feast of tamales, beans, chips & salsa plus an assortment of cold beverages. When we were through eating, a few people left but those of us that remained were treated to a trip to the man-made bat cave that was built by Mr. Bamberger. It now has about 250,000 bats residing in it and some of them were still there and hadn't migrated yet! We got a really close-up look at them when Mr. Bamberger decided to take us inside the cave (he calls it the Chiroptorium). That was quite an experience! Not sure I want to do that again, though! I'm not one who thinks that bats get caught in your hair, so that didn't bother me even though I could hear them flying close to me, but standing in a thick mat of bat guano and knowing that flesh-eating cave beetles were everywhere DID bother me! That's because those beetles can devour a dead bat (or any other dead creature) in a matter of minutes, so it gave me a creepy feeling and I didn't stand in one spot for very long! A couple of the ladies went back outside after only a few minutes so they missed most of the fun. Oh, well. It was a treat to be shown something like this because it's been a decades-long effort on the part of Mr. Bamberger to try and attract bats to this cave and hope that they would stay. It looks like he has finally succeeded!

My thanks to fellow Trail Tamers..Jerry Levenson, Martha Davies, Gardner Ayers, Chuck Kichline, Mary Arnett and Martha Spetseris; plus volunteers, Gina Meagher and Bill Marsh, for all the work that was completed that day.

Rocky Mountain National Park Letter & 2008 Trip Report

2008-10-01T22:01:00.000-05:00

November 7, 2008
Curt Bucholtz, Executive Director
Rocky Mountain Nature Association
Rocky Mountain National Park Associates
PO Box 3100
Estes Park, CO 80517
Dear Kurt and Heidi,
Thank you for assisting the Trail Tamers to return to our origins and work on the trails in the beautiful Rocky Mountain National Park. The trip report narrative is enclosed.
Photos of the trip are online at: http://www.flickr.com/photos/jeromecollins/collections/72157607061793565/
The Trail Tamers appreciate the support you have provided for this trip over the years. The variety of projects, the technical challenges, the pleasure of working in cool temperatures while it is dangerously hot in most of Texas, the beauty of the working environment, the confidence of working with the NPS Trail Crew, all keep us coming back despite the price of gasoline.
We are especially proud of the work on protecting the river bank below Alberta Falls and shoring up the overlook there. Of course, those who worked on the boardwalk at Mills Lake feel they have special bragging rights and our new crew members learned basic skills on the trail between the two big projects.
Please consider visiting Austin soon. Trail Tamers would love to show you around. Lynda and Dave De Groot send their greetings.
Sincerely,
Jerome Collins
RMNP Crew Leader 2005-2008

Trip Report for the 2008 Annual Central Texas Trail Tamers work trip to Rocky Mountain National Park. August 23 through September 1
Executive Summary:
Number of days of the trip: 10 day trip, 4 workdays
Number of hours worked a day: 10 hours per day
Number of CTTT participants: 10 Trail Tamers
Number of hours worked by CTTT participants: 398 hours (lost 2 hours to injury)
Number of other participating groups, if any: National Park Service Trail Crew
Number of hours worked by other participating groups, if any: 160
Contact at host agency: Danny Basch, Dave Larsen
Contact's phone number: 970-586-1248 or 586-1279 fax: 970-586-1347
Contact's e-mail address:Dave_Larsen@nps.gov; Dan_Basch@nps.gov
Brief description of work done: 3 projects on Alberta Falls-Mills Lake Trail:
1) Below Alberta Falls armor river bank with boulders and support overlook slab.
2) 100 yards above Alberta Falls, repair trail erosion with steps, water bars, and drains,.
3) About 2.5 miles above Alberta Falls, replace boardwalk on marshy bank of Mills Lake.
Status of work at end of trip:
1) Completed support for overlook ledge and 600 sq ft of riverbank armored with 100 boulders,
2) 15 steps (checks) 4 rolling grade changes, 5 drains;
3) 120 feet of wetlands boardwalk replaced.
Comments: Patrick Clynch suffered a 2 hour lost time accident resulting in stitches in his right middle finger.

Details:
Mike Rodgers, Louise Stahl and Patrick Clynch left the storage shed in Oak Hill after work Thursday evening, August 21 with Jan Adler’s bags, loaner tents and equipment in a rented van. They drove without stopping to Rocky Mountain National Park arriving at the Morraine Campground Friday. Friday, Bill Swaim flew from Austin to Denver, caught the shuttle to the campground and helped set up the camp kitchen on loan from the NPS Trails program.
Martha Davies, Clyde Paulk, Jerome Collins flew to Denver where Bill Swaim met them with the van, arriving in camp Saturday morning. Saturday afternoon, Louise, Jerome and Martha bought groceries at a Walmart whose manager would not accept our tax exempt forms. Ann Miller, Jan Adler and George Finan arrived separately. All 10 crew members were ready to go Sunday evening. Danny Basch with NPS Trails welcomed the crew and brought firewood.
Louise Stahl was the cook. Returning veterans of prior RMNP-CTTT work trips were Jan Adler, Patrick Clynch, Jerome Collins, Martha Davies, George Finan, Mike Rodgers, Bill Swaim. New this year were Ann Miller, Louise Stahl, Clyde Paulk.
Monday through Thursday, 10 volunteers in three teams worked 10 hour days on three different trail projects on the trail running from the Bear Lake parking area to Mills Lake. Jeremy Long, National Park Service, and his Trail Crew, supervised all three projects.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/jeromecollins/sets/72157607059459191/ Central Texas Trail Tamers PO Box 12045, Capitol Station, Austin, TX 78711-2045 (512) 394-9998 www.trailtamers.org
Just below Alberta Falls the river bank had been eroded and a popular overlook shelf was undermined and unsupported. The Rock Crew: Martha Davies, George Finan, Patrick Clynch, Ann Miller and Jerome Collins gathered boulders off trail to “armor” the eroded soil of the riverbank. By Monday lunch they had put in shallow ditch parallel to the bank and filled it with large stones to anchor the rockwork. By end of day Thursday, the overlook ledge was supported by over 600 square feet of tightly fitted rockwork, over 100 heavy stones. There was an on-the- job injury late in the day Thursday requiring a trip to the emergency room in Estes Park for Patrick Clynch to stitch up his middle finger on his right hand caught between a rock and a rock bar. Dave Larsen did the driving. http://www.flickr.com/photos/jeromecollins/sets/72157608732502554/
About 100 yards above Alberta Falls, a second crew filled in eroded trail with crushed rock, created 15 steps (checks), 4 rolling grade changes and 5 drains to keep water off the trail in the future. Mike Rodgers, assisted by Ann Miller, Jerome Collins and Louise Stahl, worked with Bryce, NPS trail crew member on that project. http://www.flickr.com/photos/jeromecollins/sets/72157608735805015/
Two and a half miles farther up the trail, a third crew replaced a boardwalk over the marshy banks of Mills Lake. Jan Adler, Bill Swaim, Clyde Paulk, Patrick Clynch and George Finan removed and rebuilt 120 feet of boardwalk. http://www.flickr.com/photos/jeromecollins/sets/72157608542966524/
Friday was a free day allowing the NPS crew to take off for a long weekend. The Trail Tamers took the opportunity to enjoy the hiking trail up to Flattop, including Jan Adler, Martha Davies, Geroge Finan, Clyde Paulk, Mike Rodgers, Louise Stahl, Bill Swaim. Only three stayed in the Big Thompson River Valley to fish: Ann Miller, Patrick Clynch and Jerome Collins. That evening we ate in town at a BBQ place. Several went to the Rock Inn to meet some of the NPS Trail Crew. We were able to thank the guy who put together our camp kitchen.
Because of the shorter than expected work week, most volunteers left on Saturday, although Jan Adler stayed until Monday. Changing reservations erased the advantage of lower air fares.
Mike Rodgers, Patrick Clynch and Louise Stahl drove the van back to Austin arriving Sunday. After follow up medical attention in Austin, Patrick Clynch reported his finger healing well as he began a new job on Tuesday.
With grateful appreciation of the hardworking crew of 2008,
Respectfully submitted by,
Jerome Collins
Crew Leader, RMNP 2005, ’06, ‘07, ’08.
Central Texas Trail Tamers PO Box 12045, Capitol Station, Austin, TX 78711-2045

No "Fire" in St. Elmo, Colorado – by Jerry Levenson

2008-09-15T20:32:00.008-05:00

In July 2008, eleven Trail Tamers joined about thirty volunteers from the Continental Divide Trail Alliance to work just below Tin Cup Pass, a few miles south of Buena Vista. Our goal was to replace a steep, eroding section of the CDT by building several switchbacks.

We all gathered in the ghost town of St Elmo (Motto: More chipmunks than people) on July 16. The road up to Tin Cup Pass requires 4-wheel drive, so we made sure everyone and their gear found a ride. At the campsite, we set up our tents, ate lunch, and went for a tour of the work project. CDTA and the Salinas Ranger District were well prepared with tools, and we spent an hour or two at work before walking down for dinner. CDTA provided the kitchen, the food, and a chef.

The next two days began early and ended when the afternoon showers arrived. Actually, we ended a little late on Thursday, resulting in an hour of grumpy, wet, and cold campers, but by dinnertime, we were all better. Another complication was, about two hundred years ago someone planted a few trees right in the middle of our new trails! Vigorous work with a Pulaski took care of the smaller stumps, and CDTA had some experienced people who used chain saws and a cable-grip to pull out the bigger ones.

No work was scheduled on Saturday because that coincided with the annual TrailFest exhibition. The Forest Service and many local and national outfitters had booths set up in McPhelemy Park in Buena Vista, and a dozen guided trips brought visitors out to various destinations along the CDT. After cleaning up, four of us went up to Leadville for dinner at The Grille, a highly recommended destination for any trip to central Colorado.

We completed three switchbacks, each one about fifty yards. A separate project, higher up the trail, was tackled by a Scout group and they completed another fifty yards, including building up a section of trail with logs and many, many buckets of soil. And another group built a plank bridge across an eight-foot wide creek. This task was more than just hard work; it also required a bit of engineering skill to position the bridge high enough to withstand a flood.

Letter from Jerry W. Davis, Ouachita NF, Arkansas

2008-06-13T20:23:00.002-05:00

I deeply regret that the CTTT did not get the Take Pride
in America National Award. You are truly deserving. I
hope that there is some satisfaction in knowing that your
story is now out there for anyone to see. Your dedication
to volunteering in natural resource restoration is a
rarity and truly needs public recognition and hopefully
your unselfish example will be followed by others.

Consider updating your nomination and having it ready
for 2009.

Thank you.

Jerry W. Davis
Forest Wildlife Program Manager
Ouachita National Forest
PO Box 1270
Hot Springs, AR 71902-1270
501-321-5201 Voice

Trip Report – Nature Conservancy Davis Mountains Preserve

2008-04-30T05:10:00.008-05:00

During April 2008, seven Central Texas Trail Tamers, three local volunteers and The Nature Conservancy (TNC), Davis Mountain Stewardship Director worked together for four days building a new section of the Lympia Chute Trail. The Lympia Chute Trail is the main access trail to Mount Livermore (the fifth tallest mountain in Texas), which is located on TNC’s 32,000 acre Davis Mountains Preserve, about 25 miles west of Fort Davis, Texas. In total, the work crew completed approximately 600 feet of new trail through some difficult and challenging terrain. In addition, each day, the crew took a rough, 45 minute ride both to and from the trail head in a provided four wheel vehicle.

Before and after work, the crew enjoyed the relative comforts of the TNC’s Visitor Center and adjacent camping area. Meals were prepared by crew volunteers. The evening meals included lasagna, roasted duck, grilled pork chops, hamburgers and beef stew. Activities on Friday, included a hike to the back side of the preserve, a four wheel drive exploratory ride in the preserve, a tour of the McDonald Observatory, and a tour of the Chihuahuan Desert Nature Center and Botanical Gardens. Although the terrain was very dry, wildlife was abundant. In summary, the crew saw big horn sheep, turkey, mule deer, javelina, white tail deer, antelope, and elk.

Everyone worked hard, and still found time to relax, and enjoyed the fellowship that comes from getting to know other crew members. No one got hurt and returned home safely. This was another successful work trip.

CTTT Completes Davy Crockett National Forest Project

2008-02-15T04:28:00.000-06:00

by Raymond Fore

President's Day weekend at Davy Crockett National Forest was successful again despite all the efforts of Mother Nature to derail us. Friday, February 15 was spent setting up camp and gathering the needed tools and supplies we'd need to complete the task. Except of the retagging of the Tall Pines Trail and the clean up and organizing of the supply yard/lumber yard, all the work we did during the work session took place in the Big Slough Wilderness area. The challenge in this work was doing it without the help of any type of powered tools OR wheeled vehicles. Four sections of the raised wooden foot bridge on the trail had been washed away in recent flooding.

The bridge crew, made up of Mike Rodgers, Terrence Donovan, Andy Zwarun, Pearlie Green(Forest Service), and myself, Ray Fore recovered the sections, re-established them, and added a cable hand rail. The tree crew, Chuck Lundsted, Raylene Welch, Bob Weglarz, Dwight Riley, and Vick Hines removed several very large trees that had fallen across the 4 C trail. They did this with the use of axes, 6 foot cross cut saws, several smaller saws, and a lot of grunting and groaning. As usual, the Forest Service thought it would take us at least two days to complete those two task. We did it in one and still had time to retag and clear the Tall Pines trail which goes around Ratcliff Lake.

After a night of violent thunder storms, we woke to a clear morning. The clearing and organizing the Forest Service's supply/lumber yard was a fall back task just in case we needed something else to do. While that was being done, two of us and the Forest Service personnel returned to the woods to take inventory of other bridges that needed attention. We identified at least two more days of work in bridge repair and trail clearing. This will be a task we'll take care of later in the year.

Six of us took a side trip Friday evening. We went to Crockett and ate at an excellent restaurant, "Tchoupitoulas". After supper we attended a concert at the Camp Street Cafe featuring Elena James. This fiddle player and singer plays for people like Willie Nelson and Bob Dylan. She was great and brought the house down with her rendition of "Orange Blossom Special".

Another successful weekend. It was good to meet new members, and visit with those members we haven't seen in some time.

Trip Report: 2007 Guadalupe Mountains National Park

2007-11-03T10:39:00.000-05:00

During October 28 - November 3, 2007, the CTTT returned six volunteers to the highest mountains in Texas to volunteer at the Guadalupe Mountains National Park. The Trail Tamers worked drove from Austin to the Dog Canyon campground in the remote northern section of the park. Under direction of Jack Kincaid, the crew backpacked in to the Marcus campsite approximately 4 miles from Dog Canyon and set up camp.

The crew spent three hard days finishing the last section of a major re-route of the Bush Mountain Trail. As with any new trail construction, a lot of time was spent building the trail base and hauling dirt for the tread. The crew was able to enjoy hours crushing rocks and taking breaks by hauling dirt down the mountain.

Pictured left to right: Mike Rodgers, Wade Powell, Kevin Deiters, Devin Grobert, Allen Weber, and Bob Weglarz. Please note the nice new tread on the trail.

CTTT and Austin Parks Foundation Sign Agreement

2007-10-05T04:48:00.000-05:00

Austin Parks Foundation (APF) executive director Charlie McCabe (left) and Trail Tamers president Pat Dixon (right) signed the agreements between the organizations to work together on trail building projects. Trail Tamers will provide crew leader oversight and technical assistance on these projects and APF will provide the promotion and volunteer resources. The agreement intends to help both organizations ease their administrative efforts and help achieve their missions. The first joint projects will be Oct 6 (Pease Park), Nov 17 (Country Club Creek) and Dec 1 (Red Bud Isle).

Trip Report: Continental Divide Trail in Carson National Forest N.M.

2007-09-05T05:17:00.000-05:00

In August of 2007, eight Trail-tamers headed west to the Carson National Forest for the third time in four years. The objective: to complete the eight mile section of the Continental Divide Trail running from Lagunitas campground south past Olguin Mesa to FR 93. This is a section of the CDT that passes through roadless wilderness characterized by high hills, open meadows and lush forest of aspen and fir. Although lacking the “peaky” nature of the Colorado mountains to the north. At 10,000 feet altitude this area is plenty high enough to provide a mountain top experience. Wildlife sightings included, 4-elk, 2-mule deer, and a plethora of smaller furry and feathered creatures. Evening temperatures were in the 40’s and daytime highs ran into the upper 70’s. The food was plentiful and included many tasty treats so in spite of the hard work no on lost any weight.

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

2007-09-03T05:25:00.000-05:00

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.

Thanks from Davis Mountains Preserve

2007-06-11T16:36:00.000-05:00

Lynda,

You've been on my call list since last week but I've been out of the office all week and am about to run out the door again. Thanks so much for making the trip out. Please pass our thanks on to all the CTTT who made the trip out. You guys did an awesome job out here! We'd love to have you out again.

I don't know what y'alls schedule is for the summer and fall but I'd like to have y'all out again to do some more work on the Limpia Chute. Let me know if this will work and we can talk about dates and schedules.

Thanks again for all y'alls help. I'm glad everybody could make the trip out.

Colin Shackelford
Davis Mountains Director of Stewardship

The Nature Conservancy
West Texas Programs
Mail: PO Box 2078
Ship: 109 N State St, Suite 4
Fort Davis, TX 79734

Mailing Address

2007-06-11T11:33:00.002-05:00

Our mailing address is:

Central Texas Trail Tamers
PO Box 12045 Capitol Station
Austin, TX 78711-2045
Phone: 512-394-9998

About Us

2007-06-11T11:18:00.000-05:00

About Us

We are a group of ready volunteers from the general public of Central Texas and beyond who donate our time and effort to build and maintain hike & bike trails, including ADA accessible trails.

Our mission is to relieve some of the burdens faced by government agencies who oversee our public parks, preserves and forests by working on approved trail construction and maintenance projects that enhance public access to and enjoyment of these special places.

We operate as a Texas 501(c)(3) non-profit corporation governed by a nine member board of directors who serve without pay.

Administrative fees, including cost of a quarterly newsletter, are covered by our annual membership dues of $25 ($40/family), which are tax-deductible. A small participation fee (usually $75 or less) is charged for most long-distance projects. No fee is charged for local projects.

Camping is our usual form of lodging but sometimes the host agency provides sleeping and cooking facilities. We provide all food for long-distance projects and meals are cooked by our volunteers.

We are a reputable, non-political organization with a proven track record and anyone *18 or older can participate. (*Younger participants must be accompanied by a parent or guardian.)

This is a great way to work on meaningful and rewarding projects in an outdoor setting and have a good time as well. What better way to give something back for all the joy that trails provide!

