The Southwest Conservation Corps (SCC) needed a training project for incoming crews, the San Juan National Forest needed help creating a sustainable trail system, and the Four Corners Backcountry Horsemen wanted safer trails for horseback riders. To realize their goals, all three donated sweat equity and funding last week at the Haviland Lake/Chris Park Trail System north of Durango.
“SCC has adopted the trail system,” said Don Kelly, Columbine District Trails foreman. “Their new members gain experience by volunteering on realignment and maintenance of the trails. It has helped the agency immensely in a time of recreational budget cuts.”
Incoming SCC crews learned valuable skills last week that will prepare them for a season of backcountry work. This summer, SCC will be working on five trail-maintenance projects across the San Juan National Forest.
“During this annual training, we donate about 2,000 person hours under a volunteer agreement,” said Matt Bowser, SCC Durango program director. “This prepares our crews for the rigors associated with the many paid weeks of work we do on the National Forest.”
The crews also cycle through interactive stations that teach outdoor living skills, which are vital to their success in the backcountry; cooking safety, water filtration, personal hygiene, bear safety and working with pack stock. Members of the local Four Corners Backcountry Horsemen (4CBCH) donate time to offer the course on horse-packing skills.
“Most of these young people don’t have experience with livestock,” said Anne Rapp, a 4CBCH member, who packs in supplies for projects on the Columbine Ranger District. “We teach them how to help us pack in their camps and tools. Working around horses also makes them realize the needs of horse users on the trail, which helps them conduct their trail work with horse safety in mind.”
The biggest on-the-ground training lesson was helping to reroute a steep portion of the Haviland View Trail. All the partners pitched in financially, with the 4CBH providing $2,500 to help improve the trail for stock safety. Their donation covered the cost of mechanized construction of the lower part of the trail as it leaves the Chris Park Road.
SCC kicked in $6,000 from a state “Roundup Riders of the Rockies” grant to help build switchback landings and the upper reaches of the trail. The Forest Service offered oversight and manpower for the entire project, with Columbine District trail crew members working alongside SCC crews and contractors.
The result is a new trail that climbs the hillside at a safe 10 percent grade via two switchbacks designed for horse use. The trail reroute replaces a steep and eroded rocky trail that climbed straight up the hill at an unsafe 30 percent grade, which will be closed and rehabilitated.
Ann Bond is the public affairs specialist for the San Juan National Forest.
