by Karen M. Klos
Recently, a new volunteer trail group was created through the coordinated efforts of Ecosystems Staff Officer Nadine A. Pollock and Executive Assistant Kathy Mohney, both of the Allegheny National Forest, Warren Supervisors office. They were influential in setting up a meeting with Tony Martoglio, Deputy District Ranger, Bradford Ranger District; Julie Moyer, Recreation Team Leader; and Allegheny Trail Crew members Keith W. Klos, Karen M. Klos, and Josh Schrader. At that time, the Allegheny Trail Crew, a new, independent volunteer trail maintenance group, signed a volunteer agreement with the Bradford Ranger District. The Allegheny Trail Crew, with membership steadily increasing (over a dozen volunteers already), will work on trails in the McKean and Warren County areas.
The Allegheny Trail Crew is an independent, volunteer-run, nonprofit organization. The Crew will work with all public and private landowners, surface and subsurface. The goal of this new trail group is to maintain, repair, build and develop, and promote trails and create a positive working relationship with all interested parties. The Crew plans to work on trails that are abandoned or not designated to other organizations—so-called orphan trails—and will take on a variety of trail and building projects. This exposes local members to other trail people and the wealth of experience in the trail community. Among the routine scheduled trail projects will be work weekends. These events will combine trail work and camping, making the experience more convenient for long-distance travelers.
The Crew’s charter members are Joyce Appel, Jae Bennett, Patty Brunner, Gene Cornelius, Heather Emahizer, Paul Henry, Jim Huston, Patti Huston, Karen Klos, Keith Klos, Josh Schrader, and Jode Vickerman. The Crew will initially work on 5 trails: the Tionesta Scenic Area Trail, the Tanbark Trail, the Tracy Ridge Trail System, the Heart’s Content Ski Trails, and the Tidioute Riverside RecTrek Trail.
As a first project, the group worked on the 1.5-mile Tionesta Scenic Area Trail in Wetmore Township, McKean County, for National Trails Day (NTD). The Tionesta Scenic Area Trail was once marked with white blazes. However, lack of trail maintenance nearly obliterated the trail. For this reason, the Bradford Rangers Station listed the trail as the number-one priority for the very experienced Allegheny Trail Crew.
The volunteers began arriving the evening of Friday, June 6, at a campsite just 2 miles from the work site. There, they shared snacks around the campfire. The early Saturday morning aroma of brewing coffee lured the volunteers from their tents, and their hearty breakfast consisted of homemade cinnamon rolls and a Dutch oven meal cooked over an open fire, with potatoes, eggs, peppers, onions, and cheese spread throughout. Although all the volunteers brought their lunches and drinks, additional food and bottled water was provided because of the temperature and trail conditions, with an anticipated long day. Everyone geared and “cameled” up with water, ready for the day. They met additional volunteers at the trailhead to begin the NTD at 9 o’clock, with the expectation of ending at 5 that afternoon. Hard hats were distributed, and the volunteers listened to a Job Hazard Analysis safety talk that covered chainsaw work, tools, equipment, basic maintenance, injuries and other emergencies, the need to keep well hydrated, watching out for ticks, and setting an approximate time and place for meeting. In addition, the volunteers were reminded about maintaining safe working conditions. The volunteers were divided into 2 groups, each taking a walkie-talkie and first aid kit. Because of the area’s remoteness, they included multiple bottles of water in their backpacks.
Two people were needed to use a chainsaw to just clear the trail of downed trees, taking 8hours on Saturday. The others cleared brush, cutting back the overgrowth and pushing and forcing their way through the obscured path. After Saturday’s work session, the volunteers celebrated NTD with a large buffet dinner of hot meatball subs with all the fixings and an array of other food items at the campsite 2 miles away. Patti Huston presented the Lifetime Brownie Achievement Award, and a surprise birthday double-layer brownie cake was presented to Joyce Appel. Afterward, the first organizational meeting was conducted around the campfire.
On Sunday, an additional 3 hours of chainsaw work was done, and the day finished up with new white blazing. Afterward, the group returned to the campsite for an additional meal and packed up to return home, some needing to travel many hours. Working both days, this outstanding group of volunteers put in a total of 175 hours opening up this remote, hidden gem now waiting to be hiked and explored again.
There will be additional work on the trail, with the construction of signage, a kiosk, and puncheon bridges over 2 wet areas, along with repairing or rebuilding an existing footbridge. If you are interested in helping, please contact Karen M. Klos (814-484-7420 or Su1sie@verizon.net).