Ethics Policy

2007-05-23T15:26:00.000-05:00

Purpose

The purpose of the Ethics Policy is to ensure that persons conduct themselves in an ethical manner in order to promote the harmony and welfare of all participants.

Ethics

The following shall apply:

➢ All activities shall be conducted in accordance with leave no trace practices.
➢ Persons shall act in an ethical manner at all CTTT activities.
➢ A participant acting in an unethical manner that undermines the welfare of themselves and/or others, as determined by the Crew Leader, shall be asked to leave the activity and may be required to do so at his (or her) own expense. The Crew Leader will, if necessary, contact the local law enforcement authorities to enforce this policy.

Fiscal Policy

2007-05-23T15:25:00.000-05:00

Purpose

The purpose of the Fiscal Policy is to provide a minimum level of protection against the financial hazards associated with the operation of the corporation. This is not intended to be a substitute for liability insurance.

Checking Account

The checking account will be administered by the Executive Committee in accordance with Article 6 of the Bylaws.

Reserve Account

A reserve account will be maintained to provide a reserve to be used in event of catastrophic loss to tools and equipment. Allocation of funds from the reserve may only be appropriated by resolution of the Board of Directors. Checks drawn on the reserve account shall be signed by the Treasurer and countersigned by the President of the corporation.

Insurance Policy

2007-05-23T15:24:00.000-05:00

Purpose

The purpose of the Insurance Policy is to provide a minimum level of protection against the hazards associated with the performance of CTTT activities. Insurance coverage only applies with respect to registered volunteers. This is not intended to be a substitute for personal health insurance.

Insurance

The following levels of insurance shall be maintained.

$25,000 - Medical Indemnity for members participating on LRT’s
$500,000 – Vehicle Liability
$1,000,000 – Volunteer Liability

Leadership Policy

2007-05-23T15:23:00.000-05:00

Purpose

The purpose of the Leadership Policy is to ensure that persons with sufficient skill sets are available to lead participants in a safe and effective manner.

Leadership

A Crew Leader shall supervise all Local Work Days and Long Range Trips. Crew Leaders shall act as the representative of the Board and shall have the authority to enforce the Policies, Procedures and guidelines as may be established from time to time.

Crew Leader Qualifications

Unless otherwise determined by the Executive Committee, to be qualified as a Crew Leader for a CTTT work activity, one must meet the following minimum specifications.
➢ Must have participated in 1-LRT or 3-LWD’s
➢ Must have completed Crew Leader training
➢ Must be approved by the Board
➢ Must comply with all CTTT Policies and Procedures

Membership Policy

2007-05-23T15:22:00.004-05:00

Purpose

Central Texas Trail Tamers (CTTT) is a non-profit, 501(c)(3) corporation governed by a Board of Directors in accordance with the Bylaws. Membership dues are added to the general operating account to partially offset administrative expenses. The membership policy is being set forth to insure the tranquility, health, safety and well being of members of the Central Texas Trail Tamers and provide a means to generate the revenue necessary to sustain a growing organization.

Definitions

Dues – fees payable in $US; in the amount assessed by the Board to qualify for membership.
Term – time frame for which payment of dues qualifies one for membership.
Member in good standing – person whose membership dues are current and whose fiduciary and/or supervisory conduct while in a CTTT sanctioned activity is not under review by the board.

Revocation – suspension of membership privileges.

Requirements

Single Member - open to all persons having reached the age of 18.

Family member – Same as a member

Student member - open to all persons having reached the age of 16 but less than 25.

Life member – open to all persons having reached the age of 25 and make a 1-time dues payment, or granted by the Board to a person in recognition of an extended career of service above and beyond the ordinary.

Benefits

*Subject to the terms of the Policies, Procedures & Guidelines documents, only members in good standing are eligible to:
a. Participate in Long Range Trips (LRT’s)
*Subject to the terms of the Policies, Procedures & Guidelines documents, only members in good standing, except Student Members are eligible to:
b. Be considered for the Board of Directors
c. Chair a committee
d. Be a crew leader
*Membership is not required for Local Work Days (LWD’s), or participation in general meetings
*Members will receive the regularly published newsletter, “Pathfinder”.
*Members may, from time to time, receive collateral benefits (e.g. discounts & reduced fees) from other organizations that CTTT may become associated with from time to time.

Dues

Single member - $25/year.

Family member – $40/year

Student member - $5/year

Life member – $500/life unless the Board grants such status in which case there is no charge.

Term

Single, Family, Student Membership will be valid for the fiscal year in which dues are paid. Dues paid after October 1st will qualify one for membership during the balance of that fiscal year and the next.

Life Membership will be valid for the fiscal year in which dues are paid (or status is conferred by the Board) until death or revocation. Life membership is not transferable.

Repercussions

Persons whose conduct does not comply with the terms set forth in the Policies, Procedures & Guidelines may have their membership revoked by the Board. Such persons have the right to review the minutes of the Board meeting in which such a determination was made if such request is made in accordance with the Bylaws. After reviewing said minutes such persons may petition the Board for a review hearing.
In the case of Revocation of membership, dues will be forfeited.
Persons whose membership has been revoked may apply to the Board for reinstatement after a period of one (1) year.
Persons whose membership term has expired relinquish all the rights, privileges, and benefits of membership.

Organization Policy

2007-05-23T15:22:00.001-05:00

Purpose

The purpose of the Organization Policy is to describe the organizational structure of CTTT including the Board, officers and the committees.

Board Members

Board members are selected at-large. Traditionally there has been no Chairperson of the Board and the President, who is a member of the Board, chairs all functions. It is also tradition that the Vice President be a member of the Board.

Officers

The Board elects officers. As stated above the President and Vice President are traditionally Board members. The Secretary and Treasurer are often not Board members. All officers report to the Board, having duties as defined by the Bylaws.

Executive Committee

As provided for in the Bylaws, the Board has created an Executive Committee. Membership of this 3-person committee is the President, Vice president and an Executive Director appointed by the Board.

Standing Committee

By resolution of the Board, Standing Committees have been created that exist until disbanded by Board action. The Board appoints standing Committee chairpersons.

Governing Documents

By law the Articles of Incorporation are the supreme governing document. Subservient to that are the Bylaws, Policies, Procedures, and Guidelines. In each case the successor may not supercede the former.

Attachments

A graphical depiction of this policy is attached.

Participation Policy

2007-05-23T15:22:00.000-05:00

Purpose

The purpose of the Participation Policy is to ensure that well-meaning people are not exposed to bad situations

Participation

Participation shall be open to all adults having reached the age of 18, subject to approval by the Crew Leader, and as provided for by the Policies of CTTT.
For their own safety, participants must meet the following minimum requirements.

1) Must be in the physical condition appropriate for the level of activity planned.
2) Must be willing to comply with all CTTT policies, procedures and guidelines.
3) Must be willing to sign the liability release and complete the medical information forms.

Policy on Illegal Substances, Drugs and Alcoholic Beverages

2007-05-23T15:20:00.000-05:00

• Purpose
➢ The purpose of establishing a policy on drugs and alcoholic beverages is to insure that the tranquility, health, safety and well being of members of the Central Texas Trail Tamers (CTTT) is not jeopardized by wrongful acts of non-thinking individuals.
• Definitions
➢ Prohibited Activities - activities that shall not be conducted during a CTTT sanctioned activity.
➢ Regulated Activities - activities that may take place if done so in accordance with prevailing laws, medical advice and after having been disclosed to the CTTT leader.
• Prohibited Activities
➢ Purchase, possession, transportation, use, transfer or sale of any illegal substance.
➢ Consumption of alcoholic beverages on the job or work period as specified by the crew leader.
➢ Use of public funds including sponsorship contributions, activity fees, grants or other donations to purchase alcoholic beverages.
➢ Consumption of alcoholic beverages during the eight-hour period prior to operations of vehicle or machinery. Designated non-drinking drivers will be assigned to drive to and from functions where alcoholic beverages are served.
• Regulated Activities
➢ Possession and use of prescriptions drugs during and immediately prior to participation in any project must be in accordance with the prescription and disclosed to the group leader and his medical representative.
➢ Possession and use of a non-prescription drug will be at the discretion of the user, but disclosure to the group leader and his medical representative is encouraged. In cases where proper usage may impair coordination or cause drowsiness, disclosure is required.
➢ Use of tobacco products is permitted but the health and safety of non-users shall prevail. Smoking may be prohibited entirely in certain areas and at times of high fire hazard.
➢ Possession, transportation, display and consumption of alcoholic beverages shall conform to the rules established by the authority having jurisdiction over the project, i.e. National Park Service, U.S. forest Service, Bureau of Land Management, Texas Parks and Wildlife, etc.
➢ Private consumption during non-duty hours is permitted if not otherwise prohibited up to eight hours prior to the start of the work period.
➢ Public consumption of alcoholic beverages after the work period shall be at the discretion of the CTTT group leader. Each individual is responsible for his/her behavior and shall not infringe on the rights of others to enjoy the peace and serenity of the area.
• Repercussions
➢ Violation of this policy and/or disregard for the spirit and intent of this policy shall result in termination of an individual's privilege to participate in current and future CTTT projects.
➢ Participants acting in a manner that is unsafe to themselves and/or others shall be asked to leave the activity and may be required to do so at their own expense. The CTTT Leader will, if necessary contact the local authorities to enforce this policy.

Safety Policy

2007-05-23T15:19:00.000-05:00

Purpose

The purpose of the Safety Policy is to ensure that persons conduct themselves in a manner that does not endanger themselves or other participants.

Safety

The following shall apply:

➢ First aid kits shall be maintained by CTTT and be present at all LWD and LRT’s.
➢ To ensue the safety of all participants, the buddy system should be used.
➢ The Drug and Alcohol Policy shall be in force at all CTTT activities.
➢ Participants acting in a manner that is unsafe to themselves and/or others, as determined by the Crew Leader, shall be asked to leave the activity and may be required to do so at his (or her) own expense. The Crew Leader will, if necessary contact the local law enforcement authorities to enforce this policy.

Crew Leader Training Procedure

2007-05-23T15:15:00.000-05:00

Mission

A Training program will be established to maintain a cadre of Crew Leaders who will oversee CTTT activities to ensure: 1) the effective use and protection of natural resources, and 2) the safety of all volunteers.

Duration

Crew Leader training will typically involve (1) Saturday or multiple evening sessions.

Participation

Crew Leader training is open to all members as stipulated in the CTTT Leadership Policies. A fee established by the Technical Committee may be assessed to cover the cost of training materials.

Organization

Training shall be presided over by the Technical Committee and be staffed as follows.

1. Training Coordinator – schedules and coordinates all training classes. Procures training materials and facilities.
2. Instructor – conducts training sessions.
3. Participants – typically six per class per instructor.

Minimum Requirements

Minimum requirements for certification as a CTTT Crew Leader are participation in four sessions of classroom instruction.

Recommended schedule for 1-day classroom instruction is as follows:

Time Event Contents

8AM Registration Personal contact information, medical release form, coffee and doughnuts

8:30 Introduction
Instructor information and personal history

8:35 Session 1
CTTT History Foundation, pictures of past events, letters of commendation

8:45 Session 2
Trail design Techniques and review of reference materials

10:15 Break

10:30 Techniques continued

12:00 Lunch

1PM Session 3
Crew leadership
Basic techniques

2:30 Break

2:45 Session 4
Policy review Review of CTTT Policies, Procedures & Guidelines

5:00 Adjourn

Crew Leader Trainee should complete First Aid training in one of the following approved programs

1) Red Cross
2) Firefighters
3) EMT
4) SWEAT

Participation in programs deemed equivalent by the Board (e.g. VOC Crew Leader training) may also be considered sufficient if approved by the Board. Technical Committee may also nominate Crew Leaders for consideration by the Board based on their experience and knowledge. A majority vote is required to confer the certification of Crew Leader.

Instructors

Technical Committee will nominate Instructors for consideration by the Board based on their experience and knowledge. A majority vote is required to confer the certification of Instructor.

Trip Report: Glen Canyon Trail Project – Bullfrog, Utah (March 2007) By Lynda DeGroot

2007-03-24T19:28:00.000-05:00

Saturday morning, March 24th, nine excited Trail Tamers from central Texas set off on a new adventure to Bullfrog, Utah on the upper reaches of Lake Powell within Glen Canyon National Recreation Area. Two members from Grand Junction, Colorado met us at the site. By mid-Sunday afternoon everyone was present and accounted for. We Texans made good time even though we stopped to see a few sights along the way.

We were invited to Utah by Justin Glasgow, Interpretive Officer for Glen Canyon NRA, who heard about us from John Heiner, Chief Interpretive Officer at Fort Davis National Historic Site in west Texas. Justin was based at Fort Davis for a while and trained by John who showed him the trail work done by Trail Tamers over the years! When Justin moved on to Bullfrog, Utah, the first thing he noticed was the lack of trails in the area and, now that Lake Powell is 103ft. below its normal level, many people have been asking about hiking opportunities. That’s when he contacted us to see if we would consider coming out there to utilize our expertise!

What a great opportunity to see a different kind of place! Working in red sandy soil was a lot different than working in a forest, or our own Texas hill country, but I think we did a darned good job. Numerous rock cairns were built to define a trail on the undulating red rock hills, and a new trail was cut into the side of a large hill leading up to the top where you could look out over Lake Powell. A large and unique cairn was built by Raylene & Mary to mark the spot. Some of us moved heavy rocks to mark the trail entrance near the parking area (thank goodness for those rock cradles!). We then fixed a social trail created by people following an old cow path. We decided it was best to leave it where it was, so we added a series of about 15-20 check dams from the bottom all the way to the top of the hill and pulled in the sides of this deeply rutted “trail” to fill in behind them. This leveled it out nicely and made it look more like a trail!

When we finished those trails, Justin asked if we would mind looking at another area several miles away, just off the famous Burr Trail...a 68 mile winding, mostly gravel road connecting Bullfrog to Boulder, Utah through the beautiful painted rock country of Capitol Reef National Park, Waterpocket Fold and Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument. This area actually lists a 3-mile round trip trail in a park service booklet but the trail was seldom used because it was nearly impossible to find! So, we spent our last two days building a series of large rock cairns to guide people to a place at the end of the trail called Pedestal Alley where there are numerous huge pedestal rocks in various sizes & shapes.

The weather went from being a bit chilly on the first day but warmed up nicely and then the winds blew in on the second day and nearly sandblasted us. When they subsided, we managed to get more done but later in the week, it began to get colder and on our last workday, it started drizzling. At least we had a nice, warm house to go back to…compliments of the Park Service!
At the end of our time there…Justin presented each of us with numerous items to show his appreciation. In all, we contributed nearly 300 hours of volunteer labor and put in over two dozen rock cairns plus 15-20 check dams.

On our way back home to Texas, I used my National Park Pass to treat my passengers to a side trip to Arches, Canyonlands & Mesa Verde National Parks. What a wonderful trip this was! My thanks to Raylene Welch & Bob Weglarz, Debbie Galloway, Mary Zeitler, Sharon Highnote, Chris Argyros, Bo Bosarge, Ralph & Debbie Ploeger, and my dear sister, Shirley Harlow.

Guadalupe Mountains National Park, October 21-28, 2006

2006-10-29T07:13:00.000-06:00

During the last week of October 2006, the CTTT returned eight volunteers to the highest mountains in Texas to volunteer at the Guadalupe Mountains National Park. As always we had some challenging projects and great support from the National Park Service.

The rebuilding of the visitor center pedestrian bridge was the major project worked on by the crew. The bridge decking had failed due to the use of faulting composite decking material The trail tamers worked with two NPS carpenters to rebuild the bridge. Significant progress was made by completing two-thirds of the bridge during the week. Over 100 hours of time was spent working on the pedestrian bridge into the visitor center. The trail tamers removed the old decking material, rebuilt the supporting joists, pre-positioned new materials, and cut and installed new recycled decking materials.

The crew also worked on several trails during the week. On Monday, four members worked on trails in McKittrick Canyon by removing a large bolder from a canyon trail and by performing maintenance on the trails around the Pratt Canyon. On Tuesday, four members cleaned water bars on the Smith Spring trail. On Wednesday and Thursday, 5 members worked on the McKittrick Canyon Nature Trail to clear the trail of overgrown cedar, cat claw, and overgrown native grasses on the trail.

8/26-9/4/06: 13th Annual Trip to Rocky Mountain National Park

2006-09-30T16:51:00.000-05:00

13th Annual Central Texas Trail Tamers work trip to Rocky Mountain National Park
August 26-September 4, 2006 - by Jerome Collins, Executive Director

We left the "Y" between 71 and 290 in Oak Hill about 7:20a.m. with only Jerome Collins, Chris Argyros, Travis Caffee, Terence Donovan and piles of camping equipment in the van. John Shanks and Kathy Costello left earlier in the week to take the cooking equipment. Barbara Martinez drove her car with Dave Schneider for company. Bill Warren drove up earlier and Lin Risner drove directly from Marshall to Raton, NM where we met that evening and ate. We spent the night at Travis Caffee's family place near Cuchara, CO, arriving before midnight. Sunday, we drove into the Moraine Park campground at Rocky Mountain National Park about 3pm to find Lin Risner and Bill Warren pitching the cook tent with John and Kathy.

Thirteen volunteers working in two teams worked on three different trail projects in Rocky Mountain National Park (RMNP). One team, Lin Risner, a forester from Marshall, Bill Warren from Georgetown, Chris Argyros with Americorps in Austin and originally from Troy, NY, Kathy Costello from Austin and Debbie and Ralph Ploeger from Grand Junction, Colorado, completed 92 checks and 6 drains on new trailbed for the Twin Owls trail opening in spring, 2007. And they did it in four days. There was some excitement on the first day due to a short hailstorm and the destruction of Bill's daypack by tooth and claw. A bear was suspected but not spotted.

Jerome Collins, this year's crew leader recruited John Shanks, a retired chef, restaurateur and caterer, as camp cook for a return engagement and bringing Kathy Costello with him. Terence Donovan a veteran of four previous Central Texas Trail Tamers (CTTT) trips to RMNP, Martha Davies, rock wall expert, returned, Barbara Martinez from Austin and fresh from the trip to Leadville, Colorado earlier this summer, Travis Caffee, native Austinite, Americorp member and youngest, and Dave Schneider, a CPA from LaGrange, made up the second crew. Working under Dan Ostrowski, NPS trail crew leader, this team worked on repairs on the "Bear Nymph Dream Emerald Lakes" trail.

