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What We've Been Up To!
7/19/25: West Ridge Trail, Swapping Out Old Broken Fir Log Steps for New Ones
Halfway up Mount Cardigan’s West Ridge Trail, in the woods, ’twas rather cool on Saturday morning. We were a crew of three: Ben, Andrew K., and TM Craig. We were an hour hiking to the jobsite, then took hand tools into the woods in search of the wily and shy 10″ fir tree. On finding…
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7/18/25: A New Waterbar for Winslow Trail
As we all enjoy 70s and a NW breeze after weeks of 90s and stifling humidity, Kevin and TM Craig had three hours this morning. We hiked uphill over many fixtures built by us and by two earlier crews until we came to the first flag from our survey of 2023 that was as yet…
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Sat 7/12 West Ridge Trail; Logs & Hikers & Bridges, Oh My!
Today’s crew was two: Ben and TM Craig. We toted pick, shovel, screw gun, and hammer uphill around 0930. We also lugged 2 2x6x8′ KD premium planks. We came to log steps uphill of the flat beyond Firepond Brook around 1015. There we recovered logs we left there on our last workday 7/3, an 8′ and a…
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Work Trip Report: Winslow Trail Sat 6/21
On this day, three of us were able to work four hours before departing for other chores. We worked uphill of the guest crew, Trailwrights. We added another 130′ of barricade. We do not like looking at it any more than we do bringing dead trees and building it. However, nothing less seems to deter tourists…
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CHVTC Summer Jobs
Hello Trail Crew, Trails are drying out now we have more sunny days than rainy ones. The State Bird has retreated for this year. Trails we tend on Mt. Sunapee are not beyond brooks in flood. NH DOT opened the gate to Mt. Cardigan on May 29. Five of us are now State-certified sawyers; Bob,…
Read More6/20/25: Patrol Solitude, Newbury w., & Rim Trails on Mt. Sunapee
Last Friday, we had good enough conditions of dry weather, west winds of 20 mph to keepthat state bird confused, the summit chairlift running. Therefore, four of us spotted a car in the NE Bowl area, signed waivers for comp tickets, and rode the chair to the top of the mountain by 1100 (Thank you,…
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6/14/25: Mount Kearsarge, Winslow Trail Patrol
Volunteers turned out in good numbers, eight of them: Dustin, Ashley, Ben, Jon, Andrew K., Bill, TL Scott, TM Craig. The light rain was not so apparent under the thick canopy of summer leaves, and up they went. In six hours they… 1) Raked and re-dug all 24 drains; 2) Barricaded 6 herd paths, some for the second time;…
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New Season on Mt. Cardigan
Thursday 6/5 two of us returned to barricade where hikers have started to wear a herd path across a zigzag. We harvested several dead fir trees from the woods upslope, plus were able to saw down a dead standing birch tree with our folding handsaws. We wove the small fir trees among the trees beside the…
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Anatomy of a Spring Patrol
By Wes Tucker Anybody who has spent time in New Hampshire knows that there are more seasons than just the basic four. The spring thaw is followed by mud season. Then fast on it’s heels comes black fly season. But wedged in between them is a brief window of time that Cardigan Highlanders call spring…
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