Trails Update: Oct 18, 2019
Thankful for Gore-Tex!
The seasons have changed rather dramatically! After a cold shock, the rains (and snow) have started. Sproatt alpine trails are closed for the season, so we seized the opportunity for some Lord of the Squirrels maintenance.
The trail has gone through some rough weather: crazy dry seasons that turned its smooth gold into dust, followed by a rather wet one that pulled away whatever mineral soil was left, exposing uneven roots and chasms between them.
“Cut all the roots!” I’ve been asked…Not only are roots critical to the trees for nutrition, they keep the trees standing and more importantly for the trail, hold soil in place.
We repair the trail by building it up, on top of those roots. We armour them with rocks and cap those with mineral soil, returning the tread to what LOTS was first known for. To riders, the repairs simply look and feel like enhanced berms and jumps… because that’s what they are.
The Lowest bit, close to the Flank trail (we call it “year 1”) is 5 years old now. It’s amazing how much tree litter (twigs, leaves, needles and cones) has piled up in that time. The debris has been pulverized by tires into drain clogging, slippery black muck. Scraping it off to re-expose the trail’s solid orange soil is thoroughly therapeutic.
We’ve been too wet and muddy to take photos this week, so I reached back in my library for some unpublished fantastic fresh fungus photos. Seems appropriate to set the stage for “Fungus Among Us” this weekend!
Shout out to WB!
Did you know that Whistler-Blackcomb has been supporting Tuesday Dig Night volunteers with bike park lift tickets? *dig 3 nights, get a ticket*. Last weekend, I saw many diggers making the best of the final park days of the season (as did I). All weather fun!
Thanks WB for the gratuitous vertical and unmatched airtime!
And now we shift our attention to your alpine webcams…
See you on the trails
Dan Raymond
WORCA Lead Trail Builder