The first two days Terence, Travis and Dave spent creating a rock lined drain for a wetland area to dry the trail that had been continually muddy. Travis was the mud diver, Terence was the voice of experience and Dave carried buckets of dry aggregate uphill. Jerome, Martha and Barbara tore out asphalt that had been used in the 1970's to stabilize the heavily used trail (600 visitors a day average in summer). They placed 2 log checks and a drain by tying them to the granite monolith on one side and to an existing rock wall on the downside using a carbide tip chisel, rock hammers and sledges. Dan O did the custom chain saw work and supervised.

Monday, visitors reporting a bear on a carcass up the trail caused Dan O to report it, call in a couple of rangers loaded for bear, and send a crew including Dave Schneider to move the carcass farther off the trail to prevent human-bear contact. The cow elk carcass had a broken neck and was very ripe.

Tuesday we woke to ice on the windshields. There was a communication glitch and the very able Ploegers, Debbie and Ralph, spent the day in camp waiting for the NPS crew leader to arrive. Lin, Bill, Chris and Kathy put in another dozen log checks and a drain on the Twin Owls-Lumpy Ridge project. The Bear Nymph Dream Emerald crew finished the work they started, but Jerome, Martha, Barbara, Travis and Terence came to appreciate the buckets of dirt Dave Schneider had carried all day Monday. We also received some official looking hats, "NPS Volunteer" so we would look official when we directed trail traffic at the worksite.

Wednesday, both full crews were at work, with Jerome swapping places with Kathy for the day. The Bear Nymph Dream Emerald crew moved higher to add a couple of checks to long pads, establish a new tool cache and bring in more logs.

Thursday, work went well with all hands on board and the Lumpy Ridge-Twin Owls crew completed their assigned task by day's end. The Bear Nymph Dream Emerald crew (working with honorary Trail Tamer, Eric the Irishman) started to create a photo opportunity bench using four very large boulders, Jerome, Dave, rock bars, skids and sledges. We tried to close off the worksite to hikers by re-routing the trail, but people found their way anyway. Martha, Barbara, Travis and Terence worked on a tricky set of checks and drains on a curve. That project called for 20 buckets of dirt and we were almost 1000 feet higher than where we had begun. The afternoon was marked by a report of Travis falling during a lunch-break rock climb and the arrival of thunder, rain and lightning as we quit and moved down the mountain.

Friday, since the Lumpy-Twin Owls project was finished, the Ploegers decided to leave instead of working at higher altitude. Bill Warren wanted to get back to meet an expected grand child. He drove with Terence Donovan so he could meet his daughter. Lin Risner left to celebrate his mother's birthday with her back in Marshall. The remainder of the Lumpy-Twin Owls crew, Kathy and Chris, joined the other team on the Bear & Bierstadt Lakes Trail to clean drains in the morning and block "social" trails, shortcuts, in the afternoon under the guidance of Dave Larsen, Chief Crew Leader for RMNP. Lunch and a nap were at the top of the slope looking out over Bierstadt Lake and a beautiful glacial valley.

Saturday was a free day. John, Kathy and Jerome broke camp, loaded the cook's van and the Shanks-Costellos left to see old friends in Colorado Springs. Travis had backpacked into the primitive camping area and arrived in time for supper Saturday. Jerome took pictures of the work the 2005 crew had done on Ypsilon Trail. Martha met her daughter at the Travel Lodge in Estes Park. Barbara went sightseeing. Dave and Chris hiked up Flattop Mountain and sent a picture to her father in NY. That evening Barbara, Chris, Dave, Travis and Jerome enjoyed a dinner in Estes Park. We did not refuel the van in Estes Park.

We left Sunday morning at 7:40 a.m. and arrived about 11:30 p.m. in Childress, Texas. About 9:30 pm, between Perryton and Childress, a deer standing on the opposite side of the highway, jumped between our headlights, breaking the grill. 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 Michele Collins cleaned out the van and turned it in the next morning. Bill for the deer damage was $1056.48.

4/22/06: Convict Hill Quarry Park

2006-04-30T16:51:00.000-05:00

April 22, 2006
Convict Hill Quarry Park, Texas - by Lynda DeGroot
On April 22, 2006 (It's My Park Day) numerous local residents, a couple of Scout troops and 3 enthusiastic Trail Tamers (Mary Zeitler, Stan Pascua and me) showed up at this great little park located near Oak Hill, on the southwest edge of Austin, TX.

The agenda for the day was to remove as much cut cedar and other brush as possible from the interior of the park where it was stacked in huge piles and left to rot for almost a decade. Members of the E-Corp division of AmeriCorp removed massive amounts of cedar during earlier workdays. All of this effort was being made to clear the park sufficiently so that a few trails could be put in for everyone to enjoy.

From 9am until 1pm, we dragged and stacked as much dead cedar as we could possibly move and, when finished, the stacks were nearly 50 yards long and about 6-8 feet high! When we finished for the day, all volunteers received a free t-shirt and other goodies.

The park has historic significance in that it was the original quarry for the stone that was used in part of the Texas capitol! There was once a railroad line running from the quarry that delivered cut stone to the capitol construction site. There are still some old stones in the park with bore holes from that time long ago. Throughout the park are numerous high mounds of rock and low-lying areas that tend to accumulate water after a rain. There's a high rock ledge running along one side and a thicket in the northwest corner. Near the center are several huge, OLD cedar trees and a variety of native plants throughout. It's really a pretty & peaceful setting!

A couple of short meandering trails had been put in place by the informal Friends of Convict Hill Quarry Park, but they asked for Trail Tamer help to determine the best placement of future trails. We suggested that they wait until all the brush is removed before attempting to put in more trails, and then CTTT will be glad to come back and help. Their next workday is June 10 so that would be a great opportunity to see this fine park!

3/2-6/06: Fossil Rim Wildlife Center

2006-03-15T16:49:00.000-06:00

March 2-6, 2006
Fossil Rim Wildlife Center, Glen Rose, Texas - by Lynda DeGroot
On Wednesday, March 2nd, a small band of Trail Tamers converged on Fossil Rim Wildlife Center just outside of Glen Rose, Texas---about 1-1/2 hours southwest of Ft. Worth. At the request of Anne Bolte, Education Specialist at Fossil Rim, we were asked if we would come and share our expertise with them, and repair one of their hiking trails that had become too dangerous to use.

Upon arrival at Fossil Rim on Wednesday around lunchtime, Anne greeted us and showed us our accommodations. We unloaded our gear and took everything to our cabins. A bit later we were joined Nina & Cy Francis, who drove down from Ft. Worth to help after they found out about our project. The next day, we were joined by some local families and, later on, a couple of fellows from Dallas came to help and also talk to us about a possible project in their area.

We decided to look at the trail right away in order to see what needed to be done, so we grabbed a few tools and followed Anne to the end of the trail near our cabins. It was nearly impassible with all sorts of shrubby brush blocking the way, so several of the crew went right to work cutting a decent path. The rest of us headed down the trail to size up what else needed to be done...and there was plenty!

Numerous water bars sat in the middle of wide spaces where the trail used to be. The soil had washed away from them. Other parts of the trail were steep and slippery, while other sections were rocky and overgrown with low-hanging branches. Once we assessed the situation, we rolled up our sleeves and went to work.

The weather was perfect and we got a lot done that first afternoon. We could have continued, but it was late and our dinner had arrived. Anne ordered several delicious pizzas for us, including dessert! Yum! We enjoyed our meal and then discussed our plan of action for the following days. Afterward, everyone headed for the cabins.

Much time was spent replacing or realigning most of the water bars and putting steps in the steep, slippery sections. Steve Baker, Jim Schmidt, Alex Arreguin and Cy Francis worked hard on those steps and waterbars while Nina Francis, Debbie Galloway and Mary Zeitler were the lopper crew who made the trail passable. Alex, Debbie and I moved some big rocks at the other end of the trail, leveling it out where possible and adding steps to make it user-friendly. On Saturday afternoon we finished all we could do. Anne and one of the interns at the center, walked the trail and were amazed at how much work we had done and how much better and safer the trail looked!

On Thursday, Friday and Saturday morning, Anne and her staff had breakfast ready for us and when noon rolled around, they brought us lunch. When each day ended, they prepared a mighty fine dinner as well! On Sunday, before heading back to our homes, we were treated to breakfast at the Fossil Rim Café© and were given a terrific “behind-the-scenes” tour of the entire wildlife center and it's array of animals!

If you've never heard of Fossil Rim Wildlife Center, it's a research and educational facility dedicated to protecting and maintaining scores of animals from around the world that are either extinct in their native lands or on the verge of extinction. The center maintains a captive breeding program that seeks to gradually increase the number of these magnificent animals so they may eventually be returned to the wild. This is a wonderful place to visit and to learn more about!

2/17-20/06: Bustamante, Mexico

2006-02-28T16:48:00.000-06:00

February 17-20, 2006
Bustamante, Mexico - by Philip Russell
Over president's day weekend, ten trail tamers returned to Bustamante, Mexico. Bustamante, a charming little town older than San Antonio, is just 90 miles south of Laredo. In addition to offering challenging trail work, it has a mountain overlooking the town, springs on the order of Barton Springs, some fine 19th century architecture, pastries, and a distillery producing the local brew known as mescal. Our task was to upgrade a section of mountainside trail leading to a large cave that forms the heart of Bustamante's eco-tourism program. The work is challenging since all the plants are well equipped with thorns, large rocks abound, and soil is a scarce commodity to be sought out and brought back to the site in plastic buckets.

Fortunately, out previous work on the cave trail had weathered last year's hurricane that hit the area. We built on our previous work, filling, hauling, dragging, etc. and left the trail in even better condition for the anticipated rush of visitors over Easter. The Trail Tamer contingent was one of several work projects occurring simultaneously to enhance the cave. All projects were organized by the Texas Speleological Association, which also organized a variety of activities for participants on the second day of our stay.

On the second day, some of us went about 20 miles north to the small town of Candela, where we were greeted by the mayor who took us to a canyon being developed as a park. The tour included a scramble up a hillside to visit a mine that intersected a cave. The mine is no longer worked for its ore, but the bats inhabiting the complex do leave abundant guano which is collected, bagged, and then sold as fertilizer.
A second option involved an extended drive across the desert west of Bustamante. After passing through deserted ranch communities, participants arrived at the Chiquihuitillo Rock Art Site. There, under the shelter of overhanging cliffs, are dozens of Indian rock paintings. Little information is available as to who made the paintings, or when the many geometric shapes were painted.

A third excursion involved a scramble up the canyon at the foot of the mountain where we did the trail work. This excursion provided a good chance to observe desert vegetation and experience hiking along a trail built not for recreation but to carry ore from the mine to the rail line. At the end of the trail was yet another mine-cave complex. (The area is so full of caves that it's hard to open a mine without encountering a cave).

On our last night we had a banquet organized at the funky hotel where we stayed. The following morning we drove back to Austin, after touring the local mescal distillery.

2/17-20/06: Davy Crockett National Forest

2006-01-30T16:47:00.000-06:00

February 17-20, 2006
Davy Crockett National Forest - by George Boemerman
Friday morning, the 17th of Feb., Steve Baker, George Boemerman, Bo Bosarge, Ray Fore, and Chuck Lundstedt rendezvoused at the Ratcliff Lake office of the Davy Crockett National Forest with Pearlie Green and Merlinda Schory, the trails maintenance supervisors at the forest, to plan and prepare the weekend's workload.

Pearlie and Merlinda had selected 5 bridges to repair so we drove to those sites to determine the extent of work, plus the tools and materials required. We then drove to the forest's work area and prepositioned the lumber, materials and tools on the work trailers so we'd be ready to go the next morning.

We decided to break into 2 teams, possibly 3 depending on how things worked out, with Steve Baker and Ray Fore as our construction team leaders. Note that Steve Baker briefed us on the trail bridge construction and repair procedures he found in a National Forest publication and they proved quite valuable. Great job, Steve.

That evening Janette Barlow and Terence Donovan of the Trail Tamers arrived, plus 4 AmeriCorps members: Leslie Huvler, Brandon Kiger, Scott Voorhees, and Chad Wilbur. Chuck brought a pickup load of good firewood so we had great campfires, and that night Chuck and Ray prepared gumbo for us.

Saturday morning we awoke to find the forest frozen over. Since we had selected the overflow campsite with its covered pavilion, we were able to prepare and eat breakfast in relative comfort. Then off to the woods we went. Since the bridges were frozen over, we could not walk on them (too slippery) so we had to do most of the work from the sides.

In the afternoon it thawed so we were able to complete laying the bridge treads. By the end of a long day we were able to complete all 5 assigned bridge projects. Again, Saturday night we had a great and welcome campfire. The camp host had prepared it in advance for us. Steve Baker prepared a wonderful and warming dinner of jambalaya. Pearlie Green joined us along with the 4 camp host families who also prepared dishes for all to share. It may have been a bit chilly but it did not dampen our spirits one bit. Around the campfire we planned the next day's work (3 additional bridge repairs) and the next day we finished those.

The entire weekend was damp, cold, sometimes freezing but we all had a good time (we must be a bit nutty) and were able to complete all tasks safely and in the usual Trail Tamer professional fashion. We all noted the spirit, work ethic and teamwork of the AmeriCorps folks. A great group, we would take them on any trip.

1/21/06: Bamberger Ranch Preserve

2006-01-30T16:46:00.000-06:00

January 21, 2006
Bamberger Ranch Preserve, Texas - by Lynda DeGroot
On a fairly cool and overcast January morning, 15 Trail Tamers from Austin, Round Mountain, Wimberley and as far as Laredo(!) made their way to the beautiful Bamberger Ranch Preserve near Johnson City, Texas. We came for the purpose of modifying the trail to the Chiroptorium (J. David Bamberger's man-made bat cave) and repairing several other nature trails nearby.

We gathered in front of Hes' Store (a unique replica of an old general store) and waited for Steve Fulton to bring the Bluebonnet trailer to transport everyone to our appointed tasks. We were joined by 7 other people who traveled from Blanco, San Antonio and Dallas upon hearing about this project from the Bambergers.

Steve dropped us off at the bat cave and we promptly sized up the situation and then set to work trimming vegetation, widening the trail, and reinforcing it with numerous large rocks. In order to get more tasks done, Steve took about half of the crew to two other sites where they went to work putting in steps near the creek, clearing overgrown vegetation and making other necessary repairs.

When we had completed much of what we had set out to do by that afternoon, we rounded everyone up and hopped back on the Bluebonnet and headed to Hes' store where refreshments were waiting! We were treated to a fine "snack" of tamales, beans, chips and salsa prepared and served by J. David Bamberger with his assistant, Colleen Gardner, helping. As always, we enjoyed the camaraderie and listening to J. David's stories, and are looking forward to the next time!

BLAZING THE TRAIL FOR BEGINNERS

2005-12-10T09:49:00.000-06:00

"Trail Taming Techniques" classes recognized by Austin American-Statesman

Saturday, December 10, 2005
"BLAZING THE TRAIL FOR BEGINNERS"

Group that builds, maintains trails in parks also trains home gardeners to create paths through their landscapes.

Winter is a great time to ponder building a path in the Central Texas landscape. The pondering part is important, especially in an erosion-prone region where a gullywasher can quickly obliterate a poorly planned trail you've worked so hard to build.

Enter Central Texas Trail Tamers, a group that has built and/or maintained trails in state parks and other public places in Texas, Wyoming, California and Mexico. The organization now offers lectures and hands-on workshops for those who would like to move past the pondering process, but aren't sure how.

"This trail-building stuff is not rocket science; it's just sort of a lost art," says trail tamer Dave DeGroot. "To be sustainable, you need to think quite a bit before you start digging up the earth."

True, you might not need that much expertise if your plan involves laying stepping stones in a small backyard. But plenty of people with Hill Country ranchettes, and urban dwellers who want to make their large lots or steep hillsides more inviting, could benefit from the wisdom acquired by these trailblazing experts.

DeGroot recently led about a dozen people through a recent Friday night class and Saturday trail-building excursion at Wild Basin Wilderness Preserve.

The first lesson: Study the land and the creatures that inhabit it; then plot a design that connects the entire habitat instead of chopping it up into disparate pieces, DeGroot said.

While a field that's naturally clear of trees and fairly level might seem like a logical place to build a trail, it can quickly become overgrown, he said. On hillsides, trails that zigzag (switchback) tend to wash out less than those that head straight down.

Pre-existing trees and vegetation will obviously have an impact on where your trail goes. Most people want to preserve as much natural habitat as they can — and if you share living quarters with an endangered species such as the golden-cheeked warbler, it might even be illegal to disturb the tree canopy on your property.

But if you plan to trim trees, DeGroot said it's sometimes better to remove them altogether than to prune haphazardly. He also recommends removing all bushes within one foot of either side of the trail, including small ones that don't seem like they're in the way. Little bushes become big bushes quickly, and their root systems can disturb the trail as it grows, he said.

Directing water where you want it is another important factor in building trails that will hold up over time in all kinds of weather. In general, the idea is to encourage water to flow across the trail, instead of following its path. If building on a hill, it makes sense to preserve the original drainage of the slope, and to make sure there's someplace lower than the trail for water to go.

DeGroot said you accomplish that by building trenches (two shovels wide) on either side of the trail, by raising the level of the path or doing both. A common mistake that novices make: building trails and trenches that are too narrow. Another big mistake: failing to remove grass or leaves from the trail before piling on surface materials, such as crushed rock, which has a tendency to slide off the loose debris.

"You can't just cheat," said DeGroot, "or you'll be back there next year again."

The hands-on Saturday morning session has several purposes - to move trailbuilding out of the theoretical and into the more strenuous reality for those with paths in their futures; to give the Trail Tamers a shot at attracting new members who will have trailbuilding skills; and to upgrade trails at Wild Basin.

The two-day workshop costs $10, and Central Texas Trail Tamers plans to offer it on the second weekend of each month. E-mail registration information at planning@trailtamers.org or call 394-9998. The group's Web site is www.trailtamers.org.

Tools for building, maintaining trails

Building a trail is a substantial project, and the tools you've acquired for casual piddling in the yard might not hold up to the task. Most of the tools DeGroot recommends -many of them designed to be used in fighting forest fires - are occasionally available locally at home improvement centers or farm and ranch supply companies. They can also be ordered online, he said.

