Chester "Combined Arms" Trail Day

Saturday, June 4, 2016
9:00 AM - 12:30 PM

Join members of BPC, CFPA, NEMBA and LCRVHC for our 10th annual “combined arms” trail maintenance event! Projects will include; brushing, blazing, and treadway improvement. A pot-luck cook out will follow with hot dogs provided by the LCRVHC. Bring a dessert or side and stay for the raffle. Bring a friend or make a new one! Participants should come dressed appropriately for a day of work in the woods (including work gloves - NEMBA TAs are asked to wear jerseys) and may bring loppers, pruners or bow saws-all other tools will be provided. Participants should also bring along water, snacks, their favorite bug repellent and a healthy appetite!

More information...

Cockaponset SF

Date: 13-Apr-14
Report Type: TA Report
Trail Name: Cockaponset SF
Town: Clinton, Deep River & Chester
Trail Conditions: Mostly Dry-Solid
Observations/Information: Both trails & gravely. Spoke with walkers enjoying the woods. Performed minor trail clearing.
Trail Ambassador Name: Peter Finch
Trail Ambassador E-mail: FFinchPatSNETdotNet
How did you use the trail? MT Biking
Trails Ridden: Weber Woods & Forest Service Rds
Time of day: Afternoon
Time/Duration (hours): 1.5
Approximate Distance (Miles): 30Km (No Miles)

Cockaponset State Forest (general)

Date: November 16, 2012
Report Type: TA Report:
Trail Name: Cockaponset State Forest (general)
Town: Chester
Trail Conditions: Good, dry, leafy.
Observations/Information: My brother and I rode the Pattaconk Lake section of Cockaponset Friday afternoon. The ride was a blast from the past in more ways than one. I started riding these trails over 20 years ago, and they're still as old school as it gets. Rocky, rooty, wide in places, devoid of flow in most places, and with mud and deep stream crossings guarenteed to make your bike and quite possibly you wet, cold, and dirty. The deep leaf layer made them even trickier.

The good news is that NEMBA has done some good work here over the past few years. Bridging, rock armoring, and reroutes have made the trails more fun and sustainable but not taken away their old school character nor made them any easier. There's now a bike legal loop araound the lake-the trail that hugs the lake on the north side and is blazed dark blue with a yellow stripe (not CFPA blue), and the white triangle trail on the south side. The CFPA blue trails aren't bike legal. The trails were clear of sticks and blowdowns.

If you're new to mountain biking and want to know what the sport was like in the early days, come and ride here.
Trail Ambassador Name: Glenn Vernes

TM Report: Cockaponset (Rocky Road )

   

Date: 5-12-2011
Report Type: TM Report
Trail Name: Rocky Road (Cockaponset)
Town: Chester
Trail Conditions: Boggy
Observations/Information: Scott H and I finished the 2nd stone slab bridge with ramp and armoring.

We had to discard the first stone and in the process inadvertently split it in half. The second stone which was a good ton was a bit difficult to set into place, but it worked well. We ended up using a half of the broken rock as a ramp leading up to the bridge. It's about 95% stabilized; I may look for a way to place pins or otherwise make the structure permanent to prevent destabilization over time.

The photos represent the finished product. The video represents the work we had done the previous build day.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YjWnjcI4eKQ 

Trail Ambassador Name: Bryan McFarland

TM Report: Cockaponset- (Rocky Road)

    

Date: 4-25-2011
Report Type: TM Report
Trail Name: Rocky Road (Cockaponset)
Town: Chester
Trail Conditions: Boggy
Observations/Information: I armored the muddy section of trail which traverses a small tributary. This is a problem area because the trail on the other side of the stream has turned into a tributary as well.

The plan is to build another stone slab bridge with a small ramp to redirect crossing to a new treadway. A local rider, Scott, and I were able to move the first stone into place, but we encountered some engineering difficulties. The second stone was massive and weighed at least a full ton, probably more. We were only able to set this one in close proximity to the bridge project before we ran out of steam and daylight.

We'll be back.

Note: We tried out a chain hoist to see if it would work better than a come-along. The come-along was a bit easier, so no more chain hoist.

Trail Ambassador Name: Bryan McFarland

TA Report: Cockaponset SF

Date: 4-24-2011
Report Type: TA Report
Trail Name: Cockaponset
Town: Chester
Trail Conditions: Wet and dry mix with areas of mud
Observations/Information: Did a 12 mile loop and ran into 5 other mountain bikers. Mosquitoes are hatching, the frogs were very loud and some undergrowth is beginning to develop leaves again. Not the best ride, especially since it rained a bit. The trails were more wet than what I had expected - more rain on Saturday than what I thought.

