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As with the entire world these days, the Trail Crew's June workday was a little different with people wearing masks and visitor vehicle traffic at the parking entrance backed up 10 deep before 9am because of staff's new Covid procedures, but it was great to be back in the park and see everyone. The 3 month break between workdays seemed to go on forever, but as I sat on a Basin Trail Trail overlook eating lunch the break shortened considerably and it seemed like we had been away only a month.
We've all been inundated with Covid-19 news coverage (don't watch too much of it), so it's no news that we'll have to cancel the Trail Crew's April workday scheduled for this Saturday. State Parks has closed day use parking at all 280 of it it's parks and beaches and for Big Basin this means they aren't allowing parking within two miles of headquarters.
A big turnout of 18 for the workday, which included 10 regulars, one newcomer who seemed interested in our work, six from American Conservation Experience (Americorp) and one friend of Dale P. who wasn't quite sure what Dale had talked her into. We almost had 15 CCC's, but they backed out when we said they needed to bring their own hand tools (that would have been nuts).
As the January workday approached we seemed to face two opposing forces, a shortened workday due to the afternoon Holiday Party and winter weather that left trail issues in almost every part of the park - Skyline-to-Sea, Sequoia, Creeping Forest, Dool, Sunset. And those were just the ones we knew about in advance.
The park needed the BBVTC help in splitting wood for the HQ fireplace. We usually move the wood from the Maintenance Yard but this year the park asked if we could split the wood too. So we came out for a second NOV workday. Seven crew members came out on the Saturday before Thanksgiving and we split about three cords of wood.
We cut some of the logs into manageable lengths while the rest of the crew used the log spliter for most of the job but some we split by hand.
Hopefully 3 cords with keep the fire going over the winter
The crew put in 44 hrs cutting about 3 cords of wood and thanks to John Collins, John Martin, Mike Peasland, David Philleo, Aaron Poulos, Devdutt Sheth and Chris Young, for splitting firewood on the second workday in Nov 2019.
The November workday started as a classic example of the microclimate weather you often hear about on weather reports. As I left home on the San Jose side of the hill the temperature was in the low 50's with valley fog. As I headed downhill from Saratoga Gap towards Boulder Creek the car outside temperature sensor said it was 70 and by the time I arrived at park headquarters it was a chilly 43.