Among his must-have implements: a Pulaski or fire ax for chopping tree roots, a fire rake for removing leaves and other loose materials from the path, and a rock cradle, which allows heavy boulders to be rolled into a net 'cradle' which can then be moved by several people. Find more information on tools at www.americantrails.org.
By Julie Bonnin, Austin American-Statesman

10/8-15/05: Ouachita National Forest, Western Arkansas

2005-10-20T16:14:00.000-05:00

October 8-15, 2005
Ouachita National Forest, Western Arkansas - by Steve Baker
The theme for this years Trail Tamers trip to the Ouachita National forest must be, "Sometimes life has other things planned for you." Our trip leader, George Boemerman, did the pre-trip planning and communications but on Saturday, October 8, got a call that he was needed in Virginia due to a family medical emergency. That left Chuck Lundstedt, Terence Donovan, Rocky Nelson, and me. I agreed, earlier in the planning, to carry the kitchen tent and cooking gear. We had the necessities to make our camp, but we knew we would miss "Boemer".

Our Forest Service contact, Paul Tankersley, arranged for us to stay in the Queen Wilhelmina State Park that is within the Ouachita National Forest. We were assigned to the "overflow" camping area that turned out to be a large, beautifully manicured lawn across the access road from the RV campsites. We were within twenty yards of the exceptionally clean bathhouse with easy access to electricity and water. The views were excellent and one of the nicest car camping environments one could ask for. The park also has a lodge with a very nice restaurant which we visited our final evening in camp.

We arrived Sunday afternoon and set up camp. Later that day our Forest Service trail crew leader, Tom, stopped by to fill out paperwork and coordinate for the weeks work. We agreed that he would meet us at camp Monday morning at 0700 and we would drive to the first work site that was about 10 miles east of the park.

Tom arrived at 0630 Monday morning and we were on the road by 0645. We parked at the Foran Gap trailhead, gathered our tools and hiked in just over a mile to the first project planned for us; a 200 yard long reroute of the Ouachita Trail. Tom had flagged the route but everything from brushing the line to final tread cutting needed to be done. We soon discovered that the predominant flora in the area is poison ivy so long sleeves were necessary. Rocky knew himself to be prone to ivy reaction; the rest of us would find out later in the week. We worked steadily all day and had the majority of the reroute cut by that evening but would require half a day on Tuesday to haul dirt from the back slopes to fill in tread over rocky areas. On the way back to camp, we went through Mena, AR to stop at the Wal-Mart and buy additional long sleeve shirts and hydrocortisone ointment.

Tuesday we returned to complete the previous days work and had it done by lunch. Tom had to work elsewhere but had flagged out sections of the trail for about a mile further in that needed water bars and re-tread work. We hiked in to the end of the marked area and began work on those sections. Due to the remoteness of the area, we were able to cache our tools and didn’t have to carry them in and out each day.

By Wednesday morning both Rocky and Terence were showing signs of poison ivy contact on their arms, in spite of wearing long sleeves, but neither complained or missed a beat of work. Chuck and I never did have any reaction. Wednesday and the first half of Thursday were similar work in the same area; re-treading sloughed in sections of the trail, building water bars and reinforcing drainage crossing. The final total for that section was 200 yards of new trail, 6 water bars, two reinforced drainage crossings and almost two miles of restored trail.

Thursday afternoon we relocated to another section of the O.T. closer to Queen Wilhelmina. This section was steep and rocky with some badly eroded areas. Tom marked the location of many needed water bars and areas that needed to be repaired. We completed several water bars but decided to knock off an hour early; we came out about 3:30 PM.

Traditionally on these trips, Friday has been an off day but Chuck, Terence and I decided to work at least part of the day. Rocky said it was "time to see his bride" and left Friday morning. The remainder of us worked until about 1:30 PM having completed an additional 10 water bars, one drainage crossing and more retread bringing the trip total up to almost 3 miles of trail worked in 140.5 man hours. We returned to camp to load up the kitchen tent and gear. We treated ourselves to a restaurant meal at the lodge that evening, a nice buffet.

Paul and Tom came by the camp Friday evening to thank us for the work and indicated we would be welcome to return.

This is an excellent venue for those wanting to do some badly needed, serious trail work but still like a shower in the evening. Try to include it in your plans for next year.

9/17-25/05: Pacific Crest Trail, Inyo National Forest, CA

2005-09-30T16:13:00.000-05:00

September 17-25, 2005
Pacific Crest Trail, Inyo National Forest, California - by Pat Dixon
While folks back in Austin, Texas were cooking at 108 degrees, the Trail Tamers volunteer crew camped at 9,000 ft elevation with highs in the mid 80s in the beautiful Ansel Adams Wilderness on the Pacific Crest Trail near Mammoth Mountain, California. We had a great crew and everyone had a great time enjoying each other’s company.

The work consisted of some re-routing of the trail, improved water crossings, building structures to protect against water erosion, and some brush removal along the trail. The work went quickly and results were noticed. Steve Baker gets the award for moving the biggest rock of the week. The forest service personnel were very impressed with our expertise and ability to do quality work. We really enjoyed working with them, as their approach to trail work was complimentary to our techniques. We had many requests to return again next year.

The Pacific Crest Trail Association (PCTA) volunteers were led by Campy Campenhausen, who was an excellent cook. PCTA provided all the food and cooking for the week. We were very well fed and looked forward to second helpings at each meal. The PCTA volunteers were a great bunch and we really enjoyed working with them and sharing a few laughs around the campfire.

The setting was wonderful. Beautiful sights surrounded us. We had time to do our own excursions to further explore the area, which we took advantage of.

Some of our crew travelled on their own by car, while others flew in Reno, NV and we car-pooled with a rental car. The drive from Reno into Mammoth Mountain, CA is very pleasant. The town of Mammoth Mountain is very nice and there is a lot to choose from for restaurants and shopping.

It was a great trip, and we all are looking forward to another go next year!

8/27-9/5/05: Rocky Mountain National Park

2005-09-11T16:11:00.000-05:00

August 27-September 5, 2005
Rocky Mountain National Park, Co - by Philip Russell
Thirty log checks, two log drains, 88 square feet of rock wall trail foundation and 107 linear feet of trail four feet wide completed in 226 work hours. Not bad for a small group of Trail Tamers working on the Ypsilon Lake trail in Rocky Mountain National Park (RMNP).

Steve Baker was chief executive officer and logistics sergeant before, during and after the trip. He attended to all details and was a highly effective ramrod for the operation. Jerome Collins distinguished himself by recruiting John Shanks, a retired chef, restaurateur and caterer, as a camp cook. Bo Bosarge was the only veteran of previous Central Texas Trail Tamers (CTTT) trips to RMNP, having gone twice before. Martha Davies, rock wall expert; June Griffith, attorney and Texas Outdoors Woman Network (TOWN) member from McKinney; Jane Moss, digital photographer from Wimberley and also a TOWN member, and John Yarber of Austin made up the crew.

We left promptly at 7am on Saturday and drove to Raton, NM the first day. Steve and John Shanks left early the next morning for RMNP to set up the camp ahead of the van crew who did some sightseeing, including black bear, big horn sheep and Garden of the Gods. We arrived mid afternoon to a spaghetti supper and met Jane Moss who had arrived earlier. Shawn Wigley, RMNP trail crew chief, met us with a load of firewood and laid out plans for the Ypsilon Trail project.

Monday morning, Steve, Bo, Jerome, Martha, and John Yarber met the trail crew at the Lawn Lake trailhead and toted tools up to the worksite. Our cook stayed behind to buy groceries and organize the cook tent and bear boxes. June and Jane used the day to acclimate to the 8500 ft. altitude. The Trail Tamers huffed and puffed behind four RMNP trail crew (Shawn, Kevin, Tate, and Aggie) going up the switchbacks to the Roaring River gorge where the temperature dropped and the trail grade became gentler. We crossed the river on a wood footbridge and arrived at the base of the trail project. The hardest part of the day was over. We were at about 9,300 ft. on the west side of Roaring River at the foot of the Ypsilon Lake Trail.

The first day was used to talk safety and gather materials. “Gathering materials” meant Rocky Mountain bowling...rolling boulders down a 45 degree slope toward a log barrier just uphill from the trail. Prying large rocks out of deep duff and powdery dirt, yelling “Rock!” and rolling them downhill was fun. We posted lookouts to warn us when hikers came along. We tore out the old rotten check logs, measured and calculated runs and rises in four sections starting from the bottom, designing for both hikers and horses. Two lunch breaks and a nap later, we were headed back down the trail to a supper of grilled chicken, green beans, salad and garlic bread. The day was colored by a lost hiker up the way from us.

Tuesday, we had a full crew of Trail Tamers, but the four park service crew members left us for search and rescue duty. We listened to helicopters overhead all day as they flew up and down the Roaring River. We built rock foundations for the downhill side of the trail, measured and placed treated 4x8 log risers. We secured the logs with large rocks locked into place with some gravity.

Wednesday, Shawn and his trail crew were back. With more hands, the work went faster despite some re-design setbacks. That afternoon, we heard on the rangers’ radio that the lost hiker was found, safe and sound.

Thursday, work went well with all hands on board, until a smashed finger pulled Jerome and Steve off the project in the afternoon. By Friday, we had completed all but 10 feet of trail, crushing rock into the pads and filling with saved dirt (No borrow pits!). The park crew and their families came for dinner of leftovers and brought brownies, ice cream, children and dogs. Dave Larsen, Trail Maintenance Supervisor for RMNP gave us a certificate of appreciation.

Saturday was a free day, with most of us letting Steve and John Shanks break the camp while we went up over the continental divide in the van, took pictures of marmots, ate lunch by a beautiful alpine lake, and hiked. That evening we all enjoyed a sumptuous Szechuan and Mandarin style dinner in Estes Park. We filled the van with $3.199 gasoline.

We left Sunday morning at 7:40 a.m. and arrived about 7:40 p.m. in Lubbock. Eager to get back to Austin, we left about 6 a.m. Monday, Labor Day, to arrive in Austin about 1:30 p.m.

8/2-6/05: Monument Hill/Kreische Brewery State Historic Sites

2005-08-15T16:07:00.000-05:00

August 2-6, 2005
Monument Hill/Kreische Brewery State Historic Sites-LaGrange, TX - by Lynda DeGroot
A handful of Trail Tamers, some Friends of MH/KB, a few Texas Parks & Wildlife staff from Government Canyon in San Antonio, and a couple of Master Naturalists from the area came together during the first week of August to help the Trail Docs put in a new hiking trail connecting these small but scenic historic sites.

The tall and impressive monument, dedicated to a group of soldiers from the area that were captured and killed by Santa Anna in the 1800s, is situated on one of the highest hills overlooking the Colorado River in LaGrange, TX.

Next to it, in a deep ravine, are the ruins of a former brewery that was built by a German stonemason. Many features of the brewery are amazing, including the stonework itself, but I was intrigued by channels running under the stone floor, and square openings where the wall met the floor, which was part of a cooling system using cold spring water that flowed from several springs in the ravine. This is a beautiful place for a picnic or to spend some time hiking, exploring and learning some interesting history.

The weather was not as hot as it could have been (did I say the Trail Tamers NEVER work on trails in Texas during the summer?!?), and the trail was completed by Saturday afternoon. It’s a fine looking trail with rock steps, several switchbacks, and sections of cedar rail fence.

Park Ranger Dale Martin, who was out there with everyone else grubbing in the dirt, was really quite impressed with the work done by our small band of volunteers. He’s hoping to see more Trail Tamers during the first week of October when they anticipate finishing another new trail. (The weather ought to be perfect by then!) That project will run from Tuesday, October 4 through Saturday, October 8. As an added treat, he’ll show you the best places to eat in LaGrange and will even throw in some tidbits about the area’s fascinating history for free!

6/4/05: National Trails Day at Bright Leaf

2005-06-05T16:06:00.000-05:00

June 4, 2005
National Trails Day at Bright Leaf State National Area - by Dave De Groot
As with the past several years, CTTT participated in a National Trails Day event. The NTD program was originated by the American Hiking Society and is held on the first Saturday in June each year.

This year’s Austin event at Bright Leaf State Natural Area was sponsored by CTTT, the Friends of Bright Leaf, and REI. The Friends of Bright Leaf organized interpretive hikes at the 216 acre future-park located near Mount Bonnell in Austin. CTTT members staffed demonstration stations and discussed trail maintenance with hikers as they passed by. REI provided some nice giveaways and everyone got goodies from Upper Crust Bakery and Whole Foods - YUM.

Left: Pat Dixon and Debbie Galloway discussing trail maintenance techniques with a hiker on National Trials Day

2/19-21/05: Bustamante Cave Trail, Mexico

2005-02-28T16:06:00.000-06:00

February 19-21, 2005
Bustamante Cave Trail, Mexico - by Philip Russell

Bustamante is a charming little Mexican town, founded in the 1600s, just 90 miles south of Laredo. It's pinning its future on ecotourism. The centerpiece of its ecotourism is a magnificent cave on a steep mountain slope. To facilitate access to the cave, a seven-person CTTT crew worked on the trail to the cave over President's Day Weekend.

This was the fifth trip to Bustamante to survey and then re-route the trail up a steep, rocky slope. Working there is a challenge due to the steep slope, many rocks and little dirt, and the thorns on the desert plants. The crew replaced a steep scramble over bare rocks with two switchbacks. The two switchbacks connect to the much longer stretch of trail that had already been rerouted. The Trail Tamer effort was part of a much larger project to enhance the cave. This effort was coordinated by the Texas Speleological Society, which arranged a hike in a mountain canyon as well as a banquet for the 121 participants in the patio of the hotel where we stayed. As with most trail projects, there is still work to be done. These projects are an annual event, so if you like rocks and would enjoy a visit to a charming little town, come on down with us next year.

2/19-21/05: Davy Crockett National Forest, Texas

2005-02-28T16:03:00.000-06:00

February 19-21, 2005
Davy Crockett National Forest, Texas - by George Boemerman
On Thursday 17 February, George Boemerman, David Justice, Steve Baker, and Rocky Nelson rendezvoused at Davy Crockett N.F. and planned the weekend schedule with Forest reps Merlinda Schory and Pearlie Greene. Yes, Pearlie's back from her tour of duty with the Army Reserves where she had an assignment readying personnel prior to deployment to Iraq, and she had been promoted to Master Sergeant!

Early Friday morning Ray Fore and Chuck Lundstedt arrived and off we went to saw bridge lumber and pre-position it for the weekend tasks. In the meantime, we were able to repair two bridges that had been damaged due to heavy rainfalls. On Friday evening Mitch Drummond, Terence Donovan, and Mary Zeitler arrived. We had set up our campsite at the overflow area to take advantage of the large covered pavilion in case of the forecasted rain. Fortunately, the weekend weather ended up perfect for working.

Early Saturday morning, Jim Pendergast and Randy Rogers arrived in time to start our major work projects. We split up into three crews to spread the work more efficiently. As usual, Ray Fore and Rocky Nelson provided the technical expertise. For those who are not familiar with it, the Davy Crockett work is quite different from our regular trail work. There are no rocks to manipulate, no water bars, just big heavy timbered trail bridges to repair. Three bridges were repaired that day. Saturday night, we had our usual Davy Crockett group feast. Rocky Nelson fried up a delicious turkey, Ray Fore made the coleslaw, and Pearlie boiled the cobs of corn. Mary Zeitler provided her sinful chocolate chip cookies and Merlinda forced her Mississippi Mud Pie on us. Rocky was overheard saying, "I can't believe I ate three pieces".

Sunday, after groaning over all the food we devoured, we headed out to the trails again. Merlinda took one crew and worked in the immediate area, while Pearlie took another crew up to the north end of the Forest (about 30 miles). Merlinda's crew, headed by Ray Fore, ran into some problems. They found the bridge decayed beyond repair and they proceeded with a complete rebuild.

Pearlie’s crew, headed by Rocky Nelson, was confronted with moving and repairing a bridge that had slipped off it base due to rains. The bridge was built on 12X12 railroad timbers and it was a good thing we brought along the tractor. There was some heavy timber cutting to do and the Forest's chain saw broke down. However Randy Rogers saved the day with his trusty chain saw. He never leaves home without it!

Sunday night, we were all exhausted, rightfully. We had completed major repairs on 7 bridges and had completely rebuilt another, and the rebuild involved a span over 40 feet. We provided Davy Crockett National Forest with 226 man-hours of heavy and technical work. Merlinda Schory stated that the Forest could not maintain the trail bridges at an acceptable level without the yearly volunteer work provided by the Central Texas Trail Tamers. Since Monday was a holiday for the Forest personnel, we packed up early and headed home.

2/5/05: Bamberger Ranch Preserve, Texas

2005-02-10T16:00:00.000-06:00

February 5, 2005
Bamberger Ranch Preserve, Texas - by Lynda DeGroot

After hearing that our work day was predicted to see a 70% chance of rain, what was supposed to be a large group of 15 ended up being myself and 3 other fairly new Trail Tamers who dared the weather to keep us at home! Even though the sky was black over Austin and there was a magnificent double rainbow with the most intense colors I’ve ever seen arching way up in the sky over Hwy 290 west, as I approached the intersection of Hwy 281 the sky was blue with a few puffy clouds over the Bamberger Ranch Preserve. It turns out the rain stayed away from where we were until about 4pm...just as we finished our last project and were starting to look at another!

The four of us began our day by cleaning up the trail to J. David Bamberger’s chiroptorium or man-made bat cave. After removing lots of overgrown weeds and trimming back low-hanging limbs, we moved on to the Turkey Hollow trail which the Trail Tamers had built in 2004. We were given the task of putting in stepping stones and steps to reroute a section of trail that crossed the creek. It seems that a HUGE rock slab that had been placed across the creek to serve as a bridge had been broken in two by a flash flood in earlier months. While Mr. Bamberger & his employee, Steven Fulton, plus Trail Tamers C.R.Thomas and Steve Williams struggled to move pieces of the slab and other huge rocks for use as stepping-stones, we ladies (Tita Owre and me) were busy finding & moving our own large rocks that we carefully positioned as steps.

When the work was declared done by Mr. Bamberger, we moved on to a third project, but a light rain finally began to fall. So, instead, we headed to Hes’ Country Store where we were treated to some fine tamales, beans, chips & salsa along with a lot of praise from Mr. Bamberger for a job well done!

1/22/05: Blunn Creek Nature Preserve

2005-02-01T16:02:00.000-06:00

January 22, 2005
Blunn Creek Nature Preserve - by Bill Kemp

On January 22, 2005 CTTT had a workday at the Blunn Creek Nature Preserve from 9 am to 4:15 pm. Those attending were Margaret Hill, Kirsti Harms, Charles Wortz, Mark Henneke, Roger Myers, Paul Johnson, Terence Donovan, George Mading, Betty Mading, Jerome Collins, Debbie Galloway and Bill Kemp. Rene' Barrera of the Austin Parks and Recreation Department directed our efforts. Our primary focus was building rock steps and check dams along a rather steep section of the trail from the lookout down to the creek. We also constructed a rock drainage structure at a lower section of the trail. We completed most of the work needed on the east side of Blunn Creek.

