Trails 2008
Spanish Lakes Trail Thursday July 17, 2008
Larry Thomas, Wally Becker, Bonnie Hammer, Rich Inman, Jim
Albright, Brenda Kessler, and Wayne Fredrickson left the Spanish creek Trail
head. Things were moving right along under Wally's careful guidance. We rode up
the main Spanish Creek Trail and then turned onto the Falls Creek Trail. It
looked like the FS had cut some trees for about the first mile or so. We rode
this at a fairly good clip.... until we got to the 'new' "go-around" where it
was so rocky and swampy. Then the whole forest caved in. We cut about 30 trees
in less than one half mile from the go-around to the first Falls Creek crossing.
We had to break in the middle of all the sawing for lunch and energy. We were
done in by the time we got to the first Falls Creek crossing so we turned around
and came home. Wally and Larry went up to the Mirror Junction and packed out the
Forest Service Tools that the crew had been using since Monday.
SAGE CREEK CAMP/TRAIL CLEARING 7/13-7/16 2008
Sun. July 13 Big Spring trail 191: Bonnie, Don, Dick H, Ron, & Kay set up camp
and rode to the rail fence at the end of Big Spring. There were no trees to cut
or trail repairs to make. We rode 12 miles with 3 pack horses. Kay and Don
bushwhacked further and made it up the ridge to the Monument Mtn trail and home
via Trail 151--3 trees down on it and they were easy to step over, no time to
cut them out. Back to camp at 7 riding 14 miles. Jane H., Colleen C., & Ruth
Hall arrived by 9.
Mon. July 14 Sage Creek trail 11: The eight campers headed up Sage with the F.S.
equipment after Darin Fisher brought the tools right on time. Again 3 pack
horses were used. We cut 32 trees, just half of what we did last year, turned
around at 2:30 and back to camp @ 6pm. We rehung a damaged wilderness sign and
tried to get water off the trail in one location. The last crossing up needs
rock thrown in a deep hole that the horses fell into and nearly tumbled. All in
all the trail was in good shape. 20 miles and one cow elk.
Tues. July 15 Slide Creek trail # 71 and Little Sage trail # 70: Kay, Ron, Rich
Inman, Don, & Bonnie rode for 12 miles and cleared Slide Creek cutting 6 trees.
Thank goodness someone had already been along there sawing out trees or the
total would have easily quadrupled. The wire drift fence on top is in awful
condition and if it is no longer needed by a lessee perhaps the F.S. can partner
with the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation and get it pulled out of there. We saw 4
moose. Meanwhile the Little Sage workers consisting of Dick H., Colleen, Jane
and Ruth were busy clearing 28 trees, saw one big black bear and lots of fish in
the creek. They trimmed on 3 leaners so packers can pass safely beneath them.
Rode 17 miles and returned at 6:30 exhausted. Ruth and Jane headed for Bozeman
before supper.
Weds. July 16: Commitment completed to the Forest Service we enjoyed short
rides, one group to Albino Lake and one group to the sunken forest before
returning to Bozeman in the late afternoon. (photos by Bonnie Hammer, story by
Kay Tate)
Spanish Lakes Trail Thursday July 10, 2008
Larry's crew consisted of Larry, Wally, Ron, Rich, Wayne, and Dick G. Mark left
the TH with them but arthritis slowed his horse down and they never saw him
again. Tim McWilliams bumped into them at one point as well and helped out. The
guys cut up to deep snow within 1/2 mile of the lake, then came back down and
went up Mirror cutting nearly to the lake there as well. What a day. No counter
along so no numbers to offer. Not too bad they said. They saw a big buck with a
doe on the way out and a big brown bear.
Indian Ridge Monday July 7, 2008
Clearing Indian Ridge to the Wilderness Boundary Dick Haines, Mike Gard, Bonnie
Hammer, Ron Rassley & Kay Tate had spectacular views and lots of work. It is a
long hard pull with occasional trees down along the way until past Sheepherder
Spring when the forest decided to lay down in front of us. Again the guys walked
ahead and Bonnie & I brought along the horses. By lunchtime we had cut 45 trees.
Kay hiked down the cliff on Little Hell Roaring and found one tree making the
trail impassable. Mike and Dick hiked down to it after lunch and after two cuts
a thunderous crash signified the trail was now open. Ron headed for the trailer
while we cut the last tree and as we came along we saw a moose following him.
Again watermelon and beer wet our whistle after a hot dry day. (9 miles - 45
trees)
Bridger Bowl Poker Ride Trail Sunday July 6, 2008
Crew of Ron Rassley, Kay Tate, Wally Becker, Dan Porter, Dan
Marsh, Jim Allbright, Brenda Kessler, Janice Cartwright, Catherine Nelson, Wally
Becker, and Ron and Sherrie White had a dual purpose: to clear the poker ride
trail and familiarize the flaggers with the route so they could easily flag the
trail on Friday before the event.
