Posts by Wes Tucker
8/28: Stepping It Up On Mt. Kearsarge
On Saturday we were five at Winslow State Park at 0900. The weather was cooler, and drier after the week’s melting humidity, and we soon lugged bars, shovels, and pick up to where we stopped work on 7/31. We just carried on uphill, removing roots only as needed, digging a hole just uphill of the…
Read MoreFriday 8/27 South Ridge Trail
Today, two retired volunteers toted pick, bar, and shovel out on South Ridge Trail beyond the 9 drains we re-dug on 8/5. The trail is gradual on that stretch, but gullies enough to make for few places for a drain and its ditch to carry runoff. We warmed up by setting a rock of ~…
Read MoreSat 8/21/21: Andrew Brook Trail, but not from the top.
When we three volunteers met at the ski area parking at 0900, we gathered around the map to try to think of our next move. To wait for the chairlift ride at 1000, then hike 1.5 miles over to the top of the work area, meant starting at lunchtime. One of us had to depart…
Read MoreHiking Above Treeline: Coloring Inside the Lines
By Wes Tucker I once saw a book titled, All I Really Need to Know I Learned in Kindergarten. The same thing could be said about hiking above treeline, because it’s all about staying inside the lines and connecting the dots. I’m sure most of you are aware that as you climb higher up in…
Read MoreSat 8/7: Cardigan West Ridge Trail \ Cliff’s Bridge
by Scott MacFaden We had a good day on the trail. Conditions were somewhat muggy but not oppressive, and many folks were out enjoying a fine August day on mighty Mt. Cardigan. Numerous hikers expressed their thanks to the crew for its decades of service to the trails on Cardigan, and it is gratifying to…
Read More7/31/21: Mount Kearsarge Step-by-Step
Saturday’s cool dry weather was a delight after weeks of tropical rain and smoky haze (3rd rainiest month at Concord since 1869!). About 1000 we four lugged rock bars and picks and shovels, up Winslow Trail about 0.4 miles, briefly discussing trail fixtures we crossed. We soon came to our worksite, a gully in soil,…
Read MoreCamp Highlander on the Newbury Trail
On Friday July 16, the Highlanders teamed up with a group from a local summer camp to brush out the Newbury Trail on Mount Sunapee. 11 campers, all 15-16 years old, were accompanied by 3 camp counselors, and supervised by CHVTC leaders Craig Sanborn and Bob Humphrey. Due to the July heat, safety for all…
Read MoreAndrew Brook From the Top Down, Sat., 10 July
by Craig Sanborn We made it a leisurely day, thus a relaxed day. At 0900 we five met at the Mt Sunapee ski area. At 1000 we were the first ones riding the chairlift uphill on our comp tickets (hanks to the Resort). By 1115 we arrived at White Ledges above Lake Solitude for a…
Read MoreCole Pond Trail, Enfield NH, Sat 6/26
by Craig Sanborn Today saw three of us on Cole Pond Trail for five hours. It was humid, but cool enough under the leaf canopy. We added four paver rocks, two more rocks just below the berm of a waterbar to hold that soil in place and give a better step for hikers than the…
Read MoreMitigating Erosion and a 24″ Surprise
The pandemic has receded this spring, the NH State Bird aka the black fly has outlived its usefulness and gone home till next year, and the trail crew is fixing trails damaged by heavy use and normal wear and tear. On June 18-19, four of us turned out for six hours each day. It felt…
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