Page 8 - Spring 2014 magazine
P. 8
There were 31 bipeds and 4 quadrupeds working and the Bureau of Land Management. And three
hard on a trail in Red Rock Canyon on a cold Febru- mules, one trail horse and one experienced trail boss.
ary morning. The quadrupeds had the advantage as
they had fur coats as well as 4-wheel-drive. The bipeds filled 5-gallon buckets with sand, gravel
and small rocks from the adjacent wash areas. The
The trail at Ice Box Canyon had deteriorated so badly filled buckets, each weighing between 50 and 60
that the designated route was a trench 12 to 18 inches pounds, were then lifted and poured into the mules’
deep – totally unsuitable for the thousands of hikers panniers (large saddlebags) to transfer up the trail. Big
using this extremely popular trail. This damage led to Jim Sage, riding Misty, led over twenty trips into the
the creation of at least six “social” or braided trails repair path with his loaded team of mules.
created by hikers trying to enjoy one of the more Each mule carried its maximum safe load of 275
spectacular hikes at the Rock. pounds of sand and gravel
on each journey. Having
Logistically, repairing the damage was a huge under- the quadrupeds carry
taking: the official trail, starting at the parking lot, the fill material was
was almost three quarters of a mile in length until it an incredible bonus
dropped into the canyon for the for the bipeds: Over
bouldering route. The Friends 16,000 pounds of fill
of Red Rock Canyon Natural material was hauled
Resource volunteers devoted up the trail by the great
two workdays to prepping the Filling a few of the hundreds of
site by manually transferring team of Big Jim, buckets with sand and gravel.
boulders and rocks as a base for the Misty, Rascal, Black Photo by Jim Sage Jr.
Jack and Radar.
badly eroded trail. Slowly, the
trench/trail was lined with Thank you to The Bristlecone Chapter of the Back-
tons of the base material. The country Horsemen of Nevada, the Cowboy Trail Rides,
only thing left was filling in
Moving the rocks for the the Future Farmers/Ranchers of America, The United
trail base. the gaps in the base with gravel States Air Force, the Red Rock Canyon Interpretive
Photo by Jim Sage Jr. and sand from nearby washes. Association, the Bureau of Land Management and the
Friends Natural Resources Team.
Enter the teams of The Bristlecone
Chapter of the Backcountry Horse- This project is an incredible example of part-
men of Nevada, the Cowboy Trail nerships that work.
Rides, the Future Farmers/
Ranchers of America, The United And thank you to Misty, Rascal,
States Air Force, the Red Rock Black Jack and Radar. Please be sure
Canyon Interpre- to log your volunteer hours.
tive Associa-
tion and
Big Jim and Misty followed by Rascal and Black Jack
Photo by Jim Sage Jr.
Page 8
