2021-Trail Construction @ Bangs Canyon

Start Date-End Date: 04/10/2021-04/11/2021 Land Manager Office: BLM - Grand Junction Field Office Land Manager Contact: Michael Jones Funding Partner: Programmatic Partner: Summary: Build technical single track on this early spring project on the Western Slope. Description: Read Before You Register! Need-to-Know Details: We greatly appreciate you volunteering your time and energy to care for Colorado's outdoor places during COVID-19. To help provide a fun and safe experience for all, there are a few temporary changes to be prepared for: You may sign up for one or all days of this project, though we encourage multi-day registration to limit the number of interactions and potential exposure. You may only register yourself. Every volunteer must sign our digital COVID-specific forms ahead of time to be able to attend. You must pack your own lunches. Please see below for more information on meals. You must bring a face mask and work gloves. Please click here for our full packing list of required and recommended items. Cancellation & Waitlists: Due to limited spots on this year's projects, we expect projects to fill quickly with waitlists. If you need to cancel, please email outreach@voc.org as soon as possible so we can free your spot for another volunteer and have a full workforce. If you are waitlisted for multiple projects, please call us at 303-715-1010 ext. 116 and we can help you find an open project, if available. Where You'll Be: Just 20 minutes outside of Grand Junction, the Bangs Canyon Special Recreation Area offers big views in beautiful country with everything from high desert canyons to plateaus overlooking Grand Mesa and the Grand Valley. With a number of trails for everyone from mountain bikers and off-road vehicles to hikers and equestrians, this area is a quickly growing mecca for outdoor recreation enthusiasts. What You'll Do: Volunteers ages 16+ are invited to join us for our first camping weekend of the year as we work to build a new motorized trail. There are a number of proposed motorized trails being built on Horse Mesa, and we will likely focus on our efforts on the West Horse Mesa motorized trail, although that is subject to change depending on weather and access. Regardless, volunteers will help build a new single track trail amid great views. With fun and interesting trail features to build, this project is a great option for volunteers looking to expand their trail-building experience (though beginners are always welcome as well)! VOC will provide camping on both Friday and Saturday night, and VOC's volunteer Crew Chefs will provide breakfast on Saturday and Sunday as well as dinner on Saturday night. Volunteers will be shuttled from the trailhead to the worksite on UTVs thanks to the generous support of Adrenaline Driven Adventure Company. Why It Matters: Outdoor recreation is a huge economic driver for the Grand Junction community. Your help in bringing this proposed trail system to life will offer more recreational opportunities for all, while ensuring that motorized use and hiking impacts are contained to protect the surrounding habitat. About Volunteers for Outdoor Colorado (VOC) Volunteers for Outdoor Colorado (VOC) is the state's oldest, largest, and leading outdoor stewardship nonprofit organization. Founded in 1984 to motivate and enable people to become active stewards of Colorado's natural resources, VOC has engaged nearly 125,000 people in more than 1,000 volunteer projects for a donated labor value of $25 million. Through award-winning youth and volunteer programs, leadership training, capacity-building programs, and collaborative efforts with nonprofits and land management agencies, VOC is an invaluable resource in Colorado, especially as our outdoor stewardship needs are approaching near-crisis levels. For more information, visit www.voc.org or call 303-715-1010. Latitude/Longitude: 38.99124, -108.61956 Additional Information: We greatly appreciate you volunteering your time and energy to care for Colorado's outdoor places during COVID-19. To help provide a fun and safe experience for all, there are a few temporary changes to be prepared for: You must pack your own lunches.Please see below for more information on meals. You must bring a face mask and work gloves.Pleaseclick herefor our full packing list of required and recommended items. Camping is available on both Friday and Saturday night at The Camp (https://thecampgj.com/),a private events campground just minutes from downtown Grand Junction offering plenty of access to town or tomountain biking, fishing, and hiking for evening fun! You donotneed to make a reservation. VOC will provide campsites, but doesnotprovide any camping equipment (tents, sleeping bags, etc.). More information about camping will be sent via email approximately two weeks before the project. VOC's volunteer Crew Chefs will providebreakfast on Saturday and Sunday as well as dinner on Saturday night. A UTV shuttle will be provided to take volunteers from the trailhead to the worksite. Camping Available: Yes Physical Difficulty: Difficult High Altitude Project: No Desired Number of Volunteers: 25 Total Adult Volunteers Attended: 65 Total Youth Volunteers Attended: 0 Total Volunteer Days: 65 Total Unique Volunteers: 35 Total Volunteer Hours: 616 Staff Hours: 0 Stipend Hours: 0 Project Summary: The first overnight project since 2019 was an overall success. Volunteers arrived on Friday evening to stay at The Camp, a private events campground in central Grand Junction, closed for the season due to COVID but opened as a special exception for VOC. Mild spring weather made for great working conditions on Saturday and Sunday, although heavy rock work had many volunteers sweating. Even with a relatively limited group size, we were able to complete an impressive 2264 feet of trail--much of it had been pre-cut by a mini-dozer the week before and so a significant length of the tread only had to be shaped by clearing the debris and berms the dozer left behind. Much more time consuming was building out multiple rock structures. Volunteers constructed 14 rock ramps, 2 banking turns, and 1 drainage, and removed at least one large boulder at a squeeze point using a come-along and straps. Getting volunteers to the project site was logistically challenging but ultimately our planning paid off and both Saturday and Sunday morning went extremely smoothly. Crews caravanned from the campground to the trailhead in staggered waves, with the crews working on far sections of the trail leaving first. Crew leaders for crew waiting to leave conducted their morning ice breakers and safety talks at the camp or at the trailhead. Adrenaline Driven Adventure Company met volunteers at the trailhead and shuttled crews into the worksite on RZR UTVs. Crew chef Lisa Thilker and kitchen helpers Dick and Marie provided much celebrated meals--chicken and dumplings and a vegetarian stew for dinner on Saturday, and pancakes and eggs for breakfast. Successes and Challenges: Successes: - the return of hot meals and camping for the first time since COVID began -ADAC was a big hit! They gave volunteers fast rides or took them rock crawling at the end of the day as time allowed. Lots of grins! Challenges: - mask compliance broke down in camp, especially around the campfire - Jim G. volunteered to greet and direct people for camping set up on Friday night and he did not wear a mask. Set a lax precedent for the weekend - see further notes here:Volunteers for Outdoor Colorado\VOC - Program_Boots on the Ground\Projects\2021 Projects\Bangs Canyon\Bangs Canyon Project_staff debrief.PPT Lessons Learned: Special Notes: We should definitely continue to engage ADAC on other projects in the Grand Junction Area if we're working on anything open to motorized users. They are enthusiastic, easy to work with, and willing to donate time/staff/machines/services/support. Volunteers loved the RZR rides! Stewardship Education: Key Concerns or Comments from Staff or Volunteers: Description of Accidents/Incidents: Description of Work Completed: