Trailblazers in action!
The following pictures were taken in late March 2004 with a crew working on the Western Loop trail which heads west (and up!) from the so-called "jeep road" that provides one of the most visible landmarks from many places in town. The trail provides an approximately three mile loop running over the top of the ridge and back down to the "jeep road".
The "jeep road" mentioned above provides a broad, flat walking trail for 1.7 miles from the future trailhead parking area to the northwestern boundary of the Preserve. And we didn't have to do a thing to build it!
Here is SCFH Board Chair Roy Kinsey wielding a pick on the Western Loop trail currently under development at the time of this photo. It's not clear whether he is trying to remove a rock from the trail bed or set a new rock in place for a step or retaining wall.
Roy Kinsey (who said leaders don't work hard) is using a McLeod to form a solid, level trail surface with just enough slant to drain properly. In the background Dillon Sanders is working on building a step in a switchback.
The McLeod is a tool used by fire fighters to build fire breaks. After several hours of raking, chopping and hacking with a McLeod we all gained a real appreciation for the strong physical condition of fire fighters.
If you think it's all just moving some dirt around and there's no heavy lifting involved, take a look at this picture of SCFH Board Member Wayne Tall carrying a large rock. The rock will probably be used in building a retaining wall. Retaining walls are needed when the trail has to be built up. We don't bring in any construction materials so all construction has to be done with materials found at the site.
Rocks of similar size, but flatter, are used to build steps when the slope is too steep to get by with just cutting the trail into the ground.