We had a strenuous, but very productive work day on Saturday 4/2/16. The weather was perfect for trail work, it was sunny and stayed in the mid-50s throughout our working hours. We had fourteen volunteers come out for a combined total of 73 work hours. We had a crew of four LHORBA members head up from the Johnstown area that were a huge help. Our thanks go out to Maynard Witherell, Fran Chappell, Rich Maher, and Rob Dorchak. They were were joined by FOYC/ LHORBA members AJ, Vickie, and myself. Lisa Meadows, the Environmental Education Specialist here at YC was a big help and really promoted our event heavily too. She attended and is largely responsible for the remaining seven volunteers who came out to lend a hand.
Under Max’s (Fran’s dog) close supervision; Rich, Rob, and Fran did a fantastic job replacing two of our time-weathered bridges on Damsite Trail. After discussing bridge design with Rich, we have some lumber left over, so we’ll probably be constructing another bridge with it soon.
With the three LHORBA amigos focused on the bridges, this allowed Maynard, AJ, Vickie, and I to focus on the Damsite Trail extension, further bench cutting/defining of the Damsite reroute, and working on signage. The preliminary layout for the Damsite extension was roughed in, but there is still a significant amount of bench cutting and other work before we can call it complete. I’ll update the map soon to highlight where this is located.
Many large trees were also cut that had fallen across the Damsite Access Road that parallels the lake.
I’ll post again if/when we plan to hold another organized trail day in the coming weeks or months. It would be great to get some more LHORBA members out that ride Yellow Creek frequently to help us finish the Damsite Trail extension. I think it’s going to turn out to be a really fun, alternative way to ride down to the spillway.
You can also see one of the new trail markers funded by Friends of Yellow Creek. Keyed to the map, this signage should help experienced riders and first-time visitors enjoy the trails.
Aaron Kovach