During our break, Rene' took us on a tour of the park, showing us a spring he has restored, fossils along the trails and large live oak and persimmon trees. We had barbeque for lunch, thanks to a grant from REI. We will return to Blunn Creek on February 26 to focus on trails on the west side of the creek.

12/18/04: Turkey Creek Trail at Emma Long Park

2004-12-21T15:45:00.000-06:00

Emma Long Metropolitan Park
December 18, 2004 - by Bill Kemp
On December 18, 2004, 13 volunteers and 4 park personnel spent the day working on the Turkey Creek Trail at Emma Long Metropolitan Park.

We worked on a variety of tasks. We closed off several social trails by placing rocks and brush along the sides of the trail. We built check dams to prevent further erosion on several steep parts of the trail. We replaced stepping-stones across the creek that had been washed away by the recent heavy rains. The rock carriers came in handy to carry the rocks we needed. We felled a dead tree that was hanging on another tree and used the downed timber to block off a social trail. Finally, several volunteers removed several hundred wax leaf ligustrum that had invaded the area along the creek. Rene Barrera of Austin Parks and Recreation was very pleased with our progress.

Bill and Paula prepared a lunch of chili, tamales, cornbread and peach cobbler. Snacks and beverages were also served. The food was purchased with a generous grant from REI. Our volunteers were: Fred Winkler, Charles Wortz, Joan Laves, Angie Hardy, David Huebel, Erik Gribbin, Tita Owre, Jan More, Jim Reed, Thierry Debelle, Terence Donovan, Jerry Levenson and Bill Kemp.

10/16-23/04: The Guadalupe Winds

2004-10-30T15:42:00.000-05:00

The Guadalupe Winds
October 16-23, 2004 - by Derly Rivera
Nine CTTT volunteers went on the service trip to the Guadalupe Mountains National Park in October. The unusually rainy 2004 season and the autumn high winds caused considerable damage to the base camps and to the high country primitive campsites. Six of our crew worked with two park rangers on the Mescalero campsite in the high country for a week. All eight tent pads were restored to original or better condition. The work was quite an accomplishment since it involved breaking or moving boulders weighing up to a ton. Breaking the rock was done with chisels, sledge hammers, rock bars, and plain brute force.

Three crew members remained at the "Ship" base camp. By evening of our first day, after setting up camp, we began to experience the notorious "Guadalupe winds". Park rangers estimated that at least 50 mph winds blew that night, breaking tent poles, knocking down a six-man tent, and moving the 18 foot diameter circular mess tent two feet off its original setting, which resulted in broken pots and a camp stove.

On Sunday, the winds had not abated; nevertheless, it was time for the high country crew to leave. We loaded the mules with gear and drove out to the trail head for the Mescalero campground. That night the winds got stronger, blowing down the mess tent and generally destroying the field kitchen. The outdoor toilets also became victims of the wind, losing their roof and doors, with debris scattering up the hillsides.

After repairing the wind damage, we began our primary work in the desert. Stone work for a permanent sign on the primitive four-wheel drive road was begun Monday afternoon and completed by late afternoon Thursday. Since the high winds were causing the mortar to dry too rapidly, we had to quickly lay stone before the mortar set.

Friday was our rest and hiking day. Guadalupe Mountains National Park, with the state's highest peaks, is rather primitive and there is an ongoing effort to keep it that way. Friday evening the crew and the park rangers enjoyed a Mexican food fiesta in the Ship main hall.

Special thanks to Bill, Bruce, Ray, Chuck, Chris, Jim, Jen, and Jeff. CTTT has been invited to return to Guadalupe Mountains National Park in the Fall of 2005.

8/04: Return to Rocky Mountain

2004-08-30T15:37:00.000-05:00

August, 2004 - by Derly Rivera

After an absence of one year, 10 Central Texas Trail Tamers returned to Rocky Mountain National Park for a week of work. Cool days and nights greeted us as we pitched our camp tents and stored our gear. After hiking and acclimating on Labor Day, we made final preparations for the work ahead.

Our orders for the week were to work at two different sites. One at Bierstadt Lake was a horse trail, which had to be rerouted due to new highway construction. The other, at Eugenia Mine trail, was a mile hike from the Long's Peak trailhead. Five team members went to the Eugenia Mine trail which was at 10,000 ft.; the other four members remained at the Bierstadt Lake site at around 9000 ft. Depending on their schedule, five to six park trail crew were assigned to guide and work with us, thus simplifying the task.

The first day was difficult as we adjusted to working and positioning large heavy boulders to solidify and control water runoff on the trails. As the week progressed, we cleared trails, trimmed tree branches, moved and repositioned rocks and boulders on new tread. The remainder of the week was much better as we continued to acclimate and managed to work somewhat at a faster pace.

Working ten hours daily, we were able to complete the Eugenia Mine trail project in three days. On Friday, the last work day, all nine CTTT members worked on the Bierstadt Lake trail, completed it, and then moved and positioned logs and timber check logs for the next week's work project for the park trail crew who would be working at the location. Still, the most difficult and strenuous work was moving big boulders around to different areas along the trail. In all, the team was able to work 207 man-hours on these two projects.

We stayed at Moraine Park campground where we had a full-time cook who prepared great hot meals for us. After dinner, we usually had dessert and coffee by the campfire and told stories that only campers can tell but no one believes.

The elks were in their full rut season and showed up at dusk in the Moraine Park grounds. Later in the evening, we could hear the chorus of coyotes howling their favorite yelps and, of course, the hoot owls were around.

To close out the work week, some of the team went hiking while others visited Estes Park and did some shopping. Good work was completed for the Rocky Mountain Park. Special thanks to the park crew and to the CTTT team consisting of Bo, Terence, Bill, Diane, Wanda, Dan, Earl, Jennifer and Hilary.

7/31-8/8/04: Carson National Forest, Taos, NM

2004-08-12T15:34:00.000-05:00

Carson National Forest near Taos, New Mexico - by Mike Rogers
July 31-August 8, 2004
Eleven "Trail Tamers" participated in the first - hopefully not last - trip to Carson National Forest. Our hardy crew consisted of Mike Rodgers (Trip Leader), Lynda and Dave DeGroot (chefs & camp security), Fred Winkler, Janette Barlow, George Boemerman, Susan Kleinman, Gerry & Marlene Heiling, Bob "Mountainman" Saegert, and Alex Arreguin.

Our host for the trip, Richard Holmes, Trails Coordinator for Carson National Forest, told us we had "one cool project" and GAZOOK! Was he ever correct!

Our adventure started in the Walmart parking lot in Taos (except for the less patient Trail Tamers - Fred Winkler, who arrived a day early, and the Heilings, who journeyed from Washington State). We left Taos and convoyed to a viewing spot over the Rio Grande Gorge. After a short stop at the Gorge we journeyed to the Ranger Station in Tres Piedras for a "tool pick-up stop". A short way out of Tres Piedras, we turned onto Forest Service Road 87 - if one can call it a road. Our greatest thanks were that the road was dry, otherwise some of us would have disappeared in the ruts left by the big wheels. Even Susan's Corolla made it - all 28 miles - to the Lower Lagunitas Campground (elevation approximately 10,500 feet). The campground was on the south end of the Cruces Basin Wilderness, which several members of our group had the opportunity to venture into. They were amazed at the beauty of the area. As the crow flies our campground was 8-10 miles from Colorado. We set up camp, built the campfire and began the feast. I have never been on a Trail Tamer trip without GREAT meals. This trip was no exception. We started with spaghetti and salad followed by peach cobbler and ice cream(?) in the mountains. Seems each meal got better.

Our "Cool Project" was an eight-mile stretch of the Continental Divide Trail heading South of the Campground connecting to Forest Service Road 93 - I think the wildlife trails traveled better than the roads. Monday morning we started hiking the trail and quickly realized there was no trail. Our objective was the halfway point 4-miles in, but we only reached the "Aspen Tree Cantina" -my name for the lunch stop- at lunchtime. At that point, we realized we had to mark the trail we just founded. We split into two groups; the majority began work marking the trail heading back to the campground, a smaller group (Richard, Mary Ann- Richard's Supervisor & a native Central Texan, Gerry and myself) hiked to the halfway point - our original destination - to observe the quality of the trail to that point. That mile and one half was much better than the 3 miles we traversed in the morning.

Tuesday & Wednesday, we split into two work groups. One group spent time "benching" the down slope hillside, building a creek crossing, and clearing the up slope on the other side from the hillside. The other group (“Rock Engineers”) built many rock cairns marking the trail. The artistic quality of these cairns is beyond imagination. On our next trip, we will have to engrave the names of our Trail Tamers constructing these cairns.

On Thursday, we hiked the entire 8-mile stretch. What took three hours on Monday took an hour and a half Thursday. The improvements by this Trail Tamer work crew were amazing. We completed the eight-mile stretch on Thursday. The last three miles need more refinement, but it is still passable. Richard Holmes mentioned this would be a possible later project for CTTT. We would backpack in and set up camp, complete marking the 3mile stretch, and do some rock work on a section near the campsite.
In any case, CTTT will get credit for the 8 mile stretch of the Continental Divide Trail and we should get an invitation to return next year. Hopefully this can become an annual summer time trip as a relief from the hot Texas summers.

Davy Crockett ADA Trail Dedication

2004-06-05T09:51:00.000-05:00

Davy Crockett National Forest ADA Trail Dedication
June 5, 2004

Eleven years ago, Alan Weber our founder read an article stating that the national parks were having difficulty maintaining their trial systems do to lack of people power. So he called Rocky Mountain National Park and asked if he got a bunch of volunteers together and came up there to help address this problem, would they be interested. Obviously the answerer was "yes". So he placed an ad in the Austin newspaper. Over 100 people responded and eventually 3-dozen total strangers headed off to the Park in September of 1993 on what would be come the first event for the Central Texas Trail Tamers.

Since that time, 100's of CTTT events have taken place at numerous agency locations in several states and 1 foreign country. Currently CTTT supplies over 3000 hours annually of volunteer labor directly tied to trial construction and maintenance. Prior to serving as President, I sat on the Board of Directors and recall the day we discussed the project we are here to recognize. The Trail Tamers had never attempted a multi-year project and there was some concern being a relatively small volunteer outfit. But we had several dedicated members that really enjoyed coming to the Davy Crockett National Forest who spoke very highly of the hosts they dealt with. So, we took the plunge and some 3 years later we are here recognize their efforts.

I attended the first event when the trailhead was constructed. Since that time several people have participated representing virtually every demographic segment imaginable. From teenagers to WW2 veterans, students, teachers, dentist, lawyers, engineers and plumbers. People from all over the US and several other countries as well. In short, the Central Texas Trail Tamer volunteers represent a cross section of populace who all came together to provide for the betterment of others. So I am happy to accept this dedication on behalf of the Central Texas Trail Tamers, not because it is a milestone for the organization but because this project it an example of everything that is right with America! I would also like to express my gratitude to the staff of the Davy Crockett National Forest. Your efforts make it possible for all of us to enjoy this precious natural asset and they are sincerely appreciated.

By Dave DeGroot, 2004 CTTT President

4/24-5/1/04: Ouachita National Forest, Arkansas

2004-05-05T15:31:00.000-05:00

April 24-May 1, 2004
Ouachita National Forest, Arkansas - by Derly Rivera

Nine CTTT members volunteered for the service trip to Shady Lake Campground in the Ouachita National Forest. After driving 460 miles, we arrived Saturday afternoon, the 24th. We went about pitching tents, setting up the kitchen tent, and clearing up the immediate area. The crew enjoyed dinner and settled in for the night. Shady Lake Campground is an old campground that has several historical sites. The stone bridge, the pavilion, walkways and other improvements were constructed by the CCC in 1938 and are considered artifacts. Thus, an archeological evaluation of historical buildings and sites should occur prior to any restoration. If restored, then the restoration work should look like the original, using materials of that era or duplicates if at all possible. Because of this situation, a few work projects were delayed until a full evaluation of the sites can be completed by the archeologist. Still, there was plenty of work for us.

We began working on Sunday in the "bone yard" where we demolished two sheds, cleaned and stored dimension lumber. We also had a controlled burn for rotten lumber and other debris. The entire bone yard was cleaned and secured.

From Monday through Thursday, different CTTT teams repaired stone work using cement and mortar, repaired benches, poured a cement pad, installed a picnic table and made the entire area handicapped accessible. Other members cleared trails using gas powered weed eaters and blowers. Lopping shears and axes were also used to clear a mountain trail. Different projects required few workers while others required more members in work crews.

Friday was our "off" day. Some went hiking, others stayed in camp, and a few went fishing. We had a "Mexican Fiesta" dinner that evening for our guests, the Park Rangers and supervisors. We completed preparations for our departure the next day just before heavy rains began at around 9:00 PM. We left the next morning, in the rain of course.

Overall, the CTTT crew completed over 300 man-hours of volunteer work. We would like to return next year. A big "thank you" to the crew; George, Rocky, Ray, Chuck, Janette, Bo, John, and Earl.

3/7-13/04: Big Bend Ranch State Park

2004-03-20T15:27:00.000-06:00

March 7-13, 2004
Big Bend Ranch State Park, Texas - by Bill Kemp
As we left early Sunday morning, the weather forecast called for a week of mild temperatures and sunny skies. Little did we know what was in store for us. After a 10 hour trip, we arrived and set up the camp next to the lodge. Our site offered several picnic tables and grills, a large fire ring with wood provided, a water spigot and electricity from the lodge. Hot showers were available at the nearby visitor center. This was hardly roughing it!

Our task was to convert the nature trail (one mile including some roads) from the horse trail that it was into the easily traveled "people path" that it is now. We looked over the job and decided we could complete it early and hopefully move on to the Horsetrap hike and bike trail. The task involved removing rocks from the trail, building numerous steps, grade dips and waterbars and, in the flat stretches, building rock cairns. Luckily, we brought our rock carriers because we really needed them. By Wednesday evening, we only had about 20 ft. to go. That evening, we saw a double rainbow and a gorgeous sunset. When we awoke on Thursday, a big storm was brewing. Several lightening strikes convinced us to stay in camp awhile. Then, the rain started. It poured! It wasn't until the afternoon that we could walk the trail and make a few modifications to our work. We left the 20 ft. for another time.

Ranger Bill Broyles, who worked with us all week, offered to show us some pictographs on Friday. It rained often during the night and the fog was low when we got up Friday morning. It was raining lightly but we still took the hike. Given the low visibility and continuing rain, we decided to leave after the hike. After 40 minutes of driving out on the gravel road through another downpour, we came to a wash that now had a river flowing through it. We hadn't even noticed it on the way in. Across the wash was Tony Gallego, park manager, who was also waiting for the waters to recede. After about an hour, he was able to drive his truck through. He called the park headquarters and learned that the second wash we would have to cross was much worse. After waiting over two hours, we were advised to turn around and stay at the park another evening. Tony was kind enough to let us stay in the lodge and use the kitchen facilities.

During the week, we learned the names of many desert plants. The variety of cactus was amazing. We also hiked to the Cinco Tinajas, which are 5 pools of water located in depressions carved out of the rock in a canyon. The highlight of our meals was Pan Poached Salmon Picata. Thanks to all our participants: Alex Arreguin, Frances Fehribach, Gretchen Gann, Gerry and Marlene Heiling, Paul Johnson, Dick Meyer, Sylvia Powell and Bill Kemp (crew leader).

2/12-16/04: Davy Crockett National Forest

2004-02-28T15:02:00.000-06:00

February 12-16, 2004
Davy Crockett National Forest, Texas - by George Boemerman
The weather forecast was not good for the forest area--wet and cold with possible snow. However, a group of stout-hearted Trail Tamers decided to withstand the elements and get some work done. Ray Fore, Rocky Nelson, Terence Donovan, David Justice, Chuck Lundstedt and George Boemerman arrived early Thursday, set up camp and on Friday pre-positioned the materials needed to repair two bridges and build a third from scratch. Forest Service personnel, Merlinda Schory and a new member, Chris Bishop, led us to the work sites at the far north end of the Four C Trail and worked right along with us. That evening Bob Weglarz arrived and, at 2:30 in the morning, in the rain, Kyle Herzog and Jennifer arrived from Austin (real tigers) and set up camp.
Saturday morning was wet so we all congregated at the covered pavilion for breakfast and watched one of the most picturesque snowfalls on Ratcliff Lake. By 10:30am the weather dried up a bit and we went to work. We completed a good day of bridge building and repairing, then returned to the pavilion. The campground hosts, Ralph and Ruth Neilson, were there with extra firewood and had a good fire in the fireplace waiting for us. We enjoyed a great Saturday nite feast. Rocky Nelson fried up a good sized turkey, Merlinda provided a Mississippi Mud cake and sweet potato pie, Ray Fore and Bob Weglarz made big salads, and George Boemerman baked a peach cobbler in a dutch oven. Considering the cold, wet environment, the roaring campfire and rich food were most welcome! Great discussions around the campfire added to our evening.
Sunday was bright and clear. We finished our projects about 4pm and returned to the pavilion to fry up a second turkey and eat the leftovers, and we continued our fireside discussion. As agreed by the Forest Service personnel, that concluded our work project and on Monday we packed up and headed home. It was another fine Trail Tamers expedition to Davy Crockett National Forest. However, it was missing a key element. Pearlie Green is still on active duty with the Army Reserves. We miss her and wish her God Speed!

1/31/04 Acacia Preserve Trip Report

2004-02-01T16:57:00.000-06:00

January 31, 2004
Acacia Preserve, Texas - by Lynda DeGroot

After postponing this project due to heavy rains, everything was great just one week later! Ten Trail Tamers met at the Side Saddle Cafe in Dripping Springs and convoyed to the preserve where we were met by the owner, Nancy Moore. After a brief discussion about what she wanted us to do, we grabbed our tools and set about clearing as much cedar as we possibly could, but we sure could have used a chain saw or two! At any rate, with nothing more than bow saws, folding handsaws and loppers, we managed to cut, drag and stack cedar limbs in dozens of huge piles. (Nancy is in the process of trying to remove much of the cedar in order to allow native grasses to re-establish themselves. She's helping this along by scattering as much seed by hand as possible.)
After taking a quick lunch break, we finished up, rounded up the tools and at about 2:30 pm we headed out with Nancy in the lead. She took us to a place where we were able to access Dead Man's Hole without having to hike all the way. This new access point brought us to the top of the grotto where the waterfall goes over into the pool below. It was beautiful! If you know what Hamilton Pool looks like, this is almost a twin but much more pristine! What a great treat and wonderful way to end a hard day's work.

