Description
Start Date-End Date: 10/03/2015-10/04/2015
Land Manager Office: USFS - Eagle-Holy Cross Ranger District
Land Manager Contact: Sam Massman
Funding Partner: Mike O'Brien Memorial Trail Fund
Programmatic Partner: Vail Valley Mountain Trails Alliance
Summary: Help restore this once-vibrant mountain biking trail that overlooks a charming, picturesque town near Vail.
Description: ABOUT THE STEWARDSHIP SITE
Cougar Ridge is part of the infamous Minturn Mile, a popular backcountry trail that leads from Vail to the historic town of Minturn. The area boasts some of the most glorious landscapes in Colorado. Hundreds of snowsport recreationalists utilize the Minturn Mile during the winter months. In the summer, the trail is a premier mountain biking route for locals and tourists alike.
ABOUT THE VOLUNTEER WORK
The two miles of trail closest to the Cougar Ridge trailhead in Minturn are severely eroded and unsustainable. Due to the poor condition, usage has dropped in recent years. Volunteers will work in crews to restore the trail to safe and sustainable conditions. The improved trail will ultimately bring more users to Minturn, which will aid the local economy and be a tremendous asset to residents.
Free meals and camping provided.
OTHER WAYS TO HELP
It's not all sweat and toil! There are lots of ways you can participate on project days, including as an assistant crew chef. Assistant crew chefs have a fun, vital, and very appreciated role on the project team - keeping volunteers happy and well-fed! Please emailSteve Wallfor more information.
PARTNERS & SPONSORS
USFS - Eagle-Holy Cross Ranger District
Vail Valley Mountain Bike Association
Latitude/Longitude: 39.596263, -106.429061
Additional Information:
Camping Available: Yes
Physical Difficulty: Moderate, Difficult
High Altitude Project: Yes
Desired Number of Volunteers: 100
Total Adult Volunteers Attended: 127
Total Youth Volunteers Attended: 6
Total Volunteer Days: 125
Total Unique Volunteers: 76
Total Volunteer Hours: 1010
Staff Hours: 63
Stipend Hours: 0
Project Summary: Based on the feedback from both volunteers and agency representatives its safe to say this was a very successful project. The volunteers exceeded Forest Service expectations in terms of quantity of work accomplished and I have received numerous messages from volunteers indicating how much fun and fulfillment they had over the weekend. The VVMBA is a great partner to work with as they leveraged their local connections to provide a happy hour for our volunteer leaders and brought out a dozen skilled volunteers with impressive trail building knowledge. While numbers from VVMBA weren't as large as they claimed, the quality was up to par. The Forest Service brought out 4 or 5 staff members not including Sam Massman, all were helpful and Sam did a great job maintaining expectations and acting as TA with Jamie Malin. Assuming there will be a continuation of this project next year it may be worth considering an earlier weekend as the weather could go either way at such a high elevation, especially considering the work zone is getting higher in elevation as it goes.
Successes and Challenges: The most significant challenges in this project were the technical difficulty of the trail construction as well as the difficulty in connecting with the agency representatives in the run up to the project. The technical difficulty ended up being less an issue as we had a very experienced and competent cohort of crew leaders for this project, but it was substantial to say the least. Regarding the agency representatives' communication, it would have been exceedingly helpful had they been available earlier in the summer so as to prevent the amount of week-of planning. Situational complications (ie: paternity leave) are obviously variables that cannot be foreseen, but nonetheless a challenge.
Lessons Learned:
Special Notes:
Stewardship Education:
Key Concerns or Comments from Staff or Volunteers: One odd encounter involved Maya Stuart and her husband, in which they aired complaints about VOC and the way it is currently managed and made the assertion that many of the folks that showed up just for Steve Austin were no longer in the volunteer ranks due to this management change. She doesn't think VOC "supports its volunteers the way it used to".
Description of Accidents/Incidents:
Description of Work Completed:
Details
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