2017-Town of Breckenridge Claimjumper Trail Construction and Family Camping

Start Date-End Date: 07/22/2017-07/23/2017 Land Manager Office: Town of Breckenridge Land Manager Contact: Tony Overlock Funding Partner: The Summit Foundation Programmatic Partner: Keystone Science School Summary: Bring the little ones for an outdoor adventure! Description: About the Stewardship Site: VOC is excited to continue our long and successful partnership with the Town of Breckenridge. Each year, our Breckenridge project is one of the most anticipated, largest and fun events on the calendar, and 2017 is no exception. Volunteers are needed to help build a new trail connection right from Main Street in Breckenridge. About the Volunteer Experience: FOR VOLUNTEERS AGES 12+: Volunteers and older youth will construct a singletrack mountain biking and hiking trail to connect the Town of Breckenridge with the top of the Pence Miller Trail. Work will consist of new trail construction and may include the creation of rock structures. Tasks will be physically moderate to difficult. FOR YOUTH AGES 6-11: While adults and older youth are building the trail, kids ages 6 through 11 will participate in fun, supervised environmental activities hosted by the Keystone Science School. A friendly, professional staff will guide children on nature hikes, teach them about local ecosystems and wildlife, lead outdoor-oriented games, and more. Adults and kids will join around the campfire (near the trailhead) to share stories and eat s'mores at dinner, followed by a camp-out under the stars in a relaxing, safe environment. Breakfast and lunch will be provided throughout the weekend as well. There will be a maximum of 160 volunteers, so it is a great opportunity to meet lots of new people from around the state. You will enjoy sleeping under the stars, eating s'mores by the campfire and spending time with your family in Colorado's wonderful outdoors. In addition, VOC will provide free breakfast, lunch and dinner on Saturday and breakfast and lunch on Sunday. About the Overall Impact: This project will create a long-envisioned trail connection from the Recreation Center to the backcountry. It will provide important trail access for visitors and homeowners in local workforce housing, while also creating a new recreational loop to bypass Cucumber Gulch Preserve, which is closed seasonally. NOTE: MINORS ON VOC PROJECTS All youth under 18 must be accompanied by an adult 21 years or older on overnight projects. A Grand Milestone Signature Project Latitude/Longitude: 39.492916, -106.049857 Additional Information: Camping Available: Yes Physical Difficulty: Easy, Moderate High Altitude Project: No Desired Number of Volunteers: 125 Total Adult Volunteers Attended: 169 Total Youth Volunteers Attended: 59 Total Volunteer Days: 228 Total Unique Volunteers: 125 Total Volunteer Hours: 1995 Staff Hours: 111 Stipend Hours: 0 Project Summary: The annual Breckenridge Gala was everything that it was expected to be. Music, food, beverages, trail work, happiness, and sunshine! Rain threatened the project on Friday night, but things dried out and the sun decided to shine for the remainder of the weekend. Saturday morning was met with over 100 enthusiastic volunteers ready to hit the trail and get to work. Once the children were wrangled up and having fun running around the woods with the Keystone Science School, adult volunteers were shuttled to the project site andmet with a field of bright purple and blue wildflowers that were in full bloom. The day quickly became warm as volunteers strung out along 2000' of trail to begin construction of a new trail. Progress was made quickly, and before long it was time to embark on the shuttle busses and prepare fo the evenings festivities. That evening as volunteers claimed their excited children and settled into a nice meal and adult beverages donated by Broken Compass and Breckenridge Breweries, a small, but talented, bluegrass band showed up to serenade the hungry human beings. The band was called the Pine Beatles and they continued to offer a nice ambience that lasted well into the evening. The night was full of nostalgia as many of the long time volunteers arrived to commemorate those who dedicated so much to VOC. The reunion was a chance to bring together those that have contributed their time and expertise over the years to make VOC what it is today.The night was capped off with an eloquent dedication from Maya Stuart honoring past volunteers, and their long standing dedication. Needless to say, it was a memorable evening that transcended the basic idea of working in the woods, it was much more than a volunteer weekend, or a chance to do your part. It was all of that, and more, but it was also something bigger, It was a clear representation of the community and the friendship which provides the foundation that Volunteers for Outdoor Colorado is built upon. Sunday morning brought cooler temperatures and groggy volunteers. That all changed when breakfast was announced and hot biscuits and gravy awaited everyone! Excitement also grew when Great Outdoors Colorado arrived and gave everyone a water bottle with a free lottery ticket inside! Breakfast was finished, words were spoken, crew's were established, and shuttles were loaded. Volunteers valiantly hiked up the trail with the hopes of meeting our goal of completing the 4200' connection to the upper trail system. Thunder began to rumble and dark clouds appeared and it appeared that our day may be cut short, but the winds of change blew in a different direction and spared us the brunt of the storm. At the end of the day, volunteers were victorious in making the connection to the other trail, thus completing 4200' of new trail construction over the course of the weekend. Successes and Challenges: Successes: Completing 4200' of trail finish work, Having a band and two kegs at the project, kids and adults had a good time, Challenges: Band played too early, fire ban reduced the amount of social gathering time on Saturday evening, electricity was an issue Lessons Learned: Make sure that coordination with Ice Rink is more effective Special Notes: No special notes Stewardship Education: Volunteers were part of the VOC reunion tour and were able to witness first hand the amount of time and the level of dedication that volunteers have put towards working in CO. Key Concerns or Comments from Staff or Volunteers: One resident from the adjacent apartment complex was unhappy with the closure of one of the social trails that extended off from our new trail. Description of Accidents/Incidents: No accidents were recorded. Description of Work Completed: 4200' of finish work was completed. The original bench was cut bya mini excavator prior to the project. Volunteers essentially created a finished product and cleaned up the material that was created by the machine. Within the 4200' were 3 large climbing turns that were reinforced with stone, a 30' monowall, 20' retaining wall, 7-8 stone drainage structures, and a bit of corridor clearing throughout the entire section.