MAR 5 and 19 - Redwood Loop Burn Piles

Summary of Month

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MAR 5 Workday

Saturday we had 17 regulars out along with six first timers for a total of 23. The work included six burn piles started and completed as well two others just getting started. One part of the crew split off in the morning to use log tongs to move a number of cut logs into position along the trail edge to act as guides and downing some Tan Oaks.

Logging Crew

Downing of the Tan Oaks

Here’s the felling of a Tan Oak, bucking a log, and rolling a trunk section off the trail provided by Matt (https://youtu.be/Kd47t9d3vfE).

Another good turnout and workday and we're now well over half way around the Redwood Loop. We finished just short of the Father of the Forest with the heaviest work areas now behind us. In front of us is moderate debris to be dealt with along with a number of down large trees in the Mother of the Forest area that the State crew said they would use heavy equipment to deal with. Below is the burn pile development from the base, slash, and ash.

Here is a time lapse of building a burn pile provided by Matt (https://youtu.be/lyeYekCw2no).

With 2 crews working on burn piles and another moving logs it was a very productive day! Below are the signs that the forest is returning.

Chimney Tree

The crew put in 179 hours and thanks to Arnold Arcolio, Daryn Bieri, Nan Singh Bowman, Noah Bowman, Jim Brooks, Rory Brooks, John Collins, Peter Gelblum, Tommy Ha, Howard Higley, Matt Kelsey, Marc Koenig, Janie Leifhelm, Mike Peasland, Devdutt Sheth, Bruce Washburn, Chris Young, and new to BBVTC Sasha Crawford, Denis DeCeuster, Logan Kreun, Alexis (Alex) Michel, Michael Rhoades, and Loren Tolley

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MAR 19 Workday

The workday included something we had not seen in a while, a forecast of rain! Trail Crew founder Bob Kirsch always said that just because it's raining at home, it may not be at Big Basin, so we always show up! And despite the forecast of a quarter to half-inch of rain starting in the early morning, we had 20 show including two new people.

We picked up where we left off last time in an area with a lot of burned under story remaining along the trail edge and since the District trails supervisor had visited the park several days before hand and wanted more focus placed on aesthetics and improving sight lines, this meant we spent a lot of time lopping and dragging debris to burn piles. We even brought out the tarps for the first time since the Fall Creek work to make it easier to move debris.

Before and after the clean up series

We caught a break with the weather with the morning being dry, but after lunch a steady drizzle began as we made slow progress cutting the under story and building burn piles.

Damp Lunch

By 2 the drizzle was becoming a little heavier and since the plan for the day was to also scout our next work area along the Skyline-to-Sea Trail (STS), we decided to wrap up the work. It was good to see that some of the Redwoods are being milled for rails and lumber.

We finished the day by hiking the stretch of STS from the old tool shed area to Gazos Creek fire road and despite earlier comments that it was severely damaged, it was not as bad as expected. Not an easy stretch of work, but no worse than after the big storms we've cleaned up after in the past. So that will be our next work area, but for April we'll be back to finish work on the Redwood Loop.

Opal Creek Footbridge

STS Requires some Work

The crew put in 148 hours and 327 hours for March. Thanks to Hal Anjo, Arnold Arcolio, Norm Beeson, Jim Brooks, Rory Brooks, John Collins, Denis DeCeuster, Dale Elliott, Peter Gelblum, Charles Jalgunas, Shyamal Kapadia, Janie Liefhelm, Marc Koenig, Mike Peasland, Aaron Poulos, Devdutt Sheth, Bruce Washburn, Chris Young and first timers Katy Booth and Tess Fitzgerald, for the support on a damp day.

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by Mike and Jeff

photos by Mike, Charles, Bruce, Shyamal, Daryn, Nan, and Peter

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It's unique in that the different images are aligned side by side so you can see the changes three months after the fire. The video is titled 'Big Basin Will Never Be The Same', but with all the regrowth we've seen working in the old HQ area it's more like 'Big Basin Will be Different'.

You can find the video at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dTIRHixcG68 .

DEC 4 and 18 - Redwood Loop Burn Piles

The December workdays brought to a close both a challenging and successful 2021 for the BBVTC.

The year began with the shock of the August 2020 fires that devastated Big Basin still fresh and no certainty of when trail work in the park would begin again or what we would do in the meantime. A hoped for return to Basin trail work in the spring was delayed because of ongoing hazard tree removal in the park, but in late April we were asked to assist in repairing fire damaged trails in the Fall Creek section of Henry Cowell State Park.

The work was our first exposure to clearing burned debris and building burn piles that will likely be our main focus for several years and also included a steep hike into what we began calling the 'hole' on the Fall Creek Trail. (A downhill hike into the hole in the morning meant a steep UPHILL hike in the afternoon when everyone was hot and tired.)

Despite the challenging work environment and it not being Big Basin, the Fall Creek work received excellent support as everyone was glad to be back on the trails.

And finally, in late November, we returned to Big Basin work after 15 months away.

The December workdays were a continuation of the Fall Creek work of clearing debris and building burn piles along the Redwood Loop Trail in what used to be the park headquarters area. The Dec. 4th workday had a great turnout of 17 and by the end of the day we had completed 10 burn piles over the first two Basin workdays including a 20ft x 20ft x 8ft pile that we called the 'Monster'. (Fall Creek burn piles were typically about 6 x 6 x 4ft.)

The crew put in 131 hrs and thanks to Jim Brooks, Rory Brooks, John Collins, David Dunlop, Peter Gelblum, Mimi Guiney, Rebecca Guiney and Josh Hill, Janie Leifhelm, Jordan McDaniel, Janette Mello, Mike Peasland, Aaron Poulos, Devdutt Sheth, Jo Thorogood, Chris Young and Marc Koenig, for their work on what was a nice late fall day.

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The second December workday on the 18th was a short one as after a one year break in 2020 due to Covid, the Crew returned to what has become a tradition over the past 20 years, our late December luncheon to celebrate the Holiday season. Whether it was continued enthusiasm over the return to Big Basin or just the party afterwards, we had a record turnout of 22 people for the day.

Mother of the Forest

Father of the Forest

As with most holiday party workdays, it was light on work, but we still managed to double the size of an existing burn pile, start and complete a second one and start a third one before calling it a day and heading to the Sawmill Restaurant for a late lunch.

The crew put in 124 hrs and thanks to Jim Brooks, Rory Brooks, John Collins, Michele Gelblum, Mimi Guiney, Tommy Ha, Jan Hill, Charles Jalgunas, Shyamal Kapadia, Matt Kelsey, Marc Koenig, Janie Leifhelm, Jordan McDaniel, Janette Mello, Whitney Mitchell, Chris Newport, Mike Peasland, Aaron Poulos, Devdutt Sheth, Dale Stadelman, Jo Thorogood and Chris Young, for closing out the year on a positive note.

It's good to be back in Big Basin! The Crew put in 1728 hours and that included no workdays in JAN, FEB, and MAR and one workday cancel due to heat. Also, 4 members put in over 100 hours. See you in 2022.

End of Year Gathering at the Sawmill

by Mike and Jeff

photos by Mike, Jan, Charles, Aaron, Peter, and Jorden