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slabbyd
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PostMon Jun 24, 2019 4:35 pm 
Well might not help with brushing but you strike me as the type of guy who can't possibly resist this...Trail Boss USA

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contour5
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PostMon Jun 24, 2019 4:54 pm 
For a really great selection of tools that you can try out and hold in your hand, check out Hardwicks on Roosevelt in Seattle

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Waterman
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PostMon Jun 24, 2019 5:00 pm 
Lots of good recommendations. When the weather turns in the fall add a shovel to your gear for drainage work. Lot of trail damage can be avoided if waterbars, dips and ditches were cleared going into winter.

Two roads diverged in a wood, and I,I took the one less traveled by. And that has made all the difference. Robert Frost
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Jaberwock
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PostMon Jun 24, 2019 8:18 pm 
The tiny Silky folding saw with the course teeth is where it's at.

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Cyclopath
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PostMon Jun 24, 2019 9:53 pm 
Waterman wrote:
When the weather turns in the fall add a shovel to your gear for drainage work. Lot of trail damage can be avoided if waterbars, dips and ditches were cleared going into winter.
Every time there's a log embedded into the outside edge of the trail, the trail itself forms a puddle right there. After the water itself good away, it's a muddy, silty spot until everything gets really dry. And then people widen the real walking around the puddle/mud. They pointed it out in class, we saw it on the PCT, I saw it at Rachael Lake. Would it be crazy talk to have a small hand drill to make a drainage hole in the log? They usually put them in to hold the ground up so you'd have to be careful, but that seems like the obvious thing.

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Cyclopath
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PostMon Jun 24, 2019 10:28 pm 
contour5 wrote:
For a really great selection of tools that you can try out and hold in your hand, check out Hardwicks on Roosevelt in Seattle
Thank you for that. smile.gif I live in Eastlake, so Roosevelt might even be close. The group's advice has been incredibly helpful too. I didn't really even know what to look for, I was going to get hand shears, I didn't think of how they would fatigue my hand.

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Cyclopath
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PostMon Jun 24, 2019 10:31 pm 
I hope this doesn't ruin my friends' joking experience. lol.gif

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treeswarper
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PostWed Jun 26, 2019 8:45 pm 
You can sometimes find good hand tools, used by arborists, in saw shops. The two shops in Chehalis have a good selection. I purchased a good Corona saw at Service Saw. They sell replacement blades too. Be sure to keep it wrapped in something to keep it sharp, and to protect you and your gear. I have had worse cuts from pruning saws than with chainsaws. Madsen's, also in Chehalis, is also a good source. In fact, they have an online catalog. Both are good to deal with and I've gotten excellent customer service from both.

What's especially fun about sock puppets is that you can make each one unique and individual, so that they each have special characters. And they don't have to be human––animals and aliens are great possibilities
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Brushwork
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PostWed Jun 26, 2019 9:50 pm 
TS is sure right about pruning saws needing a blade cover. Even with one it’s easy to get cut. They are really sharp, it only takes a slight brush against skin and ouch.

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Sky Hiker
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PostThu Jun 27, 2019 5:08 am 
Well I can absolutely vouch for the Wyoming break down saw. There are several different sizes to fit your need. Comes in a little carrying case. Have cut down and thru several different sized trees without a hitch.

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treeswarper
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PostThu Jun 27, 2019 6:00 am 
What is the name of that Japanese saw that comes with a 2 or 3 foot handle? Great saw but kind of spendy. It was used on some of the bigger stuff above Walupt Lake on the PCT. All were impressed with it. Edit: Found it. Katana Boy

What's especially fun about sock puppets is that you can make each one unique and individual, so that they each have special characters. And they don't have to be human––animals and aliens are great possibilities
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Schroder
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PostThu Jun 27, 2019 10:52 am 
I've used a 6' fixed-length ARS pole pruner for years on blackberries, small branches and anything else that needed a little reach to avoid getting hit by thorns or having to having to get in an awkward position. They come in various sizes and fixed or telescoping and they're very lightweight for what they can do. I bought mine at Steuber Distributing in Snohomish but they can be bought online. I've found nothing better for getting in at the base of a clump of blackberries and clearing a patch pretty quickly.

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RodF
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PostThu Jun 27, 2019 11:18 am 
Cyclopath wrote:
Every time there's a log embedded into the outside edge of the trail, the trail itself forms a puddle right there. After the water itself good away, it's a muddy, silty spot until everything gets really dry. And then people widen the real walking around the puddle/mud. They pointed it out in class, we saw it on the PCT, I saw it at Rachael Lake. Would it be crazy talk to have a small hand drill to make a drainage hole in the log? They usually put them in to hold the ground up so you'd have to be careful, but that seems like the obvious thing.
You're asking about curb logs, placed to reinforce the outer edge of the tread, not a windfall log across the trail, right? Best to fill the tread and slightly outslope it for even drainage along the entire length of the trail. Runoff is then dispersed and doesn't erode any one spot. I find a grub hoe the most useful tool for cutting the inboard edge of the trail and moving it down the trail to fill a low spot and create an even outslope and grade. (A drainage hole or even a narrow notch would plug up quickly as it accumulates needles and silt.) USFS' Trail Construction and Maintenance Notebook offers good advice on controlling runoff: "The very best drainage designs... include frequent grade reversals and outsloping the entire tread. The classic mark of good drainage is that it's self maintaining, requiring minimal care." Thanks for your interest in brushing up.gif Many volunteers are willing to be sawyers, leaving many trails in desperate need of brushing!

"of all the paths you take in life, make sure a few of them are dirt" - John Muir "the wild is not the opposite of cultivated. It is the opposite of the captivated” - Vandana Shiva
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Cyclopath
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PostSun Jun 30, 2019 9:22 pm 
I did some brush work near Harts Pass this weekend. There wasn't much to do. But there were some bushes growing into the trail, and they're not now. In class they told us to cut or pull any sapling growing very close to the trail. They said it'll have to be removed eventually, get it now before it becomes a felling operation. I mostly did, but didn't feel great about it. (A lady in the class objected "but those are trees!"). There were a few larches I was supposed to cut, but I won't.

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Sky Hiker
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PostMon Jul 01, 2019 3:57 am 
Why feel bad like was stated in the class eventually it will be cut unless the trail goes away

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