by Ed Lawrence, Trail Care Chair
The October trail care weekend was based out of the cabin at the foot of the Brooks Run Fire Tower in Elk State Forest. Ten volunteers put in a total of 122 hours of solid work on the northern end of the Bucktail Path. The Bucktail Path is a 34-mile designated state forest hiking trail, blazed orange, that runs north from the village of Sinnemahoning to its terminus in Sizerville State Park. It has been several years since the KTA Trail Care Program last worked on the Bucktail Path, and we were happy to return this year at the request of Elk's District Forester Jeanne Wambaugh.
Participants enjoyed evening conviviality around a crackling fire, tended by Woody in the cabin's great stone fireplace. A home-cooked feast of cornbread muffins and venison chili was provided by Jenn and Donna on Saturday night, much to the gastronomic delight of the weary crew. Ed was the first to break the circle that evening as he slipped off to a bunk in the cabin at the stroke of 7. Rick, the Crew Leader, held out longer but eventually retreated to his spacious sleeping quarters in the back of his '89 Chevy Caprice Classic station wagon. Spell-binding views of a setting sun and rising full moon across a sea of ridges was also a highlight of the Brooks Run base camp.
The brunt of the weekend's work involved redigging the side hill on extensive portions of the trail going up Buffalo Switch Hollow out of the park. This was accomplished by basic pulaski dirt-grubbing that reestablished over 1/2 mile of trail along the steepest slopes of this section, and creating a more defined and secure treadway. A group of backpackers that passed through while the work was in progress attested to the quality of the improvement, while Wanda encouraged them to "walk the walk" and support KTA. Other projects included cutting blowdowns south to the head waters of Salt Run, brushcutting the trail north of Crooked Run Road, and running the DR Mower on the switch-back section of the trail that follows old railroad logging tram track, south of Crooked Run Road to Salt Run.
The Bucktail Path maintainers were: Tony Robbins, Elwood Laudenslager, Dave Wittmer, Scott Lee, Donna Thompson, Jenn Ulmer, Wanda Shirk, Tom Bastian, Ed Lawrence, and Rick Hiemenz.
Click here for photos from this Trail Care event!
KTA Trail Care thanks these dedicated volunteers 'for blazing the way!