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This was my second trip of the year performing trail
maintenance on the Mt Clinton Trail. My last trip, in late May, was a
disaster because there was too much snow on the ground and I kept
postholing. Needless to say, I didn't get much done. This time, I was
hoping for much clearer trails and a chance to accomplish something. In
addition to my small bow saw, I borrowed a
medium-sized pair of loppers from the AMC toolbox at the train depot. I
was going to concentrate on cutting down blowdowns and doing some
brushing. Brushing is the term for trimming the encroaching branches and
small trees that have overgrown the trail.
I was also trying out something new for me - a
day trip. Previously, I had stayed either at Mizpah Springs hut or at
the Naumann Tentsite when I worked on the trail, mostly because it takes
a couple of hours just to get to the start of the trail. This time, I
didn't want to take that much time off from work.
The hike up to the hut went more quickly than
usual, probably because I wasn't carrying a tent or sleeping bag in
addition to the tools. On the Mizpah Cutoff, about a tenth of a mile
before the junction with the Webster Cliff Trail heading to Mt Jackson,
there is an old former trail bed where the current trail turns sharply
right. I guess people tend to want to go the old way, because they had
roped it off, and put up a somewhat humorous handwritten sign that
reads: "Trail → (I know it's not obvious but the trail and signs are
actually this way.)"
I stopped for a short rest and snack at the
hut and took a few pictures. Most of the overnight guests had left and
it was pretty quiet in the dining area. I talked to a croo member about
the Alpine Garden Trail, where I was hoping to go in a week or so to see
the flowers. I always seem to miss the height of the alpine flower
blooming season.
Then I left to tackle the trail. There were
quite a few blowdowns on the trail. Most blowdowns occur during winter
storms, and since I had only gotten to two of them in May, I cut down
and removed about 12 in all along the uppermost mile of the trail. The
area I had brushed last year also needed some touchup, more than I had
expected.
Just above the 3000 foot elevation, near an
area where the trail and a brook run together, I found the remains of a
large campfire in the woods to the west of the trail. There was a lot of
charred wood laying messily around. In the Dry River Wilderness, you're
supposed to camp at least 200 feet from a trail (this was much closer),
Also, open fires are discouraged as they are definitely not low
impact.
I worked on the trail until about 4:00 PM, then climbed back up to the hut
where I stopped for a short rest and snack. After that, it was time to
start back, so I refilled my water bottles and headed up the Webster
Cliff Trail, as I was taking the long way back over Mt Pierce and down
the Crawford Path. |