I would expect Cockaponset to be much better tomorrow afternoon.
Trail Ambassador Name: Bryan McFarland

TM Report: Cockaponset (Rocky Road)

Date: 4-20-2011
Report Type: TM Report
Trail Name: Rocky Road (Cockaponset)
Town: Chester
Trail Conditions: Boggy
Observations/Information: Field re-assessment of trail armoring project and adjusted plans a bit. Also found the next flat-slab boulder for the 2nd bridge.

     

Photo documentation of some work completed.
Trail Ambassador Name: Bryan McFarland

TM Report: Rocky Road (Cockaponset)

Date: 4-14-2011
Report Type: TM Report
Trail Name: Rocky Road (Cockaponset)
Town: Chester
Trail Conditions: Boggy
Observations/Information: I first built a stone ramp for the flat-slab bridge and stabilized it with shims quite well. A local rider, Scott, met with me after work and we went renegade on a couple of large flat-slab boulders. The first was about 1000 pounds and the second about 1800. We pulled these things about 50 yards and set them in place including shimming and stabilizing. The cool thing was that he brought a bucket full of super-duty straps and a fantastic heavy-duty come-along. This made rigging a snap. He also had a super-heavy-duty chain hoist we can use for the big rocks! Woooohooooo!

* Sorry, no photos of the finished product yet.
Trail Ambassador Name: Bryan McFarland

TM Report: Rocky Road (Cockaponset)

Date: 4-8-2011
Report Type: TM Report
Trail Name: Rocky Road (Cockaponset)
Town: Chester
Trail Conditions: Boggy
Observations/Information: Armored muddy sections of the Rocky Road Trail and began building the rock base for a ramp leading up to the stone bridge.
Trail Ambassador Name: Bryan McFarland

TA Report: Cockaponset State Forest

Date: 4-6-2011
Report Type: TA Report
Trail Name: Cockaponset Trail System
Town: Chester
Trail Conditions: Excellent, nearly bone dry!
Observations/Information: Good ride, but had a flat and my buddy broke his chain. Did not see anyone on trails, but represented.
Trail Ambassador Name: Bryan McFarland

Rocky Road (Cockaponset)

Date: 4-4-2011
Report Type: TM Report
Trail Name: Rocky Road (Cockaponset)
Town: Chester
Trail Conditions: Boggy

Observations/Information: Stone slab bridge-building project: The plan was to meet up with a local guy and do this as a team, but the rain persuaded me to call it off. I ended up heading out anyway once I realized the ground was pretty dry.




Utilizing the come-along and pulley rig, I managed to move another flat-slab boulder about 30 yards. This time it was almost a full ton. Not only did I slide it into place, but I was able to slowly lift it using blocks and a rock bar. I also finished by fully stabilizing the slab.

Trail Ambassador Name: Bryan McFarland

TA Report: Cockaponset SF

Date: 4-3-2011
Report Type: TA Report
Trail Name: Cockaponset Trail System
Town: Chester
Trail Conditions: Excellent, nearly bone dry!
Observations/Information: The trails are fast and dry, but there is still a bunch of loose debris trying to jump into chains and stuff.

Engaged in a hammer-head ride with two friends.
Trail Ambassador Name: Bryan McFarland

TM Report: Rocky Road (cockaponset)

Date:3-29-2011
Report Type:TM Report
Trail Name:Rocky Road
Town:Chester
Trail Conditions:Boggy
Observations/Information: Cockaponset State Forest, Pattaconk section.
Solo trail-maintenance activity.
Armoring boggy section of trail: moved a 1400-pound flat-plate boulder into place. This required transporting it 30 yards using a variety of improvised rope hoist rigging. It gave me a 4:1 advantage plus that of the come-along; I'm assuming the entire setup was around 10:1. The biggest problem was having to constantly re-rig due to the short action of a come-along versus a grip-hoist. A grip-hoist would have made the project about 1.5 hours instead of the 5 it took me.

   

Equipment: 2-ton come-along, 4 pulleys, 5 caribiners, nylon ropes, webbing, a steel cable and a rock bar.
Trail Ambassador Name: Bryan McFarland

TM Report: Cockaponset

before

Date of Activity: 3-21-2011
Location: Cockaponset State Forest, Pattaconk Recreation Area
Condition of Trails(s): Needed work.
Observations: A wet sloppy mess with snow/rain mix.

During

Work Accomplished: Began armoring long marshy section of the Rocky Road Trail and accomplished 23 feet. This section is 90% complete with some stone stabilization needed. See photos of before and after.

