This summer the PWV Restoration Committee worked mainly on the North Fork Trail but also two days on the Hewlett Gulch Trail. We held 13 public workdays, 3 days of PWV only training, 2 training days with the Larimer Country Youth Conservation Corps and 8 workdays with the Larimer County Youth Conservation Corps trail crew. One of our public days we had the Rocky Mountain Conservancy trail crews and some of their staff and volunteers join us. This combined effort allowed PWV to build 1 mile of new trail through some very difficult terrain. We built a number of rock walls, moved a lot of dirt and built the abutments for a log stringer bridge over the river. The terrain we built this new trail through was very challenging. In some areas rock retaining walls were required to hold the trail in place on the side of the hill.
154 individuals, 44 PWV members and 117 of the general public plus 10 from the Larimer Country Youth Conservation Corps provided the labor. This amounted to 475 workdays for a total of 4,275 hours. We also ate a lot of food and had some fun along the way.
The PWV crew leaders did an outstanding job of managing the public volunteers each workday and we greatly appreciate all the hours they spent on this project.
While we did not complete all the work on the North Fork Trail, we still have the two bridges, a large crib wall, a turnpike and other smaller items to complete. We plan to finish the work early next year so that the trail can be fully opened. It is currently opened for hiking by walking though a boys camp on the road and then up the new trail we built last year. We also plan work on Hewlett Gulch and possibly other trails next year.
So if you like being outside and playing with dirt and rock, you may be interested in joining us next year. We do require that you be 18 or older or 15 with a parent present. While some of our work is physically challenging much of it can be done by anyone in reasonably good health. We have folks in their 80s come and work with us so age is not a major issue. If you are interested in volunteering with us, go to the tab above; “Get Involved” and then “Become a Volunteer” to contact us.
Mike Corbin & Mark Snyder – PWV Restoration Co-chairs