1/10-11/04 Bamberger Ranch Preserve Trip Report

2004-01-20T16:55:00.000-06:00

January 10 & 11, 2004
Bamberger Ranch Preserve, Texas - by Lynda DeGroot

Some mighty fine weather greeted 22 Trail Tamers who ventured out to this wonderful place near Johnson City. Several members drove a long way just for the privilege of working on the new Turkey Hollow Trail that has been created in a portion of the preserve that we hadn't seen before. One person drove in from Sequin, another drove all the way from Laredo(!), while others came from Cedar Park, Pflugerville, Driftwood, Dripping Springs, Buda and, of course, Austin. We were even paid a visit by a member from Lampasas whom we haven't seen in a while.

When everyone had gathered in front of Hes' old General Store on Saturday morning, our hosts for the weekend (Colleen Gardner and Steven Fulton) told us where we were going and what kind of work we would be doing. Then, after a brief tool safety talk given by our president, Dave DeGroot, we boarded the "Bluebonnet" for our short jaunt to the worksite.

Upon arrival at the site, we grabbed our tools and began the task of carving this new path through thick stands of immature cedar. Chainsaws were wailing as their operators followed the flags marking the route through the heavily wooded area, cutting trees or branches that were in the way. The rest of us followed, trimming back smaller limbs and cutting in the trail tread where necessary. Several members built large rock cairns to help people locate the trail in open areas where it could easily be hidden by the tall grasses. Unfortunately, one of our newest members took a spill and hurt his shoulder but he continued working.

After we finished for the day, Colleen, Steven and his wife prepared a fine feast of tamales, ranch style beans, chips & salsa. Most of the crew headed home afterward, but nine members stayed the night and were planning to finish the rest of the trail the next day. We camped near the old general store since it has a bathroom, and we built a great campfire under a big oak tree. The sky was clear and the stars were awesome!

The next day, we were up early and ready to go after a quick breakfast. This time we drove a couple of vehicles to the other end of the trail to start working on it. When quittin' time rolled around at about noon, I was told that, in all, we completed a little over half of the trail, which is more than a mile long. After saying our goodbyes to Colleen and Steven, we headed home.

11/03 Copper Breaks State Park Trip Report

2003-11-30T14:55:00.000-06:00

November 6, 2003
Copper Breaks State Park, QUANAH, Texas - by Galen Stewart
The second Copper Breaks S.P. work trip was made in early November. We all arrived at the park by Thursday afternoon and set up the camp. On Thursday evening, the sky opened up and we had over an inch of rain. As a result of the rain and muddy trail conditions, we had to alter our initial plans to work on the trail in the northwest end of the park. Instead, Fred Winkler and Chuck Lundstedt worked with Rick Morrison (a.k.a. Ranger Rick) in clearing the Rocky Ledges trail while Mary Zeitler, Ray Fore and Galen Stewart began to make several new directional and informational signs.

On Sunday afternoon, we walked the Bull Canyon Trail with Rick. He showed us the area of the park where future trail work is needed. On Sunday evening, the park staff prepared hamburgers, etc., as a thank-you for our weekend's work. Both the park manager, Dave Turner and Rick again expressed their appreciation for our work and said they would contact Lynda to request additional Trail Tamer help in 2004.
On Monday morning, we headed back to our homes with the feeling that we had again made a positive contribution to the maintenance of one of our State Parks and also had a very positive work experience with the staff.

10/18-25/03 Guadalupe Mountains National Park Trip Report

2003-10-30T14:52:00.000-06:00

October 18-25, 2003
Guadalupe Mountains National Park, TX - by Bill Kemp and Derly Rivera
On October 18, Trail Tamers returned to Guadalupe Mountains National Park for the ninth year. We met at the Ship on the Desert (a former Exxon executive’s vacation home) late in the afternoon and settled in while Derly prepared his specialty stew. Sunday morning we got up early so that the backcountry crew would have plenty of time to drive to Dog Canyon and then hike up to the Mescalaro campground, which needed significant maintenance. The members of the backcountry crew were Derly Rivera (leader), Jack Graham, Del Grosenheider, Bob Saegert, Louise Stahl, and Chris Zielinski.
Although the crew at the Ship had intended to make Sunday a day of leisure, Tony Armijo, the Park’s trail supervisor, asked us to work that day because of the damage done to the trails by a 5 inch rain the week before we arrived. The Park personnel assisting us were Jack Kincaid and Javier Godinez. The Ship crew (Bill Kemp - leader, Randall Bosarge, Margaret Hill, Marianna Hobbs, Jim Reed, Jim Robinson, Jack Smith, and Mary Zeitler) spent the first part of the week rebuilding the Frijole trail through numerous washes. We moved monster rocks into position on both sides of the former trail and then filled the middle with rocks and soil. Unfortunately, we did not have our rock carrying chains with us. Carrying large rocks is dangerous work, but we only had one minor injury. During the latter part of the week we replaced the soil that the storm had washed from the trail tread. This involved finding soil away from the trail and carrying it in buckets to the trail. Finding large quantities of soil was a challenge. We also installed water bars using cedar that the Park had purchased. We commented that in the Hill Country we don’t BUY cedar.

We saw lots of wildlife during the week, including mule deer, coyotes, javalina, jack rabbits and quail. After taking a nap, Bill looked up into the tree above him and saw a strange object, which turned out to be a large porcupine. Several birders in our crew reported seeing many different species.

Bill handled the meals at the Ship while Derly organized meals in the backcountry. The Ship crew enjoyed shrimp scampi, beef brisket, grilled chicken, lasagna and Texas chili. Allan Weber, you should have been on this trip!

The traditional Friday evening party was moved to Thursday evening after we learned that Friday was a day off for the Park employees. Tony Armijo, Jack Kincaid and Javier Godinez represented the Park. The Park personnel presented a cake honoring CTTT for nine years at Guadalupe Mountains. We also received t-shirts and patches. We stayed up rather late trying to outdo each other telling stories.

On Friday, our day off, Tony arranged for Ranger Frostie Bennett and Carol, a volunteer with 30 years caving experience, to take us on a guided tour of Slaughter Canyon Cave. We used flashlights to wander through the cave, which has many delightful formations. Two strips of plastic tape on the bat guano floor marked the trail. We saw large stalactites “growing” on a bat guano floor. Bats have been in the cave for 10’s of thousands of years

During the week some of us met the biologist and the geologist for the Park. We showed some rock samples to geologist Gordon Bell, who told us what they were and explained in broader terms the geology of the Guadalupe Mountains. He offered to make a presentation to our whole crew on our next trip.

After leaving the Ship on Saturday morning, we had breakfast at the Nickel Creek Café, owned by Jack and Jo Kincaid. Earlier in the week, we had met Jack’s wife, Jo, when we stopped by for a couple beers at the café. Also having breakfast were several members of the Sierra Club crew that would be working the next week. In fact, one of our members, Jack Graham, was also going to be taking part in the Sierra Club service week. We kidded him about the fact that he would have two weeks of trail work, good food, and great company except that the first week would cost $90 while the second week would cost $395.

Mescalero Campground Report - By Derly Rivera
On Sunday, October 19, after a five-mile hike from the Dog Canyon trailhead, the CTTT six- member crew pitched camp at the Mescalero Campground in preparation for the week’s work. Water and a camp stove were brought in by Jack Kincaid and his mule train. Roger Muniz, the campground ranger, was assigned to work with us for the week. A central kitchen served two hot meals daily, with hot desserts being a special treat at the end of the day!

Adjusting quickly to the 6400 foot elevation, we began clearing trails to the campground and removing rocks from the designated tent sites. At one site, a rock estimated at close to 1000 pounds was unearthed and removed. This task alone took about four hours to complete. The major work was finished Wednesday afternoon with minor cleanup done on Thursday morning.

The crew hiked out Thursday afternoon, with five people taking the McKittrick Trail out. The crew welcomed Jack’s offer to take our backpacks out on his mules.
At the “Ship”, hot showers and bunk beds ended the day for a tired crew. Thank you, Chris, Jack, Bob, Louise, Del, Roger, and Jack.

8/2-9/03 Gila National Forest Trip Report

2003-08-15T14:52:00.000-05:00

August 2-9, 2003
Gila National Forest - by Dave De Groot

Congress established the Continental Divide Trail (CDT) in 1978. Efforts to complete the 3100-mile route from Mexico to Canada have been ongoing ever since. This year CTTT assisted in that effort by constructing a new section of the CDT in the vicinity of Black Peak in the Gila National Forest. I hate to brag but this was one of the best trips I ever led. The campsite was SWEET, situated at 7950 Ft (according to the GPS) among a stand of tall pines and aspens. The air was filled with the aroma of the trees and hummingbirds flitted around the campsite attending to the numerous wild flowers. In the evening we communed around the campfire to ward of the mountain chill. Meanwhile, Austin sweltered in 100+ degree heat. We visited the Signal Peak fire tower and on our Friday play-day, we toured the Gila Cliff Dwellings, which turned out to be well worth the 2-hour drive from Silver City. Oh yeah, we did some trail work too. The Forest Service crew was a lot of fun and we worked well together (see pictures). The District Ranger and Recreation Manager even came out to inspect our work and were obviously impressed since they paid for our fee at the Cliff Dwellings. Do not despair, however, if you missed this one because we are already planning a return trip for next year.

7/4-15/03 Bridger-Teton National Forest Trip Report

2003-07-19T14:50:00.000-05:00

July 4-15, 2003
Bridger-Teton National Forest - by Lynda De Groot
During the first part of July, 17 adventurous Trail Tamers made their separate ways to Bridger-Teton National Forest in beautiful Wyoming where we put in a brand new section of the Continental Divide Trail. From our rendezvous at Turpin Meadows Campground, we hiked in about 10 miles and camped in a meadow next to the South Fork of the Buffalo River in a scenic area east of the Grand Tetons and south of Yellowstone NP. This was the first time the Trail Tamers had ever ventured that far from home, and the trip was well worth it!

Such a widespread and diverse group! Our founder, Allan Weber (now in Rockport, TX), arrived with co-founder Larry Krenek, now in Sandy, Utah. Mikel Schoelen drove in from Boulder, CO; Raylene Welch & Bob Weglarz came from Smithville; Janette Barlow drove from Wimberley, and the rest (Bart, Debbie, Stephen & Lee Bratcher, Susan Kleinman, Hilary Dyer, Jerry Levenson, Jim Reed, Jerry Smolinsky, & Richard Viktorin) all came from Austin.

It was a very scenic but LONG hike to base camp, and I discovered the hard way that I'm not in the best condition. I ended up riding the ranger's horse part of the way with the wranglers and pack mules, but it gave me an opportunity to see a grizzly bear! I was intrigued when the lead wrangler stopped the pack train and talked to the bear in a loud voice, followed by whooping and hollering. The bear puzzled over us briefly then went on its way. When we arrived at base camp, fresh bear tracks were on the riverbank near the camp kitchen but it never returned to bother us, or our supplies. After unloading our gear and the bear-proof panniers containing our food, the wranglers left. The kitchen equipment was already in place so when the rest of our crew arrived, we located our packs, set up our tents and enjoyed a great dinner prepared by Raylene and her helpers.

We started work Monday afternoon to give some folks a chance to acclimate to the altitude or rest from the long hike in. As a special treat, Mike Wolcott, our Forest Service crew leader, told us about a great waterfall nearby, so we checked it out. What an awesome waterfall it was! Fast, furious waters plunging 75-100 ft., if not more, down a deep, narrow gorge with ferns and moss growing everywhere and springs trickling from the sides. After much picture taking and relaxing under the trees overlooking the falls, we finished our lunches and hiked to the work site. Mike led us carefully across the proposed trail that was on a very steep slope. After he gave us our starting point, we went to work and accomplished quite a bit before calling it a day. The incredibly beautiful scenery surrounding us as we worked made it all worthwhile! After returning to camp, some brave souls took a dip in that cold river and others played games by the campfire. The mosquitoes loved some of us.

After 3 days of cutting new tread and removing small boulders, we accomplished what they wanted us to do...create nearly 1000 feet of new trail. On Friday we packed our stuff, leaving the heavy gear for the mules, and headed down the trail to our vehicles. When the pack animals arrived, we grabbed our stuff and said our good-byes. Some planned to go straight home, but several of us decided to go sightseeing in nearby Yellowstone National Park. It’s a LONG drive out there but we sure hope they'll have more projects for us in the future!

Fred Winkler - Volunteer of 2003 for Texas

2003-06-07T09:50:00.000-05:00

Fred Winkler, The Texas' Volunteer of the Year
June 7, 2003 , By Lynda DeGroot

The Central Texas Trail Tamers had a special surprise in store for one of their long-time members during their June 7 National Trails Day event at Bright Leaf State Natural Area in Austin, TX. Fred Winkler, who at 81 is the senior member of the Trail Tamers, received an award from the American Hiking Society for being chosen as "Volunteer of the Year" to represent the entire state of Texas. He was selected over all other nominees in our huge state!

Fred is truly amazing and one incredibly hard-working man! We all remark that he can work circles around some of us "younger" members. Some call him a "machine"! He's a real go-getter, and when he's not working with us on most of our projects, he's off somewhere else helping with numerous AHS "volunteer vacations" all over the United States. Not one to fly (I guess he had enough of that in WWII), he drives his truck to just about every location no matter how far away! He also donates quite a bit of his time at local parks and preserves during the week while the rest of us are at our other jobs. He simply likes to stay busy!

Fred has been married to his delightful wife, Eunice Winkler, for 54 years. She used to accompany him on numerous camping trips throughout their marriage but has decided to stay home in recent years because "she can't keep up with him anymore." Not many of us can!

So, we say congratulations to a guy that, like the Energizer Bunny, just keeps going and going!

3/22-29/03 Ouachita National Forest Trip Report

2003-03-30T14:46:00.000-06:00

March 22-29, 2003
Ouachita National Forest, Arkansas - by Derly Rivera
Ten CTTT members made up the work crew that went to Arkansas March 22-29. After an all day drive, we were greeted by forest rangers at Mill Creek Campground, where we set up tents and received safety tips and instructions for the week.
Our original work schedule was changed due to several controlled burns scheduled for that week. The trail maintenance work was cancelled, so we concentrated on restoring tent and RV pad sites, cleaning out debris and piling brush for a later burn. We also repaired erosion damage by setting river stones for riprap and planting grass seed on slopes leading to the creek and swimming area. Two of the crew took time to blaze the main trail leading out of camp.

Some of our more experienced crew members worked with cement and mortar mix to repair stone work, drains, and the front entrance signs. One project called for removing flat stone, leveling the sub-surface, replacing the stone, and then applying the mortar mix. This alone was a nine-hour endeavor. Others repaired broken faucets and cleaned out drains.

A major work was piling brush for a controlled burn later that week. The entire campground consisting of four main areas, was cleared of branches, debris, and fallen trees which were collected into thirty-seven piles for the burn. Several of the CTT crew assisted and had a good learning experience.

The rangers were very pleased with out work, especially since three of our members could drive front-end loaders and others could use chain saws, work on plumbing, and do cement/mortar work. Because of the dedication of our CTT crew, we finished all the assigned tasks in three and one-half days. With the extra time in hand, we were able to give some additional help such as cleaning out one hundred twenty-three feet of a drain waterway leading to the creek and pool area.

Friday was our day off for hiking and exploring the area. Seven rangers and their wives were invited to our traditional Mexican dinner and a specially prepared dutch oven capirotada. That evening we were surprised by the Mena/Oden Forest District Manager, who presented CTTT with a check to help cover expenses for the trip. He was very pleased with our work and invited CTTT to return next year.

3/9-15/03 Davis Mountains Preserve Trip Report

2003-03-20T14:45:00.000-06:00

March 9-15, 2003
Davis Mountains Preserve, TX - by George Boemerman
On March 8th, eight intrepid trail tamers (George Boemerman, Patrick Clynch, Mark Henneke, David Justice, Bill Kemp, Jim Robinson, Allan Weber and Mary Zeitler) took off for west Texas and the Davis Mountains Nature Conservancy Preserve. As requested by Karen Talley, the preserve's volunteer coordinator, we brought a wide selection of tools with us, plus equipment to establish a primitive camp. Dave and Lynda DeGroot had been out there last year and stated how great the area was. So, we all decided to arrive a day early to get acquainted with the region.

We established our initial campsite in a grassy bowl about one mile across and adjacent to the preserve's guest cabin. This afforded us access to a shower, toilet, kitchen and a comfortable porch on which to relax at the end of the day.

On Sunday, Karen took us on a hike to view some of the area and trail projects. Our task was two-fold: to mark new trails and repair some old ones in an area adjacent to the preserve's main camp and to relocate to the high country at the base of Mount Livermore (the state's fifth highest peak at 8300+ ft.) to repair the trail and build new switchbacks.

After much thought about the second task, we decided to keep our camp at the cabin area and travel each day to the base of the mountain. Temperatures at night at the cabin were about 25 degrees. At the remote campsite, the elevation was considerable higher with a stronger wind.

We completed the trail work on the first task and put a good dent in the second one. Karen was quite pleased with the amount and quality of our work and invited us back to complete the trail work or to return for recreation, as we deserved it (according to her).

Although we put in a lot of work, we also managed to have lighter moments. George cooked his family's favorite beef barley combination followed by dutch oven peach cobbler. Allan and Jim prepared a great sausage and pasta medley. Allan also managed to find a hind quarter of a feral hog.

On Friday (our day off), we climbed to the top of Mount Livermore and toured the surrounding area (Fort Davis and Alpine). Afterwards, Allan did a great job barbecuing that hog leg and Patrick surprised us with a most delicious apple cherry dump cake in the dutch oven. We were joined by Karen Talley and the preserve project leader. That night, Mother Nature put on an awesome show for us: Lightning, wind and rain. Many of us migrated to the cabin for the night.

The Davis Mountains Preserve is a gem! High grasslands, stands of mixed timber, the fifth highest peak in Texas, and water. The volunteer coordinator (Karen Talley) is a very personable young woman who worked right along with us. She hopes that CTTT will consider making this an annual trip!

