Trail Tool Time

[Stihldog]

Here’s my mobile trail maintenance setup

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That’s a good setup right there.

A folding pruning saw is a handy tool also. Cuts through those smaller limbs quickly and stores in the backpack easily. It’s good backup when/if your batteries die.

After several maintenance rides we begin to appreciate a eMTB.

 

[Dax]

Here’s my mobile trail maintenance setup

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Heh, my kit is pretty similar, I really like the trail boss kit. Mad money, but so well made. What saw is that?

A folding pruning saw is a handy tool also. Cuts through those smaller limbs quickly and stores in the backpack easily.

Agree, I think a folding pruning saw should be mandatory carry for mtb on natural trails. I keep a 180mm silky saw in my camelback all the time, for those times there’s a small tree or branch that needs clearing.

 

[2WHLFUN]

That’s a good setup right there.

A folding pruning saw is a handy tool also. Cuts through those smaller limbs quickly and stores in the backpack easily. It’s good backup when/if your batteries die.

After several maintenance rides we begin to appreciate a eMTB.

I have a couple folding saws and forgot to put them in there.

 

[2WHLFUN]

Heh, my kit is pretty similar, I really like the trail boss kit. Mad money, but so well made. What saw is that?




Agree, I think a folding pruning saw should be mandatory carry for mtb on natural trails. I keep a 180mm silky saw in my camelback all the time, for those times there’s a small tree or branch that needs clearing.

It’s a WORKS brand electric chainsaw

 

[Stihldog]

Yeah, this has me curious now. I’m gonna take a pic of the needles and maybe someone could identify it. Next week when I ride by. Smelt like a fir though and not a pissy smell. Hemlock can smell bad sometimes also.

So here’s a pic of the needles of this tree that I can’t identify. You may have to zoom in. Maybe @Mabman or @MountainBoy can identify this species.

I originally thought this was a Fir (smell and feel) but it’s starting to look like some kind of Hemlock.

Even though I was required to identify a species of tree there was generally only 4-5 species types in our area. It seems my knowledge has dwindled to identifying whether it’s big or small.

I loved the smell of freshly cut Yellow Cedar in the morning.

This wood seemed to be resistant to rot but not a specific type of Conk (disease). Yellow Cedar (Cypress) was the oldest tree I’ve ever seen (1900 years old).

 

[Zimmerframe]

but it’s starting to look like some kind of Hemlock

I don't have anything that big in my garden, but it certainly looks like Eastern Hemlock (UK name - but hemlock-spruce, black hemlock, canadian hemlock). Tsuga canadensis (I know, I make lots of sh1t up, but not this time).

You get it in England (was brought over, mainly in the east though - hence the Euro name Eastern Hemlock) Don't really see it in France.

Only just noticed I have a whole section of Larch trees I've always walked past obliviously ..

Weirdly I was reading about Duval in that role the other day and the real guy was about 20 years younger !!

 

[Mabman]

Fir and Hemlock needles are flat and the Hemlocks have white stripes on one side so according to this blow up it does exhibit as Hemlock?

Quick Key to Identifying Hemlock : Forest Health & Monitoring: Maine Forest Service: Maine ACF

Another interesting aspect here are the dark spots in the rings that signify some event, perhaps a fire, that affected the cambrium of the tree.

My original response was due to the bark. Generally Fir and Hemlock get a rougher bark structure as opposed to say a spruce. The piss firs I have seen in the past have a similar bark as shown. It obviously isn't at this point.

 

[Stihldog]

I don't have anything that big in my garden, but it certainly looks like Eastern Hemlock (UK name - but hemlock-spruce, black hemlock, canadian hemlock). Tsuga canadensis (I know, I make lots of sh1t up, but not this time).

You get it in England (was brought over, mainly in the east though - hence the Euro name Eastern Hemlock) Don't really see it in France.

Only just noticed I have a whole section of Larch trees I've always walked past obliviously ..

Weirdly I was reading about Duval in that role the other day and the real guy was about 20 years younger !!

It’s gotta be a hemlock then. But that bark???

Tsuga canadensis. Those cones/seed look familiar. They’re everywhere.

I’m gonna read the article that @Mabman posted and take a closer look at those burn rings too. There’s other burn evidence in the surrounding area from 80-100 years ago, but these burn rings look 20-30 years old.

Besides riding and sniffing stuff (wood, smoke, napalm), I might investigate this mystery a little further.

 

[Mabman]

There is an App for that. A tree identifier App add shows up on my I gram account now and then? Supposedly you just point your phone at it and voila!

