Author: John Harch

Last Wed., May 26, about 8 MSTA volunteers joined a dozen Boy Scouts and their scoutmasters to cut the weeds at an overgrown Spring Hill Trailhead. We had a bunch of weed whackers of various sizes and shapes, and the cut weeds were hauled by wheelbarrow to Bubba’s huge dump trailer and removed. We had some really young helpers alongside the scouts and MSTA regulars. Thanks to all!!

We’ll be doing another work day on the Gateway Reroute this Saturday at 9 am. Meet at the Gateway Trailhead for a short drive and then a 15 minute walk to the work site. Alyssa Winkleman will be directing the work.

The next opportunity will be a big effort up at Castle Lake on June 5 (National Trails Day) to make further progress on the new trail to Heart Lake.

We’ll be cutting weeds and cleaning up the Spring Hill Trailhead with the Boy Scouts on Wed., May 26 at 6 pm. This is an annual event that is a lot of fun. If you commit one hour, we’ll power through the job (the Boy Scouts and their dads did most of the work the last few years!). Bring weed whackers and rakes. See you there.

Yesterday, Sunday the 16^th, we had 12 volunteers rake and remove roots from the Gateway Reroute Trail. The views were spectacular. We got nearly the whole thing done, but there remains a lower section of about 400 feet that will need to be brushed out and finished later. There are also three rocky sections that will require some careful jigsaw puzzling of rocks to create flat, solid trail. The rock work is fun and creative, so if you want to help with this, contact Alyssa Winkleman, who will be leading this effort in the next 2 weeks.

Due to the overwhelming interest in the chainsaw training course and the fact that a chunk of our regular trail workers will be attending that class, we have to change the trail work day to Sunday. Please meet at the Gateway Trailhead on Everitt Memorial Hwy at 9 am on Sunday, May 16. We’ll probably drive a short distance up the gravel road, park, and walk about 10 minutes to the Gateway Reroute for finish work on the trail that’s being worked on this week by Trail Labs Co.

You will be amazed by the views on the new reroute. We’ll work from 9:30 to about noon or so, but you can leave anytime you wish. We just want to see your smiling face on the trail.

Twenty-eight volunteers showed up to cut new trail on Bear Springs on Saturday! There were regulars, new people, and very eager teenagers. We created a long segment of trail. One more work day like this and we’ll connect down to the top of MX. Just look at the incredible, long line of workers. Thanks to MSTA, Bike Shasta, and Shasta Gravity Adventures for this fun day in the forest.

We’ll actually be working on the lower portion of the new Bear Springs Trail, so as you’re heading east on Old McCloud Rd., cross the RR tracks and go only about ¼ mile, then park on Old McCloud. The work site is about 150 yards north (left turn on the dirt road) so you can walk. Parking will be limited on the dirt road. Once you cross the RR tracks, it’ll be hard to miss the cars and people. We are still meeting at corner of S. Mt. Shasta Blvd. and Old McCloud at about 8:45 and driving together if you wish.

Let’s build some new trail!!

JH

Join MSTA, Bike Shasta, Trail Labs Co, and Shasta Gravity Adventures for another work day on the Bear Springs segment of Gateway II on Saturday. Meet at corner of S Mt. Shasta Blvd and Old McCloud Rd at 8:50 for a caravan to the work site at 9. Or, from S Mt. Shasta Blvd, turn east on Old McCloud, go 2.5 miles and cross the RR tracks, continue 1.4 miles further, then take a left on Forest Road 40N76 (orange tape is tied to the brush there). Go straight about ¼ mile (slowly uphill), then when the road forks, stay right and go uphill. The meeting place is about ¼ mile ahead of that.

We had a great morning 2 weeks ago and got a huge section of trail buffed up. Come and make some new friends…it’s better than sitting on the couch eating donuts (although that IS pretty good, too).

Trail Workers:

Becky Cooper and the USFS have graciously offered to provide a chainsaw certification course for our trail workers, which will allow us to do chainsaw work on USFS property. It’s for recertification as well as new certifications. We need several more certified sawyers to cover the volunteer trail construction that will occur in the next couple years on Gateway II (as well as ongoing maintenance).

The only available dates are Saturday, May 15 for the classroom portion, and Saturday, May 22 for the field work. You need to attend both days, as well as obtain a CPR certification (which I’m in the process of trying to coordinate).

We’d like you to respond only if you seriously think you can attend both training days, since USFS employees will be giving their valuable time to make this happen.

Contact us through this website if interested.

For those of you who missed the April 20, 2021 webinar sponsored by the Siskiyou Land Trust and featuring the Mount Shasta Trail Association’s trail projects of 2020 and 2021, here are links to YouTube and the SLT Facebook page that have the recording:

https://www.facebook.com/watch/Siskiyou-Land-Trust-106961639332143/