4/6-12/03 Copper Breaks State Park Trip Report

2003-03-15T14:48:00.000-06:00

April 6-12, 2003
Copper Breaks State Park, Quanah, TX - by Lynda DeGroot

On Sunday, April 6th, four ambitious Trail Tamers (Galen, Stewart, Mary Zeitler, Jim McKinney, and yours truly) headed off to Copper Breaks State Park in north Texas...the first time any CTTT crew has been in that part of the our state!
Upon pulling into Quanah and heading down Highway 6, we wondered what kind of park would be awaiting our arrival out in that flat to gently rolling ranch land with few trees. After reaching our destination, we were surprised to see an interesting change in the terrain. We drove down the park road into somewhat of a valley with a small 60 acre lake that feeds into the Pease River, and a really nice campground full of tall cottonwoods and other trees. We were allowed to camp in the “day use” area near a screened pavilion in which we set up our kitchen.

After pitching our tents, we checked out the park and found that it was really nice and very unique. It’s amazing how much wildlife we saw! A bobcat ran across the road in front of our vehicle and a couple of roadrunners were near our camp. The lake was a stopping off place for egrets, herons, ducks, and more. The park host showed us a large pond upstream from the lake that had a huge beaver lodge below it. We learned that the Copper Breaks name comes from the “breaks” in the land and the bands of greenish-colored clay throughout the red sandstone. The green color is from traces of copper, but there is not enough to be mined (thankfully).

Our week began by cutting back seriously overgrown grasses, juniper and other vegetation from a nature trail that is popular with hikers. While Jim and Galen were weed-wacking, Mary followed right along wielding the loppers, and I helped the park manager and his assistant tackle those overly-abundant junipers with chain saws. After cutting the juniper, we all pitched in to drag the branches back down to the trailhead to be loaded into an old dump truck and hauled to a field by the maintenance buildings. In all, we cut 17 truckloads of juniper! We also managed to set 10 out of 23 sign posts in that rocky ground before running out of time.

Our day off (Friday) was totally planned by the park staff! In the morning, we toured the museum and heard stories about Quanah Parker, the last great Comanche war chief, and his mother Cynthia Ann Parker; we fed some longhorns that are part of the state herd descended from those brought over by the Spanish; we watched a flint-knapping demonstration by a man who is an authentic chuck-wagon cook at a local ranch; and the park manager's family and co-workers prepared a wonderful dinner for us topped off by fresh-out-of-the-oven blackberry cobbler! After that, we were shown the beautiful Bull Canyon (with about a 200 ft. drop) and hiked the Rocky Ledge trail; and as if that wasn't enough, we were sent to a higher campground where the Dallas Astronomical Society had set up several huge telescopes for us to view the night sky. We were treated to our very own "Star Party!"

12/1-7/02 Big Bend National Park Trip Report

2002-12-15T16:31:00.000-06:00

Dec. 1-7, 2002
Big Bend National Park - by Lynda DeGroot
On a cool December 1st morning, six hardy souls including five "veterans" (Jerry Levenson, Jerry Smolinsky, David Justice, Bob Saegert and Lynda DeGroot) and one new member (Serena Horn) gathered in the Albertson's parking lot at the "Y" in Oak Hill, eager to board the "Big Bend Express," aka a rental van, and head off on another Trail Tamer adventure in Big Bend National Park. We hadn't worked on trails in Big Bend in a couple of years so this was an eagerly anticipated trip.

We arrived at our campsite at Government Springs about 9 hours later. Within minutes, another member (Del Grosenheider) rode up on his motorcycle followed shortly by Allan Weber and George Boemerman in Allan's car. We immediately went to work setting up our big cook tent and some of the tables, stoves, and other equipment the Park Service left for our use. We then pitched our own tents. Rather than cooking, we drove up to the Chisos Basin and ate dinner at the lodge.

Monday morning got off to a slower start than we anticipated because our Park Service crew leader's truck broke down about a mile or so from our camp. We drove Aaron back to his truck so he could load the tools in our van and he rode with us to Grapevine Hills where we began working on the trail starting up at the "window."

Some of us cut back lots of thorny vegetation that was growing out into the trail and others had to rework a couple of sections that were really steep and eroded by putting in steps and building a retaining wall. This was a major task because the trail was almost solid rock! Not to worry…our fearless "rock experts" came through and finished all that was required (and probably a lot more).

Still more steps were put in, more vegetation trimmed or removed and "illegal" trails closed as we worked our way back to the parking area. The first day was almost too hot and the second day brought cool temperatures and almost continuous drizzle, but nothing kept us from our appointed task!

Since we finished our work on the Grapevine Hills trail, on Wednesday we were diverted to the Lost Mine trail. The hike was absolutely gorgeous and the views (especially toward The Window) were breathtaking! As before, we hiked all the way to the top carrying our tools, and worked our way back down.

We carefully cut back bunches of yucca and numerous low hanging limbs, and removed LOTS of cacti that were growing out into the trail. A few of us ended up picking out thorns! While working our way downward, we also cleaned out most of the water bars and there were a lot!

On Thursday, the weather changed and frost covered everything. It almost looked like a light dusting of snow! It was a beautiful sight as we hiked up the trail!
Alas…Friday was to be our day off but we woke up to see fog that was so thick we couldn't even see the Chisos Mountains from our campsite! Actually, we could barely see anything! We had planned on taking a jaunt around the park to show our newest members what a beautiful place it is but, instead, we ended up heading home. All in all, it was a great trip, and everyone seemed to have a good time.

11/8-11/02 Davy Crockett National Forest Trip Report

2002-11-15T16:29:00.000-06:00

Nov. 8-11, 2002
Davy Crockett National Forest - by George Boemerman
Seventeen Trail Tamers, including two brand new folks and two from the E-Corp attacked the handicapped access trail with vigor. The weather was great (actually a bit warm) and the camp sites were nice. Pealie and Merlinda (the Davy Crockett Forest Rangers) also worked right along with us.

Most folks arrived on Friday, Nov. 8. Raymond Fore cooked a super spaghetti dinner for all of us. On Saturday, we laid timbers to border the trail and started laying a trail base of crushed limestone and gravel. That evening Bob Saegert, our illustrious Cajun chef, fried two specially marinated turkeys for us. They were mouthwatering! To complement Bob’s culinary efforts, George Boermerman baked peach cobbler in the dutch oven, serving it hot with whipped cream.

Sunday, a well-fed crew returned to work on the trail project while four split off to accomplish some back-country work. A trail bridge had washed out during a recent storm and had to be replaced with a new one, plus one other had to be repaired.
Monday morning, it was more trail laying work plus time to start putting the handrails up on the board portion. After a "tool" delay, Raymond Fore finally was able to get that portion of the project started.

Most folks left by noon on Monday, but some stayed to help Raymond on the handrails. It appears we should be able to finish the project during our next work session in January or February. The following members all did a great job: Janette Barlow, Mike Beard, Terence Donovan, Raymond Fore (project leader), George Boemerman (his assistant), Mike Rodgers, Chuck Lundstedt, Rocky Nelson, David Justice, Fred Winkler, Bill Kemp, Pam MacKenzie, and Bob Saegert. From E-Corp, Robin Petty and Lisa Slate. There were also two new members, Delores Goodrich and Jeanette Smiecinsky.

10/19-26/02 Guadalupe Mountains National Park Trip Report

2002-10-30T16:22:00.000-06:00

October 19-26, 2002
Guadalupe Mountains National Park - by George Boemerman
The Fall season brought about the annual Trail Tamer trip to the Guadalupe Mountains. Two groups were formed to accommodate the assigned projects. Chris Zielinski led the Guadalupe Peak trail crew with Jutta Haubold, David Justice and Bob Saegert while George Boemerman coordinated the Sand Dune area crew of Carol Burris, Debbie Galloway, Randall Bosarge, Mary Zeitler, Raylene Welch, Derly Rivera, and Jerry Smolinski.

On October 19th, we drove out to the Guadalupe Mountains and rendezvoused at the Ship on the Desert (a Park Service lodge located in an isolated spot in the park). The next day, the Guadalupe Peak crew hiked up the mountain while Jack Kinkaid, the park's wrangler, carried up their gear on horses. Roger Murillo of the park's trail crew accompanied them.

The Sand Dune area crew had Sunday off and some took advantage of the good weather to hike the McKittrick Canyon trail while others took the Permian Reef trail. On Monday, they joined Juan Mendoza from the park's trail crew and drove out to the Sand Dune area where small trailers were set up for our accommodations. This crew spent their time taking down old barbed wire fences and became quite proficient at it!

The Guadalupe Peak crew accomplished a significant amount of trail restoration on their project, cleaning and repairing existing waterbars, adding new ones along with new steps, three new retaining walls, filling in eroded areas, etc. and even got to contend with some sleet on top of the mountain!

We all finished our projects early and returned to the Ship on the Desert on Thursday. Some folks had to return home early, but a few took advantage of Friday being a day-off to drive up to Carlsbad Cavern where the park afforded us free entrance because we are a volunteer group.

The crew had the traditional party on Friday night and Jack Kinkaid, the park's wrangler and Tony Armijo, the park's trail supervisor attended.

I'd like to thank Chris Zielinski for doing a great job as the Peak Trail crew leader and for running the show when I had to leave early. Also, thanks to Derly Rivera for a great job in purchasing the group's food, planning the menus and performing as the chef.

6/15-22/02: Continental Divide Trail, Gila Wilderness Trip Report

2002-06-30T16:21:00.000-05:00

June 15-22, 2002
Continental Divide Trail, Gila Wilderness, NM - by Dave DeGroot
This recent trip was held from June 15th - 22nd. It was reduced by one day due to fire near the work area Thursday evening. All activities were conducted in the Black Range Mountains of the Gila Wilderness in New Mexico. Activities involved construction of a new section on the Continental Divide Trail in the vicinity of Diamond Peak.

Fourteen volunteers traveled from Austin and spent the night at Percha Dam State Park southwest of Truth or Consequences, New Mexico. Sunday, the group made its way through Winston, NM to the trailhead on the west side of the divide and backpacked 3 miles to the basecamp below Fisherman's Bluff. For the next four days, the group made a hike up roughly 500 feet plus two miles to the work site on the Continental Divide. Three persons suffered minor symptoms of altitude sickness from the work at 9000 ft. elevation but otherwise there were no problems.

The day after we arrived, our group was joined by members of the Youth Conservation Corps and a small USFS Trail Maintenance & Construction crew. Together, we finished 400 yards of trail and roughed-in another 200 yards. At the end of our efforts, Ranger John Groom stated he had never seen as much trail completed by a volunteer group in such a short time. We were all much pleased at the news!

As often reported in the news, the whole region is extremely dry and many fires were currently burning in other parts of New Mexico, Arizona and Colorado. Therefore, when lightning strikes created three smoke plumes Thursday evening, the US Forest Service was quick to throw all available resources at the problem. That included Smoke-jumpers, the rangers that were working with us, and the horses that were scheduled to bring water up to our dry camp Friday morning. Consequently, we gave up our day off, made our way back to our vehicles, and headed back to Texas and Balmorhea State Park. There, we relaxed in the cool spring waters Friday and Saturday before returning to Austin Saturday evening.

4/20/02 Longhorn Caverns State Park Trip Report

2002-04-28T16:19:00.000-05:00

April 20, 2002
Longhorn Caverns State Park, TX - by Jae Kim

Nine volunteers led by Lynda DeGroot traveled to Longhorn Caverns between Burnet and Marble Falls to work on about a mile long trail. Trail Tamers moved gravel, laid the gravel on top of an existing trail to widen it somewhat, trimmed overgrown vegetation, and moved large/heavy rocks to help define a confusing section of trail.

The ranger, who also worked as the cavern tour guide, accommodated us with some great pastries and coffee for breakfast followed by lunch later on and finally a special "private" tour of the beautiful and remarkable cavern. Several Trail Tamers drove up Friday evening and stayed overnight at Inks Lake State Park compliments of the Longhorn Caverns staff.

4/6-14/02 Fort Davis National Historic Site Trip Report

2002-04-20T16:18:00.000-05:00

April 6-14, 2002
Fort Davis National Historic Site, TX - by Dave DeGroot
This year's trip to the Fort Davis area was an aggressive undertaking involving four segments and coordination of local and Austin based volunteers. The trip leader, Dave DeGroot, traveled to Fort Davis on Friday to conduct a training class for representatives from local agencies on Saturday. Meanwhile, CTTT volunteers traveled from Austin. On Sunday, Trail Tamers and local volunteers teamed up to start working on the construction of a rock retaining wall at the Fort Davis National Historic Site. When completed on Tuesday, the 8ft. long by 6 ft. high wall fixed a nasty section of trail that had eroded, leaving a potentially dangerous situation for users. For our efforts, the crew was treated to lunch at Pop's Grill--home of the best burger west of the Pecos.

On Tuesday evening, the group was joined by two more Trail Tamers and relocated to The Nature Conservancy's Davis Mountains Preserve on Wednesday morning. Three Trail Tamers climbed Mount Livermore that afternoon (it's the seventh highest peak in Texas!) while the rest investigated the flora and fauna nearby where many deer and wild turkey were sighted.

Thursday, a trail design training class was held and included Trail Tamers and members from The Nature Conservancy. Construction of a new trail flagged the previous day began on Friday, emanating from the site of the future interpretive center due to be built next year. By Saturday afternoon, the first leg of the trail was complete and the crew was treated to dinner at the new pizza place in Fort Davis (no one lost weight on this trip).

The Davis Mountains Preserve, owned by The Nature Conservancy, is a unique place unlike any other in Texas. Besides having Texas' 7th highest mountain on it, there are three distinct bio-regions that converge on these 20,000 acres. This is why you'll find rolling grasslands toward the front with mixed riparian habitat including Madrone, oaks, elm, several species of pine (and a few pockets of aspen on Mt. Livermore) near the center and Chihuahuan desert toward the back. It's not hard to imagine oneself in the mountains of Arizona or New Mexico. So...if you missed this one, keep your eyes open for future trips. There is much more trail to be built and CTTT has been asked to help with the effort.

2/23/02 Pedernales Falls State Park Trip Report

2002-02-28T16:16:00.000-06:00

February 23, 2002
Pedernales Falls State Park, TX - by Jae Kim

The weather could not be any better. Although it dipped below the freezing point the night before, it went up to 80 degrees on the work day. A blue sky with no clouds and the cool breeze greeted us while we were taming the badly eroded trail.

Under Mark Henneke's leadership, nineteen volunteers worked on the short trail (about 30 feet long) that leads to the river from the Youth Camping area. The heavy rainwater caused the erosion during the winter.

The crew brought up buckets full of rocks from the river bed and filled up large voids. Then, a mix of dirt and gravel was added on top using wheelbarrows. Due to the large number of volunteers, the work was completed before lunch time.
Generous park rangers cooked delicious cornbread and beef stew for us. Some of the crew camped there Saturday night as well.

2/15-18/02 Davy Crockett National Forest Trip Report

2002-02-28T16:14:00.001-06:00

February 15-18, 2002
Davy Crockett National Forest, TX - by George Boemerman
This particular Davy Crockett National Forest trip brought us members from far and wide: Austin, San Marcos, Round Rock, Lufkin, Nacogdoches, and Benton, Louisiana. A total of 15 Trail Tamers plus five E-Corp folks participated in a concentrated three-day series of projects.

Rocky Nelson (the guy from Benton) led a group to the wilderness area to repair flood-damaged sections of an elevated walkway. Ray Fore (our Lufkin guy) led the team building the boardwalk portion of the handicapped access trail. Mike Rodgers (our club president guy) took charge of the group working on the regular portion of the handicapped access trail.

The handicapped access trail is our main project at Davy Crockett. It is not complete yet and we will continue our efforts until it is completed. The next expedition is tentatively set for early May of this year (pending approval by our board). That time-frame was suggested by the National Forest folks because an area where they want an observation platform, along the boardwalk, will hopefully be dried out enough by then to work on.

The trip was not all work. In the evenings we had great meals prepared by Rocky Nelson, Ray Fore and John Payne. These were followed by a congenial atmosphere around the campfire.

Monday morning was a super breakfast. Allan Weber (our founder) and his buddy, Jim Robinson, prepared venison sausage and gravy. The biscuits were complements of Derly Rivera, George Boemerman and their Dutch ovens.

The weather was great, we accomplished the normal Trail Tamer workload (LOTS), and we all had a good time.

The partipants included Greg Robin, Nora Ahmed and P. Rogeli Esamella who came in one day from Nacogdoches; Jennifer Williamson and Kelly Hinds who came in for one day from Steven F. Austin University; plus Joe and June Villarreal, a one-day couple from Austin along with Pamela Mackenzie.

The five E-Corp members were Sean Bone, Evan Branum, Katheryn Killebrew, Lisa Slate, and Matt Styslinger.

The remainder of the crew were Jim Schmidt, Mike Rogers, David Justice, Allan Weber, Jim Robinson, Mary Lynch, Terence Donovan, Ray Fore, Chuck Lundstedt, Amy Tonai, Derly Rivera, George Boemerman, Rocky Nelson, John Payne and Jim McKinney.
Copyright © 2003 Central Texas Trail Tamers

2/15-18/02 Davy Crockett National Forest Trip Report

2002-02-28T16:14:00.000-06:00

1/19-21/02 Davy Crockett National Forest Trip Report

2002-01-30T16:12:00.000-06:00

January 19-21, 2002
Davy Crockett National Forest, TX - by Mike Rodgers

Most of the participants for this special January trip to Davy Crockett National Forest arrived on Friday and set up camp at the Lakeside Loop Campsite. Arriving early were George Boemerman, John Payne, Janette Barlow, and Rocky Nelson. Due to the inclement weather, this group used the covered pavilion for their evening meal. Trip leader Mike Rodgers arrived after the feast. After a rainy night, the group arose to a cloudy and cold morning. Other local participants, Ray Fore and Chuck Lundstedt, arrived Saturday morning before the Forest Service "darlings" (Pearlie and Merlinda) arrived.

The group headed for the work site at exactly 8:00am or 8:15am, maybe 8:30am…but they got there. After some discussion, the transit (level) was set up to determine the grade of the proposed trail. We determined the trail route and started digging holes. After the first few posts were set, the group fell into a routine and the next 128 posts went pretty smoothly.

Different teams worked the auger ("digging machine"). This machine required a two-person team. What a blast I had with Pearlie, Janette and George sharing the machine with me. Everyone enjoyed a session on it. Supplemented with real post-hole diggers, the holes were widened to accommodate and align the posts. The posts were set approximately 2 ft. deep with "QuikCrete". The group returned to the campsite around noon for Saturday lunch.

New arrivals, Matthew Yang, Nora Ahmed, and Greg Robin, found their way to the campground to join in the fun. After they set up camp, the group returned to work on the posts. Hauling posts and cement, digging holes, setting posts and lots of supervision and advice filled the afternoon and Sunday morning until the last post was set around 1:00pm Sunday.

