Rick Cory Joins MSTA Board of Directors

Life is Good

The Mount Shasta Trail Association is pleased to announce that Rick Cory has joined its Board of Directors.

Rick grew up in Burlingame in the San Francisco Bay Area and graduated from San Jose State in 1989 with a degree in Fire Protection Engineering.   He was backpacking across Europe when the Loma Prieta earthquake occurred and brought him home.

He worked for 30 years for the Fremont Fire Department, retiring in 2021 as a Division Chief.  He worked extensively on wildland mutual aid as a Strike Team Leader and Safety Officer and responded several times to the Mount Shasta area.  Rick is very proud of his  work with FEMA Urban Search and Rescue Task Force 4 and especially their 3-week response to Hurricane Katrina with nearly 1000 rescues.

His first introduction to this incredible area was in 1998 when (girlfriend at the time) Luce and Rick took one of their first trips together visiting Mossbrae Falls.  In 2010 they purchased a home across the street from his cousin in Dunsmuir.   They taught all of their 4 children to ski at the Mt Shasta Ski Park and how to fish in the Sacramento River.   One of his very favorite things to do is a long bike ride ending at the Dunsmuir brewpub.

Rick has watched with anticipation since 2015 as the new Gateway II trail network developed and has loved every minute working with the volunteer crews building trail.  Rick is also proud to have completed every Mount Shasta Trail Challenge since its inception in 2018 and is excited to now help continue this great program.

Luce and Rick look forward to many years mountain biking, snow shoeing, skiing, and hiking with their dogs in this beautiful area.

Posts Placed for Trailhead Markers at McBride and Ten Gallon

Thirteen volunteers got together to put posts in concrete for the trailhead signs at McBride and Ten Gallon yesterday. We didn’t leave the big plastic signs in place because I didn’t have the exact right hardware. Thanks to Gail Domanski, Neil Posson, Steve Diaz, Bryson Adams, Mark Derby, Linda Cabitto, Dave Pfurr, Jim Wrona, Steve Eddy, Stace Jankowski, and our USFS colleagues, Colleen Greene and Taylor Forte.

We’ll reschedule the big sign install day when we have the post driver, so stay tuned.

CLARIFICATION ON WORK TOMORROW, MONDAY NOV. 13

I was somewhat unclear with my last post. We will be doing limited work tomorrow; installing 2 wooden posts at McBride with cement, and possibly 2 wooden posts at Ten Gallon if time allows. No heavy equipment, so no need for a traffic control crew. We’ll just need a handful of volunteers. If you show, please bring a few gallons of water for cement cleanup. Meet about 8:45-9:00 at the McBride Trailhead. You’ll see my truck parked there. Thanks.

Let’s at least get one sign installed on Monday!

This afternoon, I went up to the McBride Springs Trailhead and was able to dig two holes in a little over an hour. They will be adequate to install the sign you see below. Let’s at least get one big sign in on Monday.

Meet me between 8:30 and 9:00 at the McBride Trailhead (just below McBride Springs Campground) on Monday, Nov. 13. I’ll have concrete, posts, and the signs. If all goes quickly (which I expect), we’ll try to dig a couple holes up the road at Ten Gallon. I need to be done before noon, so this won’t be a long day. Thanks.

Sign Installation for Monday, Nov. 13 on Hold

Most of the puzzle pieces for our work day on Monday have come together, but the heavy equipment (hydraulic post driver and hydraulic augur) are not available due to snafus with delivery vehicles. Therefore, we’ll have to postpone sign installation and hope that the weather won’t blow us out before Jan. 1.

I plan to go up to the McBride Springs and Ten Gallon Trailheads tomorrow or Sunday to test the soil for rocks. If favorable, maybe we can dig two holes at each site and at least get the monument signs installed on Monday (they go on wooden 4X4s).

Stay tuned for further information, but for now, we’re on hold. Thanks to all who’ve agreed to help.

ALL HANDS ON DECK FOR NOV. 13!

As part of our $1.1 million grant from the state for Gateway II, we are obligated to install a bunch of signs along Everitt Memorial Hwy and Road 31 (upper Old McCloud Ave). These include the trailhead monument signs, warning signs to drivers that the trailheads are coming up ahead, and signage to demarcate anywhere the trails cross a roadway. This is not sexy work like trail construction, but has to be done before Dec. 31 and before the snow flies.

We have a volunteer heavy-equipment operator who will dig the holes (the hardest part of the job) for free. Now we need a traffic-control crew (approximately 7), a crew to attach signs to posts and drop them into the holes, and a crew to pour gravel into the holes and tamp it down. I estimate we will need about 20 or more volunteers. Some of the work will merely be standing in the road with signs making sure drivers go around the heavy equipment.

This will be one of the last big work days before winter sets in, but WE NEED EVERYONE who’s available on this Monday (had to do it on a weekday to avoid interaction with traffic).

If you can help, please email me via this website (click contact on the home page) so I can place you in the appropriate crew. Exact time and meeting place will follow, but I suspect it will be 9 am at the GW Trailhead on Everitt Mem Hwy on Nov. 13, 2023.

One of the marked sites on EMH

Big Chunk of Strawberry Valley Trail Fixed Yesterday

About 18-20 volunteers showed up yesterday to fix the damage to Strawberry Valley as a result of too early riding on that trail. Andrew roughed it up with a dozer and then the McLeods and rakes took over. It was a day for volunteers new and old to meet and become friends. Much of what we wanted to accomplish was completed. PLEASE DON’T RIDE THIS TRAIL UNTIL WE GET SOME RAIN AND COMPACTION!

Thanks to one and all who participated.

Trail Work Tomorrow, Sat. Nov. 4 at 10 am

Reminder: We’ll be finishing work on lower Strawberry Valley where early riding created ruts in the trail and then it hardened. Trail Labs will bring in a dozer to rough up the trail, then we’ll smooth it out and compact it with hand tools and motorized compactors. Much of this is rake work. Join the gang and stay only as long as you want. Meet at the Gateway Trailhead on Everitt Memorial Hwy at 10. We’ll work if it sprinkles and probably cancel if it rains hard.

Remember: 10 am, not 9 (because of the Ski Swap).

Let the Trail Challenge Be Your Fall Color Guide

Autumn colors are exploding in the Mount Shasta area and it’s a perfect time to finish your 2023 Mount Shasta Trail Challenge passport! Hedge Creek Falls trail is a short easy trail that passes UNDER and BEHIND Hedge Creek Falls! Get a great view of the Sacramento River from the scenic lookout or continue all the way down to the rivers edge. Easy access and parking right off I-5 in Dunsmuir. Dogs and kids will love it. Bonus Karma for picking up trash left by others.

Concrete Poured for McBride TH Kiosk

When I arrived at the trailhead with concrete at 8:45 am yesterday, there were already three volunteers waiting. By 9:30, we had mixed and poured 10 bags. We had to go get four more bags and were done by 10 am. We topped the holes off with gravel and raked the dirt by 10:30. Awesome job, Emma Wilcox, John McDermott, Rick Cory, Steve Larson, Jim Pepin, Neil Posson, Mike McGill, Steve Diaz, and Ray Uhlig.