 

[Stihldog]

There is an App for that. A tree identifier App add shows up on my I gram account now and then? Supposedly you just point your phone at it and voila!

Just d/l an app and came across a species called a “Balsam Fir”. Not many of these in this area but they were plentiful on Vancouver Island were I mostly felled trees. Maybe I can identify with this app.

WARNING (don’t read. Another boring story about logging.)

The bark on a Douglas FIr can be quite thick (2”-13”). My setting had a dead fir snag with most of the bark still on. The Fir had broken off at about 120’ and the bark slabs were beginning to fall around the base. I fell a few trees at it (call them bullets) to try and shake off any loose bark slabs with minimal success. With a 6’ base it was unlikely that I could knock it down. No problem. I’ll call for a Driller Blaster and wait.

A few hours pasted when a helicopter arrived below our location. “That must be the Blaster” I said. We could barely see the blaster loading two bags of AMEX (not sure what it’s called…basically explosive).

The Blaster zig-zagged his way up towards us. At about halfway to us I turned to my falling partner and said ;”That’s no Blaster…that’s my f**king little sister …wtf!”

My sister was a certified Driller Blaster. One of three in our Province of BC and the only female blaster out of six on our claim. Anyways, I don’t believe this …this is so embarrassing .

So, as per her request, I cut two pockets at the base to place the explosives in. My partner and I wanted to watch the explosion and make sure that the dead fir actually fell. She instructed us as to a safe area behind some deadfall and told us to lay down. It was some distance away but we had a good enough view. Once we were in position the count-down , over the radio, began.

“1 minute.” Then …10-9-8-7.…1.

The shockwave and sound took a few moments to reach us but the visuals were instant and impressive. The tree, or snag, launched about 1-2’ straight up and then settled straight down. The base was obliterated. Imagine an exploding rocket ship still on the launch pad. After a few moments the snag fell over. Whoo…Hooo! It was safely down.

We spoke to my sister after only to find out that she hid behind a stump, probably 2 tree lengths away. When I returned to camp later on the insults and ribbing started …”What’s the matter, need your little sister to fall your trees for ya”. And much much more.

 

[Stihldog]

I decided to fix up this little section of trail (I built) because the potential for a crash, busted bike, broken peddle, bent crank, was possible. There is now 2 options at this point. One is still risky. The new berm allows for climbing or descents also.

Three big rocks, three days, three energy bars and multiple stings by hornets…I was finally done .

The landing of the last jump in the background. (No I didn’t).

 

[Stihldog]

Tout Fini !



This trail project involved a few things.
A need for (blue /green) eMTB and hiking trails. An almost daily ride for the past year. Trail tools. A hiker to ribbon-out a path. The occasional help from a surprised visitor. Tolerance for all types of weather conditions.

This is the end of a network of trails in an isolated area. Improved and cleared existing trails that have been abandoned for many years. The entrance to this area is basically camouflaged and unnoticed to many hikers and bikers. But the views are amazing even though you are surrounded by trees.

I’ve been riding this area for the past three years and making slight improvements along with existing trail cleanup.

The addition of a loop trail, around the perimeter of the area, provides a great place for any level of hiker or emtb’er. An analog MTB would have a difficult time climbing up and out.

The trail system will need a little bit of tweaking and some maintenance over the next couple of months. ie, more dirt for some berms, drainage for a couple of puddles, the odd root exposure after the heavy rains. I’ve also added 5 bridges and a couple of features.

There is another builder in the area who mainly focuses on massive jumps and features. We have coordinated and cooperated our efforts.

Some of my pics have been posted previously. But today I’m gonna ride the entire trail network …twice today

 

[Stihldog]

So, for the past year I’ve neglected to maintain some other trails that have been “resurrected”. Some snags or weak trees have fallen across trails and slowdown my ride. There’s about 5-6 trail volunteers on this mountain (that I know of) who maintain our network of hiking and biking trails.

There’s also a few rogue trail builders. I’m not afraid to caution them on the consequences of their efforts. This is a Provincial Park and certain modifications are strictly prohibited. But I’m not the Trail Police.

This is a before/after pic of a secluded trail that was almost impassable. It was a real mess before I returned with the chainsaw.


Thankfully the little bridge was fine.

 

[BIG-DUKE-6]

I was about to buy a mcleoud tool but they are silly money. im working on a trail in my own garden, wont be long, only about 30 seconds but have about 8 jumps on it.. nowhere here sells the mcleoud so im gonna make one.
the forest behind the house has a growing network of trails and those lads build every week, I feel a bit bad about not helping so ill be doing more of that this year.