The new arrivals did have a strange experience Saturday afternoon. Breaking shortly after 2:00pm, they planned a short fifteen minute hike which lasted until quitting time or thereafter. They took a wrong turn and wandered through the woods for two hours, finally finding the park headquarters office. They then got directions back to the campground. Our new Trail Tamers had to leave early Sunday to return to Austin but their efforts were appreciated by all.

Several other members had to leave Sunday afternoon. The remaining crew cross-braced the posts on Monday. With the posts in place, we expect to complete the wooden trail portion during the February trip.

Altogether, CTTT can be credited with 137 hours of work (George, Rocky, Ray, John, Chuck--20 hrs. each; Mike and Janette--14 hrs. each; Matthew, Nora and Greg--3 hrs. each) for the January, 2002 trip to Davy Crockett National Forest.
Copyright © 2003 Central Texas Trail Tamers

11/01 Ouachita National Forest Trail Trip Report

2001-11-30T14:24:00.000-06:00

November 3-11, 2001
Ouachita National Forest Trail, AK (by Derly Rivera)
Eleven volunteers made up the crew that went to the Ouachita National Forest in Arkansas on November 3rd. This was the first visit to the forest by the Central Texas Trail Tamers. After pitching tents at a primitive campsite, we set up a "range" kitchen where we worked out of three pickup truck beds using one stove and a campfire for cooking.

On Monday, the forest rangers outlined our duties and took us to the work area. The work consisted mostly of clearing brush and blazing trails. Not surprisingly, we cleared and painted the required blazes on approximately 6.5 miles of trail by 3:00pm.

Tuesday through Thursday was basically the same work: clearing trails, felling trees, and blazing trail markers. It was interesting to notice that a number of trees and other vegetation had been greatly affected by the ice storm from the previous year. Earlier in the year the forest service had cut a large number of trees to clear the trails and different paths in the forest. We had to cut two dead trees that were leaning dangerously towards the trail and physically pushed them, thus allowing their weight to topple them out of the way. We completed work on approximately 21.5 miles of trails through the forest.

Since we didn't have flush toilets or hot showers, you can imagine the camp area. Several of the crew bathed in the river and the water was about 59 degrees! After leaping in the water and emitting loud gasps and shouts, the intrepid bathers welcomed the warm campfire.

A hearty breakfast started out the days. A substantial dinner, campfire tales and songs finished out the day. We left early Friday morning because hunting season would begin the next day. CTTT was invited to return the next year to work on the east side of the forest.

A NOTE ABOUT HARD HATS: I did not like to wear hard hats, especially when working in the forest or on mountains, until this trip. After a tree branch broke off, fell on my head and was deflected by the hard hat, with only a minor headache as a result, I became a believer. Now I STRONGLY recommend wearing hard hats both for forest and rock work. Even better: use safety glasses also.

10/01 Guadalupe Mountains National Park Trip Report

2001-10-30T14:21:00.000-06:00

October 13-20, 2001
Guadalupe Mountains National Park, CO
Crew #1 - The Handicapped Accessible Trail Work Team (by Mike Rodgers)

On Saturday, October 13th, sixteen "Trail Tamers" left Central Texas for a weeklong trip to the Guadalupe Mountains. Ten members (Derly Rivera, Mike Rodgers, Jerry Smolinsky, Jim Reid, George & Betty Mading, Randall Borsage, Evan Branum, "Anthony" Lucero, and Travis Smith) spent the week working on the accessible trail from the Frijole Ranch Trailhead to Manzanita Spring. Road “oyl" was a new experience for these members and they worked with the sticky and pungent substance all week (until the cement mixer being used to mix the concoction blew a hole in its engine).
The rest of the crew worked several days on the Manzanita Trail, then spent two days on the Foothills Trail that connects the Corral at Frijole Ranch to the Pine Springs Visitor Center and the Tejas Trail. The Foothills Trail had been washed out in several places and the crew filled in those areas with rocks and dirt carried in 5-gallon buckets. Rugged work!! Upon completion of the work on the Foothills Trail, this crew tackled the "scrub down" of the "Ship on the Desert" (our quarters for the week). The Ship was left spic and span for the next volunteer/research group.

In a different part of the park, Crew # 2, consisting of six hardy, adventurous members, spent the week camping in the Guadalupe Peak Trail campsite. Their work, scheduled for four days, was to refurbish the tent pads at the site. With their enthusiasm, organization and hard work they finished the allotted task in two days, thus allowing time to perform other tasks on the Guadalupe Peak Trail for the Park Service. This "wind blown" crew returned to the Ship on Friday after hiking the Devil's Hall Trail. We, at the Ship, were quite relieved after the group showered and presented themselves in fresh, clean attire.

The trip proved to be very successful, without injury, enjoyable to all and over 640 volunteer work hours were contributed to the Park Service. Tony Armijo and his trail crew (Jack, Roger, Javier, Juan and Eddie) along with Stoney (the mechanic who kept the cement mixer wired & glued together until the fatal boom) were exceptionally hospitable and directed the "Trail Tamers" with expert leadership. We always appreciate the courtesy afforded CTTT by the Park Service personnel, and look forward to the next trip to Guadalupe Mountain National Park.

Crew #2 - The Guadalupe Peak Trail Work Team (by George Boemerman)
The Guadalupe Peak trail team, consisting of such stalwarts as Mike Beard, Suzanne Diercks, Allan Weber, Chris Zielinski, Mark Henneke, and George Boemerman, headed up the trail to the campground on Sunday. The weather was perfect, clear, and in the low 70's; however, from time to time the wind did pick up a bit--strong enough to break one of Allan's tent poles.

Aided by Roger Murillo from the park’s trail crew, our task was to rebuild the five large tent pads at the campground. The main chore was to find enough soil to make a smooth covering on the pads. Finding soil on top of a rocky mountain kept us busy! In typical Trail Tamer fashion, we finished our assigned task in two days while also designing and building some elaborate rainwater diversions. We then did some trail work around the campground and on the main trail.

This left us time for relaxation and hikes on our own. The top of Guadalupe Peak affords spectacular views, possibly as far as 150 miles. With the wind stirring up the dust, the sunsets were awesome! In addition to being a work trip, it also turned out to be a gourmet experience. Each member was assigned to provide the evening meal one night for the rest of the crew. To be honest, we all outdid one another--the meals were great!

The hiking prize had to go to Suzanne. On our last day up there, she hiked down the mountain, around a portion of the El Capitan Trail and then back up--a real tiger! On our return Friday, we hiked down the mountain and then went back to Devil's Hall, a 4.2 mile trail in Pine Springs Canyon. It was a great experience…much like a condensed version of McKittrick Canyon. By the time we returned to Pine Springs parking lot, Roger Murillo was waiting with a pick-up to deliver us back to the Ship on the Desert to join the other crew and to partake of a well-deserved cold drink and much needed shower.

9/01 - Rocky Mountain National Park Trip Report

2001-09-30T14:19:00.000-05:00

September 1-9, 2001
Rocky Mountain National Park, CO (by Terence Donovan)
On Saturday, Sept. 1, 2001 the Central Texas Trail Tamers made their annual pilgrimage to Rocky Mountain National Park, about 40 miles northwest of Denver. The group consisted of 15 adventurers (which included 5 AmeriCorps volunteers) and was led by the capable Lynda DeGroot.

After overnighting in Raton, New Mexico, we arrived at Moraine Park campground on Sunday afternoon, Sept. 2, and began setting up the camp that would be our home for the coming week.

Monday (Labor Day) was a free day to get acclimated to the altitude and enjoy many facets of this magnificent park. Several members packed lunches and set off on a 12-mile hike starting at the Bear Lake trailhead and winding back around to the camp in Moraine Park. The rest of the group piled into two vehicles and enjoyed a somewhat harrowing trip to the Alpine Visitor Center on Trail Ridge Road by way of Old Fall River Road. This scenic but narrow gravel road consists of hairpin switchbacks and steep inclines with no guardrails. It is so narrow that traffic only moves in one direction.

On Tuesday, our group met the park service trail crew at 7AM and set off to the Lily Lake trailhead to work on the last portion of Storm Pass Trail. As this was our 3rd year to work on this trail, the final 300 feet were saved for us to finish. By Wednesday afternoon, the last stumps were pulled up and the last tread was cut. After final touches, the four-mile trail was complete and ready to be added to the park's network of trails.

On Thursday and Friday, we worked at three different locations constructing retaining walls and building steps. Large 700-lb rocks had to be quarried and transported to the work area using grip-hoists on pulley systems. This work was different and challenging and afforded new experiences for many of us. We learned how to drill holes into granite with 90-lb Punjhars (gasoline powered drills), how to secure and hoist cumbersome rocks, and how to shore up rock steps. The trail crew provided excellent guidance on tool handling and techniques and then set us loose. By trial and error and a lot of hard work, we met our goals and felt the satisfaction of another job well done.

On our last evening in camp, we watched as snow dusted the top and sides of Long's Peak far across the valley from Moraine Park and Lynda wished it would work itself toward our camp. Her wish came true, as an arctic cold front pushed into the area and sent temperatures plunging, with over 6 inches of snow covering everything by dawn!
Prior to the snowy surprise, we were all awakened around 2AM by a loud noise reminiscent of a car crash. Instead, we fearfully discovered that a "bear-proof" trash container at the edge of camp had been ripped from its bolts in the concrete and tossed around like a toy by a very large, hungry bear! Flashlights shining from several of our tents apparently scared it away without further incident, but none of us got much sleep after that rude awakening.

The return trip to Texas was long and uneventful with another overnight stay--this time in Amarillo. Our weary crew returned to Austin at about 4:30PM on Sunday, Sept. 9, and another pilgrimage to the mountains had come to a successful end.

6/01: Davy Crockett Trip Report

2001-06-30T12:02:00.000-05:00

June, 2001
Davy Crockett National Forest, Texas (by Earl Conners)

The June trip to Davy Crockett was lucky. Tropical storm Allison left the area Friday afternoon and work started Saturday morning. The weather was good the rest of the week. A 2 inch rain early Friday morning was a good test of the work completed. It showed the trail had a good slope and no washouts occurred. We completed 320 yards of trail.

Meeting ADA specifications, the trail was constructed of fill dirt to level the trail as needed, then a 2” layer of limestone was applied and rolled. A ¼” layer of river pea gravel completed the surface. The trail was bordered with landscape timbers. An 18” culvert was also installed. The entire trail will be 3/4 mile in length, with the last 500 ft being a boardwalk over a boggy area. We have two more years to complete the work.

In mid-week, we were fortunate to have the help of eleven members of E-Corps (American Youthworks). It was the third time E-Corps has helped us on our long-range trips. It was a pleasure working with them. We also have a new member form the Lufkin area. He worked with us Tuesday through Saturday and is going on the Rocky Mountain Trip in September.

4/28/01 Gila Wilderness Trip Report

2001-04-30T12:03:00.000-05:00

April 21-28, 2001
Gila Wilderness, New Mexico (by Raylene Welch)

Five volunteers left Austin at about 7AM on April 21 for the CTTT work trip to the Gila Wilderness in SW New Mexico. Along the way, we had lunch at a rest area, supper at the Cactus Cafe in Deming (great recommendation from Kevin!), and arrived at Sapillo campground around 8:30PM. After meeting ranger Tim Pohlman, we set up our tents for the night.

On Sunday, thinking it rained during the night, we woke up to everything coated with about an inch of snow. It was beautiful! After tossing a few snowballs & eating breakfast, we listened to Tim give instructions on the use of the area and how to build the trail to accommodate the various uses. We hiked about 2 hours to the site and worked for about three hours before heading back to camp. Tim informed us that a group of 9 Americorps volunteers would be joining us in a day or two.

Monday was a day of serious work with many large stumps to remove. Everyone was tired at the end of the day and ready for the Americorps group to join us!

On Tuesday, one of our members decided that she could not remain on the project because of serious foot pain so she was taken to the nearest bus station. The rest of the group continued working through Thursday.

This section of the Continental Divide Trail was built on top of mountain ridges but is being redone and moved to the side of these ridges, which means quite a few trees & rocks being removed and new tread being cut. With the help of the Americorp group, we completed about 1/2 mile of trail and dug out probably 50 large stumps. There remained perhaps another 100 yards of trail to be completed.

Friday was spent packing up camp and visiting the Gila Cliff Dwellings before heading home.

2/01 Davy Crockett Trip Report

2001-02-15T11:57:00.000-06:00

February, 2001
Davy Crockett National Forest, Texas (by Earl Conners)

Volunteers started arriving Friday afternoon and all were present for the evening meal of Derly Stew and French bread. The evening campfire brought renewed friendship with our members from Lufkin and Benton, La.

Day one started with a breakfast of crispy French toast and bacon. We then rode to the first work site 18 miles into the forest. There we split into two groups. Group 1 (two men), tore down and rebuilt a bridge, installing new planks, steps, and support piers. Meanwhile, Group 2 (four men) replaced planks and piers on another bridge. We then returned to the shop and cut timber and planks for the next day.

On day two, we once again worked on two bridges…this time as a single group. We repaired a footbridge and built new ramps. Then we built a new bridge with handrails over a sunken bridge that was in the water. Setting the piers in the water was a challenge. The new bridge was 26 feet long. All old timber was carried out. New timber was cut on site. An evening of smoked pork roast around the campfire, with our Ranger hosts Pearlie and Merlinda, ended day two.

On day three we replaced handrails on a main trail bridge and then removed an entire bridge and rails also on the main trail. That evening we went to a picturesque cabin on a pond south of Lufkin (owned by Ray Fore). There we fished and had a catfish supper with plenty of trimmings.

On the last day we constructed a new bridge, replacing yesterday’s teardown, and installed seven water bars on the trail on both sides of the new bridge. We then broke camp and left for home at 3:00 pm. A total of 142 man-hours had been completed.

2/3/01 Acacia Land Trust Trip Report

2001-02-03T11:54:00.000-06:00

February 3, 2001
Acacia Land Trust Work Day, Texas (by Lynda DeGroot)
This was the 2nd time the Trail Tamers had been called upon to help out at this beautiful place between Dripping Springs and the Pedernales River.

About 9 Trail Tamers, plus a few others, arrived at the Hill Country Cafe in Dripping Springs where a few of us grabbed some quick coffee and last minute breakfast tacos while waiting for our hostess to show up and lead us to the preserve. When she finally arrived, we piled into our vehicles and our little "carpool convoy" pulled out onto Hwy 290 heading west. She took off faster than many of us could keep up and it didn't take but 2 minutes for us to get disoriented! So, after a roadside "high-level map conference", we finally figured out the directions and were on our way. Upon our arrival, we were joined by a group of college students and others for what turned out to be great day for cedar choppin'.

The owner is trying to clear much of the area so that native grasses and plants can be reintroduced. While most of the crew concentrated on digging up cedar saplings and trimming up more mature cedar trees, in another section of the preserve, several of us went down to remove as much cedar as possible along the trail that leads down to the canyon containing Dead Man's Creek…and such a beautiful creek it is! Along the creek itself, some areas on the sides and on small islands were nearly choked with young cedar so we removed those in order for some of the oak, wild persimmon saplings, and other shrubs (such as canyon mock orange) to grow.

After quite a bit of work, we stopped for lunch. Our hostess generously provided us with a variety of sandwiches, chips, cookies and beverages. After lunch we returned to work removing and stacking cut cedar. At about 2:30, the hostess asked if anyone would like to take a hike to "Dead Man's Hole" and several of us jumped at the chance to see this place.

We hiked along the trail that some of us worked on earlier, going down into the canyon and following the creek for a couple of miles until we came to a collapsed grotto with a clear blue-green pool and waterfall that was absolutely beautiful! I would say that it definitely rivals Hamilton Pool, and is much more pristine. We were all astounded! Many of us wondered how many other places like that still exist yet are virtually unknown.

After lollygagging around for about 30 minutes breathing it all in, we headed back to the upper reaches of the property and back to our vehicles for the trip home. This was truly a day well spent but there's more to do. I'm sure there will be other opportunities for return trips.

1/20/01: BCNWR, Lago Vista, TX

2001-01-30T11:46:00.000-06:00

January 20, 2001
Balcones Canyonlands National Wildlife Refuge, Lago Vista, Texas (by Lynda DeGroot)
On this cool, overcast day, two lone Trail Tamers (myself & Pat Dixon) met up with Rob Iski, Outdoor Recreation Planner-US Fish & Wildlife Service, at Oski’s in Lago Vista. After ordering our lunch from the Subway shop, we drove about 5 miles to another part of the Balcones Canyonlands refuge where a new trail is being created.
Our task was to do the initial clearing of cedar, dead trees and rocks that were in the way so that follow-up crews coming at a later date could see where the trail was supposed to go! So, armed with a doggone stubborn chain saw that took about half an hour to start, plus loppers, bow saws and a pulaski, Pat and I took off through the woods with Rob leading the way.
Along the first part of the trail, we were being pretty meticulous but as the day (and we) wore on, we had to skim over a few things in order to get to the end before dark! We started at about 9:30am and finally got to the end at about 5pm. It seems like we must have cut at LEAST a mile of trail though it was probably more like 1/2 to 3/4 mile!
The initial cut-through actually looked pretty darned good, and Rob seemed pleased, so after loading the gear in our vehicles and dusting off the dirt & cedar sawdust, Pat & I bid farewell to Rob and headed to our respective homes after a day well spent.

1/21/01 Bamberger Ranch Trip Report

2001-01-21T11:52:00.000-06:00

January 21, 2001
Bamberger Ranch Conservancy, Texas (by Lynda DeGroot)
On this beautiful Spring-like day, at least 15 Trail Tamers, plus several Master Naturalists and others, gathered at Madrone Lake on the Bamberger Ranch for a MAJOR brush removal project and to work on a new section of trail near the picnic area.
At about 9am and armed with pulaskis, McLeods, shovels, bow saws, chain saws and LOTS of loppers, we split into two groups. One group stayed at the picnic area and worked on rerouting a section of trail near the lake. I was assigned the other group, and along with J. David Bamberger himself, we headed over to an area where we took on the removal of numerous dead trees and what seemed like ACRES of ferocious wood briar vines. The task was to clear as much brush, wood briar and dead trees as possible so that J. David could have his staff re-seed the area in native grasses and other native plants.
Two HUGE bonfires were started in order to burn the dead tree limbs and brush, and even though we kept adding to the piles throughout the day, there was a LOT more to do than we had time for. We worked until about 4pm and headed back to the picnic area for an early dinner of tamales, chili and COLD drinks, compliments of J. David and his wife, Margaret.

1/20/01 Balcones Canyonlands NWR Trip Report

2001-01-20T11:50:00.000-06:00