Early in the day, the crew ran into snow and ice across a creek that blocked the
poker trail. Working with a shovel and axe, some of the guys were able to clear
a path while Janice threw snowballs and took photos. Above us in the south bowl
were several skiers enjoying a mid-summer's day ski.
By noon, eight trees had been cleared and the troop stopped for a lunch break at
the site of pop stop 2, taking a minute before eating to fashion a hitching rail
out of a fallen tree. About this time, new members , Lori and Jim Einhaus (I
have to confirm these names), happened upon us. They told us the trail they rode
in on was hardly passable by horse due to a washout. So after lunch, Kay, Dan
Marsh, Jim and Brenda Kessler headed toward the washout. The rest of the group
continued on the poker trail and slightly beyond. The crew of Ron Rassley, Wally
Becker, Ron and Sherrie White, Janice Cartwright and Catherine Nelson,
encountered 18 fallen trees and one cavernous pit and clump of tree root on the
trail. The huge pit was positioned in such a way that riding through it was
absolutely impossible and riding around it was out of the question. Since Dan
Marsh had the other pack horse (and most of the tools), the group scratched
their heads and tried to figure out how to fix this big hole and huge clump of
tree root without tools. Individuals regressed to their caveman roots and
fashioned primitive tools out of sharp sticks, rocks and tree stumps. They
scratched in the dirt, rolled rocks down the steep hillside and eventually
filled in the deep hole. McGiver would have been proud. Meanwhile, Kay, Dan, Jim
and Brenda successfully completed their quest to repair the washout and removed
5 more fallen trees. They returned to the parking lot to await the rest of their
team. About this time the "apeman" group was feeling pretty smug about their
accomplishments as they neared pop stop 3 and got closer to the end of the
trail. However, their visions of cold and frosty refreshments anytime soon were
dashed when they happened upon a fallen tree, then another, and another; then
piles of downed trees and more piles. With only one chainsaw, and running on
fumes toward the end, the tired and weary cut through 48 more trees before
completing their trek. Arriving at the trailhead at 7 p.m., it was Miller time,
with cold juicy watermelon provided by Kay and Ron.
Today's scoreboard: 79 trees; 1 bottomless pit; 1 washout; 1 snow/ice passage
(Photos by Janice Cartwright, Kay Tate, Sherrie White)
Spanish Creek
Trail Thursday July 3, 2008
Due to some confusion over whether the job was a go Dan Marsh took the reins and
7 people arrived to work which started in the parking lot re-nailing a shoe on
Dan's pack horse. We got away from the parking lot and into trees just past the
2nd crossing. Jim, Brenda, Dan, Kay, Ron, Bonnie & Reggie cut 53 trees before
pooping out at 3:00. Two hikers stopped to cut one tree giving the workers a
welcome respite, a big thank you and besides they were cute. We got to the
Mirror Lake Y by noon for lunch and afterward Reggie & Bonnie scouted the Mirror
trail. There were 25 trees down and they could only go a mile before hitting
snow drifts. Kay, Ron & Dan worked on the approach at the 2nd crossing past
Mirror and it is usable now. On the way out Dan had some load problems and Kay
& Ron found two saws along the trail receiving a big thank you and a beer for
their effort carrying them back to the TH. Reggie had trouble loading her
horse, then we discovered a flat on Bonnie's trailer and changed to the spare.
All in all it was quite a day.
Bridger Trails 538, 525, 551 and partial Bangtail Divide Trail 504 June
30 2008
Ron Rassley, Kay Tate, Dick Haines, Ron and Sherrie White, Colleen Carnine,
Lorraine Conn, Dick Grover, Jim Nelson and Tatum left from the Brackett Creek Y
at 9 a.m. with 4 pack horses to ride the 538 trail. On the way in, Colleen
Carnine and Lorraine had some difficulty in a boggy area and Colleen's horse
suffered a minor injury, forcing them to abort the ride. The rest of the group
rode in 4 miles south to Bridger Bowl, removing 2 trees before backtracking. The
group then rode the 525 and 551 trails toward Ross Pass. A portion of the tribe
stopped for lunch in a shady spot in a lower area. Dick Grover, Ron and Sherrie
White continued up and over the pass and had their lunch in the shadow of Ross
Peak; on the way up they removed one tree and skirted around a couple of
snowbanks.
Part of the group decided to take a different route back to the Brackett "Y".
Dick Haines, Dick Grover, Ron and Sherrie White took a left off of the road on a
trail that brought them back along the creek. They cut one tree off the trail
and were able to push another out of the way without cutting.