Look up fire fighting tools , they are primarily used for fighting wild fires

 

[Zimmerframe]

Just came back from a quick ride.

I'm sure this is a typical scene we all encounter on our local trails when we're out for a ride.

I was shocked frankly. Why don't people maintain jumps and features after someone else put in so much hard work to build them in the first place.

 

[Stihldog]

Just came back from a quick ride.

I'm sure this is a typical scene we all encounter on our local trails when we're out for a ride.

I was shocked frankly. Why don't people maintain jumps and features after someone else put in so much hard work to build them in the first place.

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The concerned look of the person in the picture is definitely warranted. I’m not sure if I’d ride that …some parts are barely hanging on.

What kinda foliage is that in the background?

 

[Zimmerframe]

The concerned look of the person in the picture is definitely warranted.

I was ignoring her. She's typical of the walkers in the area. Said she had an itch and could I scratch it, yeah yeah.. heard it all before. Dressed like that there was virtually no way she was concealing a beer, they haven't got a clue.

What kinda foliage is that in the background?

Interesting question. Generally a mix of new growth oak and chestnut with some weeds mixed in. Most of the weeds look like giant hosta's, but aren't.

There's also a South American Chevron Shrub. They're useful if you ever get lost as they always point west. Not to be mistaken for the Siberian Chevron Shrub which also grows in the area and always points east.

 

[Stihldog]

Another season of riding is upon us and the trail-elves have been busy cleaning and clearing up the trails on this mountain.
I ride year round and take note of things or trail hazards that need attention. Other riders do as well.

At one particular trail intersection I’ve noticed a dangerous snag. Cedar, 80’ tall, full of woodpecker holes and wiggles to the touch. Not something you’d want to bump into with the grip on your bar. I could give numerous reasons on the pros and cons of leaving this hazardous snag…but I decided to safely drop it.

I asked two friends (riders) to watch me, fall this snag, at a safe distance. I usually swat a snag like this with another sound tree…but that was not an option here. This snag would probably be in the top-10 of the most dangerous trees I’ve ever felled. I would need all my experience to safely drop this snag. I recommend this to no one …not even the YouTube cowboys who call themselves Fallers.




Safely down. If you look carefully at the butt there is a small amount of holding/hinge wood remaining which helps direct the tree until the undercut closes. When that happens you no longer have control …it’s gonna fall. Except a very small limb from a live tree was touching the top. This could be a nightmare situation …but it broke and the snag fell. Whoo-Hooo!

If I couldn’t have done this safely I wouldn’t have done this. Snags or rotten trees are the worst.

 

[Dax]

Another season of riding is upon us and the trail-elves have been busy cleaning and clearing up the trails on this mountain.
I ride year round and take note of things or trail hazards that need attention. Other riders do as well.

At one particular trail intersection I’ve noticed a dangerous snag. Cedar, 80’ tall, full of woodpecker holes and wiggles to the touch. Not something you’d want to bump into with the grip on your bar. I could give numerous reasons on the pros and cons of leaving this hazardous snag…but I decided to safely drop it.

I asked two friends (riders) to watch me, fall this snag, at a safe distance. I usually swat a snag like this with another sound tree…but that was not an option here. This snag would probably be in the top-10 of the most dangerous trees I’ve ever felled. I would need all my experience to safely drop this snag. I recommend this to no one …not even the YouTube cowboys who call themselves Fallers.

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Safely down. If you look carefully at the butt there is a small amount of holding/hinge wood remaining which helps direct the tree until the undercut closes. When that happens you no longer have control …it’s gonna fall. Except a very small limb from a live tree was touching the top. This could be a nightmare situation …but it broke and the snag fell. Whoo-Hooo!

If I couldn’t have done this safely I wouldn’t have done this. Snags or rotten trees are the worst.

That looks like an exciting one

 

[Stihldog]

That looks like an exciting one

Yeah, get’s the heart rate up a bit…and some knee-knocking for a moment.

 

[Stihldog]

A week after I felled that nasty snag (dead cedar), I finished this short connector trail. The entrance and exit of this trail was left until last. The length was about 150m but was on a slope.

A little bridge across a really soft spot.


The nasty snag at the entrance.


Had to bench-cut most of the trail because of the slope.


A obstacles in the way.


And finally the exit.

I think this work took over a month.
So far I’m getting good feedback from the bikers, hikers and trail animals.