Thursday, December 3, 2009

Trail Ambassador Report: Nassahegon State Forest

Trail Ambassador: Mark L.

This report covers November.

My time in the woods has been limited due to illness, but the woods have seen plenty of riders and other activities this month. Among them:

  • CTNEMBA members have put in a considerable number of TM hours prepping trails, replacing bridges armoring mudpits and stream crossings, and clearing fallen trees. Superb trail conditions result on many trails. Total TM time was 42 hours for the month.
  • Heavy leaf cover has presented a mixed blessing. On the one hand, the leaves prevent rain from reaching and ruining the trails making some of them quite rideable soon after the storm. On the other hand, finding the trail has often been difficult earlier in the month. Now, the large numbers of riders have mashed the leaves making the most popular trails easy to follow.
  • Both bears and hunters are being sighted with some frequency but are creating no problems for riders.
  • Riding through mud pits on the trails remains a controversial and highly polarized topic as some groups feel strongly that no damage is being done while others note that the 6 inch deep ruts in the mud areas dry into impassable obstacles that need to be repaired. In my experience, the folks who ride the mud pits rarely – if ever – help to repair them. Education is needed.

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