After some refreshing watermelon, Ron Rassley, Kay Tate and Ron and Sherrie
White drove to Olson Creek to remove some downed trees that Ron and Kay had
noted on a recent scouting trip on that trail. One tree was removed; the others
(about 4 miles in) had already been taken out by someone else. This last group
loaded their horses and were on their way home by 6:30.
Ron & I had not been along the full Bangtail trail before and were interested to
find the four wheeler cattle guards. The gate on the left was difficult to open
so we "fixed" it. The old Bangtail trail is no longer on the new maps. When we
compare maps of the past it is amazing how many trails we have lost over time.
This big drift we could get around but we had to plunge through the ones in the
trees. Horses did well. Sometimes young horses will panic in a deep drift.
Spanish Lakes Trail June 28, 2008
Ten brave souls set out with the goal of clearing blow down to the Mirror Y. The
crew consisted of Walter Becker, Marianne Meyer, Jim Albright, Brenda Kessler,
Dan Marsh, Chick Hale, Rich Inman, Alice Pilgeram, Ron Rassley, and Kay Tate.
Since it was a wilderness trail the work had to be completed with crosscut saws
and axes. We had 77 trees down and one Spruce tree was about two feet in
diameter which had a lot of branches to trim just to get to it. We also had a
couple of guest along to take pictures and document our labor of love. The
article appeared in the Bozeman Chronicle
in Mondays June 30th edition.
We didn't quite make it to the Mirror Y but the crew was pretty well shot after
getting rid of the big Spruce so we headed for home. Ron and Kay took the
reports back early and went up Little Hell Roaring to clear what they could
until they ran into snow. Alice Pilgeram showed up later in the day and went to
work painting the feed bunks we repaired on National Trails Day.
Spanish Lakes Trail #401 Monday June 23, 2008
Ten workers of the Monday trail clearing team arrived at Spanish Creek for a
9:00 departure west on the 401 trail. There were 4 chain saws (with diligent
pack horses) in the group and they were kept constantly busy cutting 100-150
trees. The trail is now clear as far as the Placer Creek Mine road (10 miles).
The sawyers often hiked from tree to tree as the downfall was so thick and horse
holders followed along with the horses. The loppers cleared the overhead
branches making the ride out clear sailing. Workers included: Ruth Hall, Dick
Grover, Wally Becker, Bonnie Hammer, Dick Haines, Wayne Frederickson, Kay Tate,
Ron Rassley, Larry Thomas, and Jim Nelson. The more the people who help the
quicker the work gets done. The forests are a mess of downfall this year. Come
join with us.
Battle Ridge to Fairy Lake Monday June 23, 2008
What a beautiful day. We started at Brackett Creek and walked up the switchbacks
and cut and removed the tree that was on the trail.
Then we went to Battle Ridge and rode in as far as we could. We got just past
the 8-mile marker. There was one tree down near the beginning the trail (small
and you can go around). Up a bit further there was a small slide in one area. On
the high side of the road (or trail, I guess is the correct term), the ground is
giving way. A small portion slid onto the trail (including two small trees that
are still erect); we could go around without going off the trail, but the
trees/dirt should be removed. I don't think the larger section of ground is
going anywhere for now, but it could possibly slide IF a lot of rain gets into
the crevice that was created where it broke away.
Just before the 8-mile marker on a steep portion of the trail a medium
tree/branches are down over the trail (a good portion of it is on the trail); we
got around this by going off the trail. We were able to get as far as the ridge
just before the trail drops down into the trees. We ran into snow here so we
walked down the trail a bit and could see two trees down and quite a bit of
snow.
And, we saw 3 bears on the way in; momma and two cubs. They were cavorting in an
open meadow so we were able to watch them for about 5 minutes before they
noticed us.
Sherrie and Ron White rode Shafthouse on Friday and it is still impassable. The
picnic tables at Fairy Lake are still under snow. Then Sat they rode Bangtail
and it has snow. Bikers were carrying their bikes. Wayne Frederickson rode
Truman Gulch and it is open and clear of downfall.
Spanish Lakes Trail Head June 7, 2008
National Trails Day, showed signs of being a beautiful day early on and did turn
into one of our rare rain free days. Thirteen workers arrived at Spanish Creek
Trailhead and worked repairing the tie rail and feed bunks. With appropriate
tooling the job started at 9:30 and was completed in time for lunch. We repaired
6 feed bunks and one long tie rail and did they ever look terrific after Chick
back filled with his tractor around each one. Ron brought his harness and horse,
Sport, who worked hard pulling in the new rails for the feed bunks. While Chick
continued to work in the afternoon Ron & Kay rode horses up the 401 to check for
wetness and downfall. They got 3 miles before turning around for drifting. The
remainder of the crew cleaned debris from water bars and cut free the lower 401.
It was a great cooperative day and we are proud of our work.
Trail reports for 2007 and earlier.
Gallatin Valley BCH Volunteer Hours for 2008
Volunteer Maintenance
Report Form
