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Blowdown
Sawin' Logs ...



Joined: 24 Aug 2011
Posts: 375 | TRs | Pics
Location: On the Summit
Blowdown
Sawin' Logs ...
PostThu Jul 09, 2020 2:29 pm 
A five-day (!) Washington Trails Association logout and horse ford construction team in the Lake Chelan - Sawtooth Wilderness in the lovely Twisp River Valley. A long drive from Seattle, but well worth it. This BCRT (Backcountry Response Team) was scheduled for a crew of 12, but due to Okanogan county Coronavirus restrictions, crew size was limited to six. Gary wore the blue hat, JB, Tom, Richard and I were orange hats, and Steve was the only green hat. It was an excellent team, everybody worked very hard, and we did a great job with face masks and social distancing. A forest fire had burned the whole valley two years ago. A large horse-capable bridge had been destroyed by the fire and falling trees. The stream crossing was a huge mess, and impassable to horses. We cleared the area and constructed a bypass with an easy ford across the stream for the horses. Then we continued up the valley and cleared dozens of fallen logs. Things to love: 1: Pack support from the awesome Backcountry Horsemen 2: Everyone learned from the shared skills and openness to input from anyone 3: The crew members were friendly, hardworking, safety-minded, dedicated, and generous with their knowledge 4: The rock work was challenging (an understatement!) and rewarding 5: Plenty of sweat and tired muscles with no injuries 6: Temps topped out around 80, and cool at night 7: There was much more rock work than sawing, but we still did plenty of sawing 8: There was much more sawing than brushing, but we still did lots of brushing on the way out 9: No ticks! 10: Last but not least Gary was an exceptional group leader. He sweated the details, asked for suggestions, and let the admittedly highly experienced team make good choices. Gary keeps safety on the top of everyone’s minds, both with tool safety and maintaining good social distancing. What not to love? 1: Dust, charcoal, and ash everywhere! Some random photos:
War Creek Valley
War Creek Valley
Awesome Backcountry Horsemen!
Awesome Backcountry Horsemen!
Old forest service cabin
Old forest service cabin
Intense burn area
Intense burn area
Immense trees smashed the burned bridge. Old bridge approaches in foreground and background
Immense trees smashed the burned bridge. Old bridge approaches in foreground and background
Mark (Blowdown) working on a blowdown
Mark (Blowdown) working on a blowdown
Pandemic-sized tool assortment
Pandemic-sized tool assortment
Masks
Masks
Gary shows how it's done
Gary shows how it's done
Richard, Tom, JB, Mark
Richard, Tom, JB, Mark
Steve the Human Backhoe
Steve the Human Backhoe
Gary and JB and tons of rocks carried in and placed by hand
Gary and JB and tons of rocks carried in and placed by hand
Mining sand and gravel
Mining sand and gravel
Tom hauling what seemed like hundreds of buckets of sand, gravel, and rocks
Tom hauling what seemed like hundreds of buckets of sand, gravel, and rocks
Horse Ford - Complete!
Horse Ford - Complete!
I tried to add a rock to Steve's pack to slow him down. An old Boy Scout tradition!
I tried to add a rock to Steve's pack to slow him down. An old Boy Scout tradition!
Tom "clearing brush" on the hike out
Tom "clearing brush" on the hike out
Wildflowers
Wildflowers
Alan met us for an end-of-trip debrief
Alan met us for an end-of-trip debrief

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Kim Brown
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Joined: 13 Jul 2009
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Kim Brown
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PostThu Jul 09, 2020 3:38 pm 
Gary Zink? Cna't quite tell in the photos, but it looks like his stature. The last photo looks like Alan C-M in the orange shirt, but he's not in your list of workers. It's an apparition. Rock work is as fun as x-cut saw! Looks like a great trip and LOTS of hard work!

"..living on the east side of the Sierra world be ideal - except for harsher winters and the chance of apocalyptic fires burning the whole area." Bosterson, NWHiker's marketing expert
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lookout bob
WTA proponent.....



Joined: 12 Apr 2005
Posts: 3043 | TRs | Pics
Location: wta work while in between lookouts
lookout bob
WTA proponent.....
PostThu Jul 09, 2020 4:28 pm 
Nice job Mark! thanks for your work!!!! up.gif up.gif up.gif up.gif cool.gif

"Altitude is its own reward" John Jerome ( from "On Mountains")
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KarlK
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PostThu Jul 09, 2020 5:01 pm 
A tip of the 'ol hard hat to all that verrrry nice work!

Karl J Kaiyala
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gb
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gb
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PostThu Jul 09, 2020 6:39 pm 
That is a great project to have done. Thanks from all of us.

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puzzlr
Mid Fork Rocks



Joined: 13 Feb 2007
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Location: Stuck in the middle
puzzlr
Mid Fork Rocks
PostThu Jul 09, 2020 11:04 pm 
Good to see the crews out there again up.gif. The BCRT I signed up for got canceled.

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lookout bob
WTA proponent.....



Joined: 12 Apr 2005
Posts: 3043 | TRs | Pics
Location: wta work while in between lookouts
lookout bob
WTA proponent.....
PostSun Jul 12, 2020 3:42 pm 
Jeff...please look again! Volunteer vacations are ( for the moment) free as they are functioning like BCRTs...you bring and cook your own food and they are free. There are still openings here and there and WTA would appreciate your support. cool.gif

"Altitude is its own reward" John Jerome ( from "On Mountains")
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Now I Fly
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Now I Fly
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PostSun Jul 12, 2020 9:31 pm 
Nice work ! Thank You, and the team!!!!!

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Sky Hiker
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Sky Hiker
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PostMon Jul 13, 2020 6:01 am 
Excellent work at least your not going rogue like the guy on WTA.

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Stefan
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Stefan
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PostMon Jul 20, 2020 2:44 pm 
mucho appreciato!!!!

Art is an adventure.
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Brucester
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Location: Greenwood
Brucester
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PostSun Oct 04, 2020 9:26 am 
All the essential elements of a productive weekend! Looks like you'd have to pack work clothes for each day due to all the dirt and sweat? And lots of food, more that average meals?

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