2016-Mike O'Brien Memorial Project: Dedisse Park Trail Reroute and Restoration

Start Date-End Date: 05/14/2016-05/14/2016 Land Manager Office: City and County of Denver - Parks and Recreation Land Manager Contact: Bob Finch Funding Partner: Mike O'Brien Memorial Trail Fund Programmatic Partner: Summary: Restore a trail in Evergreen's signature mountain park. Description: About the Stewardship Site Acquired by the City of Denver in 1919, Dedisse Park sits in the heart of Evergreen and includes the Evergreen Lake House and nearby golf course. The north and west parts of the park is home to forested foothills scenery, picnic areas, and trails connecting to Jefferson County's Alderfer/Three Sisters Park. The worksite itself is situated above Evergreen Lake, and can be accessed via an easy walk. About the Volunteer Experience Work will involve basic new trail construction, along with some trail restoration and closure tasks. Volunteers ages 12 and up will perform a 2,000-foot reroute of the existing Dedisse Trail that will ensure its sustainability for years to come, as well as reduce erosion and its negative effects on the surrounding habitat. This is a large project and is a perfect fit for corporate, school, and community groups. Morning refreshments and a light lunch will be provided to keep volunteers fueled and ready to serve! About the Overall Impact The reroute will provide a safer and much more enjoyable trail experience for recreationalists, including hikers and mountain bikers. Latitude/Longitude: 39.632609, -105.335072 Additional Information: Camping Available: No Physical Difficulty: Easy, Moderate High Altitude Project: No Desired Number of Volunteers: 100 Total Adult Volunteers Attended: 84 Total Youth Volunteers Attended: 14 Total Volunteer Days: 98 Total Unique Volunteers: 98 Total Volunteer Hours: 725 Staff Hours: 39 Stipend Hours: 0 Project Summary: On a cold and foggy morning the mist prevailed while the sun made a valiant attempt to come out and shine on the Dedisse volunteers. Morning greeted the dream team of project leaders as coffee and bagels were prepared, tools laid out, and the registration table began to hum with voices. Almost 100 people showed up to work on the 1800' section of new trail that was being built in order to divert users away from a highly erosive section of trail. Crew Leaders marched groups of 6 or 7 volunteers into the forest and began work on a variety of different trail sections. The first 200' was situated in a grassy meadow where the going was slow due to the fibrous roots of the vegetation. The excavated material was used to close a section of old trail and to mask a social/game trail that crossed the hillside. The next 100' curved around a rocky outcroppin with great views of the mountains and golf course. This section was challenging due to the steep terrain and rocky material that volunteers were working in. The next 300' were a combination of scraping duff, dirt, and organic material, with the occasional rock manipulation. The final section dropped back into a meadow landscape that proved to be a bit slower moving due to the vegetative matter. There were two rock walls built into these sections - one about 10 feet in length and 2 tiers high, and the other was about 15 feet in length and involved much bigger rocks, still only two tiers. 1000' feet of trail was completed in about 2 hours. All this was accomplished before lunch. For lunch everyone hiked back to the staging area for a 1 hour break. During lunch (provided by Which Wich) North Face came out and offered up free items to any one who expressed interest in a membership - this was well recieved. After lunch we saw very little attrition, and everyone returned to work motivated to punch the trail through to the far end where it crossed the road and continued on to connect to Alderfer 3 Sisters. Very similar building conditions existed in the final 800' of trail and with 1 armored crossing and a stone ramp being constructed. The final 800' was constructed in abour 2.5 hours. Successes and Challenges: Successes: Keeping all of the volunteers busy. The Crew Leader Manager did a great job of getting things moving fast when it was time to break out into Crews. There was ample space for everyone to spread out and do thorough tool talks. Being able to hand over a complete product to Denver Parks and Rec. Challenges: Had many volunteers show up at 8AM to register and then they had to wait around until 9AM to get started, and it was cold. Lessons Learned: No need to give radios to all of the Crew Leaders. Special Notes: It was a great day to work. Misty mountain tops that you do not get to see too often in CO. A nice place to build a trail, should be well recieved by the multi - use community. Stewardship Education: Acquired by the City of Denver in 1919, Dedisse Park sits in the heart of Evergreen and includes the Evergreen Lake House and nearby Golf Course. The north part of the park is home to forested foothills scenery, picnic areas, and trails connecting to Jefferson County's Alderfer-Three Sisters Park. The worksite itself is situated above Evergreen Lake, and can be accessed via an easy walk.The work will improve the overall sustainability of the hike and bike trail. Key Concerns or Comments from Staff or Volunteers: Crew Chefs were concerned about the amount of time people had to wait to get started in the morning. Description of Accidents/Incidents: One volunteer had to rest for a moment. She was heavy material up and down a steep slope and said she felt a strain in her back. This was all related to me at lunch time. I was unable to locate the individual to talk with her, she had decided to leave. I followed up with her when I returned to office. We communicated via email and she assured me that she was fine and explained what had happened. Description of Work Completed: