Trail Work Update: A trail crew recap of 2017

[heading]Trail Work Update: A trail crew recap of 2017[/heading]With last winter's heavy snow sticking around, it seemed like summer was never going to show up! The snow brought down the house so to speak -- peppering the valley with deadfall.The Waldorf volunteer week got the fun stuff started with the completion of "Robin! Yer' Eggs". The entire grade 9 class spent the week digging and learning about how ravens will eat other birds' eggs (!).Then, armed with a fresh crew and keen volunteers, two new sections of single track were added to Lower Sproatt: "Extra Scoop" and "Cherry on Top" keep the dessert theme going (and the steep logging roads to a minimum).Beaver pass was next for some re-thinking. Have you tried the new flow line under the powerlines? Rockfaces and berms and jumps, oh my!Comfortably Numb was slated to be our main renovation project for the season so we started at the start: "Yummy Beachy" was built on a Tuesday dig night (and tweaked later on when the rains finally returned) to get the entrance of the trail closer to the parking area. We then worked our way up "Foreplay", lugging fire suppression equipment as the thermometer hit 35 degrees. We armoured and capped and bridged (to fight flow killers and trail creep) all the way to the "Golden Door", then ultimately, back down "Yummy Numby".Oh also: Lord of the Squirrels got a pre-opening polish. Calling our new trail a success might be an understatement... more than 6000 riders tested it out in its first season! Who has ridden it the most? I've done about 10 laps this year!The dry summer made ground work impossible during the extreme fire danger season, so we took on a much needed, albeit tedious, "de-branching" program. Using only fire-safe hand tools, 55 kilometres of trail were cleared of eye gouging branches. We also took the opportunity to focus on the signage program and "planted" close to 100 sign posts.With late September rains, it was time to reclaim the section of Trash that became a pea-gravel highway to the Train Wreck site. "Rubbish" was completed thanks to 2 volunteer trail nights and some snow persuasion (preventing the trail crew from accessing any other trails in town).And, just as it started, the season came to a close with a flurry of deadfall clearing brought on by more October snow.We ran 13 trail days/nights this season, spreading some dirt in every corner of our network. We're a motivated community: up to 75 folks (May 13 "Business Time") came out to dig on Tuesday nights! Thanks also go out to the sponsors that kept our diggers fed and quenched!I'd like to acknowledge the efforts of the 2017 trail crew: Scott Veach, Benoit Guillaudeau, Renee Lamoureux, Kolt Hoyle, Makaela Smithers. Thanks for all your heavy lifting! Seeing our season's accomplishments laid out here already has me stoked for next year!Lists!Trails where bridging or ground work was performed: 3 birds, AC/DC, Danimal (s) , Comfortably Numb, Foreplay, Secret North, Yummy Numby, End of the Line, Howler, A Rockwork Orange, Korova Milk Bar, Wizard Burial Ground, Beaver Pass, Shit Happens, Billy Epic, A Cut Above, It's Business Time, Get Over It, Lord of the Squirrels.New trail sections/ re-routes: Robin! Yer Eggs 375m, Extra Scoop 120m,, Cherry on Top 60m, Yummy Beachy 225m, Beaver pass new flow line 200m, Cut above connection 25m, Rubbish 350m.Whoa! Did you see that? Barred Owl, Pileated Woodpecker, Raven, Bald Eagle, Squirrel, Grouse, Heron, Robin, Vole, Pine Marten, Bunny, Coyote, Squirrel, Bear, Tree, Deer, Salamander, Toad, Garter Snake, Squirrel, Slug, Snail, Centipede, Ugh Bug? Bumble Bee, Unicorn, Dragon Fly, Squirrel, Mushroom, Blueberry, Bird/Wasp Nest, Tunnel, Fish, Mosquito, Red Ant, Black Fly, Squirrel, WASP(s)!WORCA Trail Builder, Dan RaymondRead the weekly trail reports and photos from the 2017 season here:[table id=28 /]