CMC Bi-Weekly Trail Maintenance News

01/04/06

Maintenance News....

From Dan Pitillo, Retired Professor of Biology, Western Carolina University

Dear fellow trail maintainers,

The Mountain-to-Sea Trail traverses some very scenic areas that often are important plant and animal habitats along the Blue Ridge Parkway (BLRI). Over the past several decades the Parkway naturalists and consultant groups have been gathering data on special habitats through which the Parkway and Trail traverse. While it has been the policy of the BLRI managers to not approve the construction through areas that would cause local extinction and harm to some of the rare plant, and subsequently animal, species or habitats, there is always a potential that new populations will be established along the corridor of the trail. Further, there may be some additions to the state rare plant list that were not considered or known about during original construction. Since the goal of the National Park Service is to protect such habitats and species from undue impacts, it is important that the folks clearing the trail through these special habitats and associated species be protected. Sometimes it can involve a problem of spreading invasive exotic plants, such as Japanese joint grass (Microstegium vimineum) or multiflora rose (Rosa multiflora) into a site, smothering out the rare plants. Hopefully there will be someone among each of the trail crews that will be familiar with these sites and communicate directly with BLRI personnel as these projects are carried out. This will insure that we can all be proud of the work that trail crews do in their fine service to the MST.

See also a relatively uncommon fern in North Carolina, Goldies wood fern (Dryopteris goldiana) occurs in rich coves along the MTS trail occasionally.
.

Looking Back....

Connemara trails are open again!
After two intensive work days the CMC Pisgah Friday crew has opened the trails at the Carl Sandburg NP. Wednesday we worked mostly with chain saws clearing downed limbs and trees from the trails, stacking the wood so that the chipper could get near the piles, and starting to chip the debris. Today - Friday - we finished the chain saw work and chipped 4 1/2 dump truck loads of chips.
The trails and the parking lot are now open and ready for visitors once again.
Thanks for all the hard work above and beyond the call of duty these two days. And thanks to our guest workers on both of these days - Boyd (not really a guest - just not a regular with our crew) and Wiley - his friend from Candler, John from the Wednesday crew - who could not provide good weather for us Wednesday even though he always does for his crew, Margot - AT section maintainer and frequent Sandburg worker, and Tyler - 13 year old son of Pete Peterson - who out worked most of us (bet he sleeps good tonight).
Thanks to all for a great job. Bill

Monday Crew work - 12/27/05 (Tuesday)
We again were out on Tuesday.  Through the winter we will plan trips on either day depending on the weather.

Location - AT at Lemon Gap to Walnut Mountain Shelter

Work done: 
Item 446 - tree removal with hand saw and every strong back we had. Several small trees, branches, and Rhodos removed from trail.

Observations:
Condition of trail not determined because it was covered with 4 to 6 inches of snow.  The entire woods was a winter wonderland.
Several big areas up there have been clear cut. Trail from shelter to spring may not be obvious but snow covered made it impossible to check.
We climbed Max Patch.  There may be an issue at the top as far as blazing at a turn in the trail at the top of Max Patch and lack of posts to guide hikers in foggy weather.

Members participating:

                          Hours
                   Travel   Work   Total
Brooker, Barth       1        5      6 
Greenawalt, Bruce    1        5      6
Greenawalt, Ann      1        5      6  
Munoz, Jorge         1        5      6
Walto, Don           1        5      6

Barth