2016-Continental Divide Trail Alpine Tunnel to Hancock Lake Trail Reroute - 7/9/2016

Start Date-End Date: 07/09/2016-07/10/2016 Land Manager Office: USFS - Salida Ranger District Land Manager Contact: Brett Beasley Funding Partner: Programmatic Partner: Summary: Experience stunning scenery as you work to improve a section of the iconic Continental Divide Trail. Description: About the Stewardship Site This project site is located approximately five miles south of the historic townsite of St. Elmo, near Salida. The Continental Divide National Scenic (CDNST) Hancock Lake Trail provides advanced trail use opportunities for hikers, bikers, horseback riders, and backpackers in an iconic and pristine setting. About the Volunteer Experience The main purpose of the Alpine Tunnel to Hancock Lake Trail Reroute project is to take the trail off the road and bring it onto a scenic, non-marshy, sustainable trail that preserves the rugged and intimate CDNST experience. The CDNST is intended by legislation to be a continuous single-track trail that is remote and scenic, extending 3,100 miles between Mexico and Canada. On this first of three Alpine Tunnel to Hancock Lake Trail Reroute projects in 2016, volunteers will build switchbacks and difficult trail structures, remove duff, and pull stumps for construction of new trail. Note: This highly technical project is not for the faint of heart and volunteers must be comfortable working, hiking, and camping at high altitude. Those up for the challenge will be rewarded with hot and hearty meals prepared by our volunteer chefs. Of course, every good adventure deserves an incredible campsite...and VOC has definitely got that covered. About the Overall Impact Volunteers will work to reroute 4.8 miles of the current Alpine Tunnel to Hancock Lake Trail away from the road, to a more scenic and remote route that will improve the user experience. Further, the reroute will ultimately protect vegetation and soil through proper trail location, design and construction; as well as prevent excessive erosion and sedimentation to the hydrological system above Chalk Creek. Latitude/Longitude: 38.640621, -106.36977 Additional Information: Camping Available: Yes Physical Difficulty: Difficult High Altitude Project: Yes Desired Number of Volunteers: 30 Total Adult Volunteers Attended: 63 Total Youth Volunteers Attended: 0 Total Volunteer Days: 63 Total Unique Volunteers: 34 Total Volunteer Hours: 641 Staff Hours: 55 Stipend Hours: 0 Project Summary: Ideal weather and a strong group led to a great weekend on this project. Turnout was great and the majority of volunteers had been out on a number of VOC projects in the past. This allowed for a very productive weekend resulting in around 1,000 feet of new trail constructed. The trail itself was time-intensive, with volunteers digging a trench to reach mineral soil and then refill with soil from a borrow pit in many areas. The land manager Brett Beasley was very impressed with the work quality and productivity of the group. Saturday night included a presentation from Rosemary from the Forest Service about LNT practices and info on bears. Food was great, and the Forest Service brought firewood for Saturday night. Tools were stashed on site for the next two projects in this area, which reduced the logistical demand on future projects. Volunteers were extremely satisfied with the work done, with two volunteers commenting on how important it is for them to feel like they're doing high quality work rather than just "checking off the box". The work done was of a very high quality despite the difficult building conditions and small group size. Successes and Challenges: Successes - Donations: Volunteers contributed $400 on the project towards VOC. Trail quality: High quality trail was constructed. The PM continually reinforced the idea of building high quality trail over completing more feet. This trickled down through CLs and to the volunteers, and the quality of the trail was impacted postively. Food: Food as always was great. We had enough of everything for everyone, including water which was a concern due to the lack of water access at the campground. Challenges - Water: We had just enough water to finish the project. On the next project we should make sure to bring additional jugs. The Forest Service reps were able to bring out an additional 15 gallons which were critical in order to not need to drive into town to get water. Cell service: One volunteer locked their keys in the car. Another volunteer was able to open the car with an ice scraper, a plastic tent stake, and a marshmallow roasting wire. Without that effort, the volunteers would have had to get a ride to cell service in order to call a tow service. Trail: The trail construction was different from what most volunteers were used to, including our Crew Leaders. Digging deep into the ground, basically creating a trench, and then refilling with mineral soil was a time and labor intesive method of building trail. Although this will allow for a more sustainable trail that requires less maintenance, it also means that actual feet of trail constructed will be limited. Lessons Learned: Bring extra water. Just bringing the van and the F-150, we had exactly enough space to supply the project. Anything in addition to the tool list and food/camp requirements for this project would require a rental truck. Special Notes: Stewardship Education: Rosemary from the FS talked to everyone about why LNT priciples are in place, and gave context behind those principles. She also gave useful information about bears in Colorado. Key Concerns or Comments from Staff or Volunteers: Description of Accidents/Incidents: None Description of Work Completed: