June 7, 2001
Well I've never been part of a Knee Knacker work party and had no idea it would be so much fun!
We had 7 people in total show up for the 8 a.m. meeting in the Grouse Mountain parking lot last Sunday. Richard, Arlene, Craig, Tim 'The Chainsaw', Enzo, Michael and myself were chatting about the day's plan over some delicious muffins and Delany's coffee before driving to the top of Skyline Drive.
Enzo and I had gathered a number of tools and supplies after the training run Saturday, and felt that we were a little behind the '8 ball' leaving it to the last minute, cutting boards in half and discovering that 'Rebar' cannot be cut-in-half with a hacksaw because the steel is hardened! Lesson learned. A brand new 'pick' and sledge hammer was purchased at Revy to round out the necessary tools.
This was the work party's criteria:
The section that we really thought fit this bill was to drive up Skyline Drive, past the gate and hike into the BP where it turns down to Mosquito creek. This section I always hear people complaining that there is very poor footing and the trail erosion is pretty bad. The solution that we envisioned was to install 14 or so new stairs using our 2x10x4ft long pressure treated lumber as support.
Once we got into it we had about 3 teams tackling various parts of that section. The further we got into it the more we started to improve our techniques. Michael (not me) came up with a brilliant plan to notch the logs to insert the stairs as the rebar (purchased pre-cut - no manual cutting!) was too short for some sections. This gave us a really strong stair when we needed it. Some areas didn't lend themselves to a conventional 'stair' so when I asked Enzo and Michael to help me move a 200 lb. rock down the trail to use as a landing area they were a little concerned. With 'he-man Enzo' and myself rolling the rock, Michael stood watch with a lever to prevent it from rolling down the hill. Heads up down there guys!! We started to look around the area for dead but not 'rotten' trees and found all kinds of manmade stuff we could use like Craig's 1/2" steel plate 'thingy' holding up one of the first stairs, cement blocks, and one of those 1/2 round steel covers that you see at the bottom of a guy-wire cable that would later be cut in half to make into a long stake.
I have to say I was really impressed with the work we got accomplished with only 7 PEOPLE! Next time you rip up that section (and now you can without wiping out) take a look at the craftsmanship of those notched logs, strategically located stairs and carefully placed rocks, and remember that each one was painstakingly created by a 'real trail runner' like you with blood, sweat and ingenuity.
What an amazing feeling running the trail you worked on, too cool. Again thanks to all that helped you are AWESOME!
Cheers,