Trail Ambassador Name: Bryan McFarland

after

TM Report: Cockaponset

Date of Activity: 3-17-2011
Location: Cockaponset State Forest, Pattaconk Recreation Area
Condition of Trails(s): Needed work.
Observations: Mostly dry trails with some runoff here and there.
Work Accomplished: Marked stone caches along rocky road trail using GPS waypoints; marked new treadway to be well armored.
Trail Ambassador Name: Bryan McFarland

TM Report: Cockaponset

Date of Activity: 3-16-2011
Location: Cockaponset State Forest, Pattaconk Recreation Area
Condition of Trails(s): Needed work.
Observations: Wet and tacky surface mud only.

Trail Ambassador Name: Bryan McFarland
Trail Ambassador Email: czimborbryan (at) sbcglobal.net
Town: Chester
Trail(s) Ridden: none
How did you use the trail: TM
What was the time of day: 3:30-6:30PM
Duration (Hours): 3
Distance (Miles): 1/4 of a mile
Work Accomplished: Red Trail Reroute tweaking; armored root protection over large exposed root, stump removal, tread grading, trail definition, removal of flags and surveyor's tape, raking, added several tear-ducts. The trail is now 99% complete.

TA Report: Cockaponset SF / Tower Hill Lake

Date of Activity: January 8, 2011
Location: Cockaponset SF / Tower Hill Lake
Condition of Trail(s): Snow covered
Observations: This was my first time on this parcel because I received a trail map from a horse rider I met who utilizes these trails all the time; it is located just north of Weber Woods, across Route 80 from Tower Hill Lake, and east of the Quinimay trail so I figured I would throw on the snowshoes and explore the area; it was beautiful due to the recent snow drop and I was completely on my own seeing only a young couple in a Jeep; since none of the trails are marked, the map was my only guide and it was a lot of fun; lots of tracks ranging from coyote to deer to horse and very fresh; I just wandered around and took in the quiet and the new set of trails that I plan on incorporating into my rides from Weber Woods; a totally enjoyable hike that gave me lots of ideas for expanded rides from my backyard.

Trail Ambassador Name: Don Hazuka

MBAS Volunteering

Date of Activity: 8-8-2010
Trail Ambassador Name: Bryan McFarland
Trail Ambassador Email: czimborbryan@sbcglobal.net
Town: Chester
Location: Cockaponset State Forest
Trail(s) Worked: white > no-name > Mottland > Jaricho > purple > Filley RD > red
How did you use the trail: Riding; leading the intermediate route
What was the time of day: 10am-12pm
Duration (Hours): 2 hours
Distance (Miles): 7.5 Miles
Condition of Trails(s): dry and fast
Observations: pretty good conditions; I blew a tire at 2 miles in... another rider blew a tire at 4 miles in; a missing direction of travel arrow was reported as vandalism, but the next arrow was visible anyway.
Trail Maintenance hours: 0.0
Work accomplished: pedaling, sweating and having fun

Cockaponset MBAS prep

Date of Activity: 8-7-2010
Trail Ambassador Name: Bryan McFarland
Trail Ambassador Email: czimborbryan@sbcglobal.net
Town: Chester
Location: Cockaponset State Forest
Trail(s) Worked: no-name > no-name > no-name > Quinnemay Trail > no-name
How did you use the trail: hiking while posting MBAS arrows
What was the time of day: 3-6pm
Duration (Hours): 3
Distance (Miles): 3.5
Condition of Trails(s): dry and fast
Observations: pretty good conditions
Trail Maintenance hours: 0.50
Work accomplished: removed trail debris along MBAS beginner; posted MBAS arrows.

pics - Mountain Bike Adventure Series: Cockaponset 8/8/10

WHAT A BLAST!!! Didn't get as many pictures as I originally intended but got a few...

I got there a tad after 9AM and the place was already pretty full, very good turn out!!

Went and did the beginners loop  just to get a ride in while there. The trails were unbelievably well marked with white paper blazes and an added bonus for true beginners/newbies they even put up pink caution signs at areas that might give someone that new an issue!! Big cudo's guys for such a thoughtful process! Everyone looked like they were having a good time.

 if anyone else has pictures they took please send them in and we'll add them!

We Like this DEP officer... he rides!!! 

Thanks Officer Alex Sokolow for letting us have this there!! 

Place was PACKED at 5 after 9 in the morning

Intermediate riders grouping up to leave

Two of the many people that made it all happen...

Thanks guys!!

PIZZA!!!!

Thanks to all involved with creating such a pleasant atmosphere for the rest of us!!