Pinch In check, 1-8-2011

Date of work: 1/8/2011

Time spent: 7 hours includes commute

Number of workers: 1 (Jim de Friess)

Work accomplished:  This was a pulaski only trip, cut the smaller trees across the trail out of the way on the way down.  Make and clean waterbars, pick up trash on the way out.

On the way out I had to put on chains once I got to the dirt part of 105.  I barely made it up to the first curve to the left.  In that curve I put on chains.  The federal law enforcement officer passed me as well as a black 4wd truck.  With chains I had no trouble getting to Pinch In Trail head and parking.  The snow got deeper as I went up being about 3-4 inches deep at the parking lot.

I started down the trail and cut or moved a few knee high trees on the way down.  Cold wood chops well.  Below Falcon rock I started looking to implement water features, and created a few easy ones.  At the turn off the ridge into the woods great care was taken and I mostly paralleled the trail.  At the bottom I made a mental note of the turn that cuts over to LGT south, and then went to the trail head at the bottom.  Beyond that there was debris on LGT so i cleared some of that and went to the creek which was running well.

I think I slipped twice on the way down.

On the way up I looked for trash, I had fished a dog food can out of the woods leaving it on the trail going down, and was looking for the bottled waters someone had discarded off to the south side of the trail.  I found two empties but not the fulls, maybe the snow had it covered.  I tried not to take long breaks coming up, maybe a couple breaths and look for the next step.  I think I put in a waterbar or two on the way up as well.  

An icy wind blew across the ridge, I asked it to come back in August.  The trail seems to be getting shorter for me.  I made it to the truck and headed out, the road had improved and I was able to take the chains off just below pinnacle.

I'm glad I went and except for cold feet on the way home it was a good day.  The slushy snow melted through my shoe, and then caked on ice on the way out.  They finally thawed out about 1/3 of the way home.  Need dry shoes and socks for next snow hike- mental note.

Pictures below.

http://picasaweb.google.com/jdefriess/PinchInWork182011#

Lower Pinch In 1/3/2011

http://picasaweb.google.com/jdefriess/PinchInWorkTrip132011#

Photos above

Date of work: 1/3/2011

time spent:9 hours, includes commute

number of workers: 1 (Jim de Friess)

Work accomplished:  I descended Pinch In trail, having always wanted to walk further down the ridge to the trees.  This is beyond where the trail turns and descends into the woods.  Winter was the time to do it, no snakes to worry about, and better visibility without leaves.  Its about 200 yards from where the trail turns off the ridge down the ridge to the trees.  There is actually two low spots with some up hill following the ridge.  The brush is about 8' tall and is mostly devil's walking stick.

I finally arrived at the ridge top to find some survey flags laying on the ground, and some stakes with flagging on them- one of those study plots.  Its probably 150' above the river and it is steep down all the way around, except back up the ridge.  I think the growth to the south might be minimal enough to find an easier path off of it, I continued heading east and it got really steep.  I made it down with no problems, there were lots of deer tracks but they mostly side-hilled.  There were oaks on top, with acorns all over the ground.

At the bottom, finding LGT was easy.  I came out just north of where the river comes back together after splitting in high water.  I threw some brush off of LGT and hiked north.  Seeing some flagging to the west I investigated, and found another study plot.  Since the brush was minimal further west I investigated by heading over the next rise.  I found a fire circle on the south east of a cleared circle, maybe 75-100' in diameter.  Off to the northwest there appeared to be what looked like a trail.  No brush no debris and about 8' wide fairly straight.  I ascended this path and finally got to some trees down partially blocking it.  Threw them out of the way and it got narrower still.  A fresh de-branched pine limb was beside it further up, and about 50' further I popped out on Pinch In.  I'm guessing I was about 100-150 yards from the bottom of it, and did not walk to the end to check.

Rather I started ascending.  Came to a hemlock across the trail, and de-branched a path around it and back to the trail.  There were a few other trees, I made it passable, and not completely clear, certainly back-packable. I found another study plot- well I knew it was there -south of Pinch in and looked for flagging that might lead back to the ridge top, but didn't see anything.  At that point I got to the steep section.  

I've been re-thinking trees across the trail, I think if angled well they can make waterbars and trap sediment keeping the trail from washing away.  I certainly am going to try and keep the step over to less than a foot.  A de-branched step over trunk is a good thing.  So using tree trunks and some digging I water barred all the way up the steep section- where convenient.  Up on the ridge I need about three burned trunks brought down and place across the trail in a couple places in the steep part, there were no trees to use there.  I think what I've done has held up well on that steep part.  

I worked up the ridge, one brief section had crept off the ridge, and draining it was an issue, so at that point I went up the ridge,  but did not block the existing path.  

At another point there is a very brief and steep section with stumps.  The trail and the water go straight downhill, but the ridge is wide at that point, so I angled up and back to see what a switchback might look like there.  It would be easier to channel water off the trail, with it for sure.  Again nothing but considering an option.  The existing trail almost needs trunks about every two feet 

The rest of the way up I think the trail is in marvelous shape, I do want to place some trunks across it at angles to effectively make waterbars.  Even though the trail is on the high ground, it has a slight channel maybe an inch or two deep allowing water to run down the trail.  I dug out waterbars in a couple places and made some, but fatigue was setting in.

I sat on a stump taking a break and was passed by a hiker heading down.  A younger fellow wearing shorts, he came out to Pinch In for exercise evidently, as he said he was going down and back, it was all he had time for.  I continued up taking rest breaks frequently.  About 200 yards from the top the hiker passed me going up.  He said he turned around where the trail left the ridge.  That would be about a mile and a half walk all totaled, quite an exercise.  When I reached the parking lot he was cooling down, I guess.  I drank the half quart of water I left in my truck, and cooled down some myself, but the truck seat was cold.

It was a wonderful day in the woods, too bad I couldn't have gotten more done over my Christmas break.

12-21-2010 Blue Jay blockage removed and 105 road conditions

http://picasaweb.google.com/jdefriess/SolsticeTrailWorkBlueJayCanyon#

Pictures at link above.

Date of work:12/21/2010

time spent: 6 (includes commute)

number of workers: 1 Jim de Friess

Work accomplished: we had heard that there was a tree down in Blue Jay canyon effectively blocking Rock Jock Trail.  Unsure of exactly where and what I decided to go investigate.  I took tools.  The road conditions on 105 until just below pinnacle were clear, after Pinnacle there were icy spots.  But enough clear to get me through to the top of Dogback mountain.  At the top and just about ready to descend two hunters stopped me and advised me to turn around.  The road was slick on the North side of dogback, 4wd vehicles were getting stuck.  Somebody with four wheel drive and chains was able to pull them up yesterday but they had no intentions of going back down.  They asked if I had chains, which I did and they said I'd probably be all right.  A couple hundred yards beyond them I stopped and put on the chains, and the truck skated down the mountain.  Steering was an adventure and my worry about getting out started.  I did ride the brakes down so my fronts probably did skate.  There were several place where the ditches had been cleaned out, and culverts found and tracks off the normal roadbed.

Anyway I made it to old Conley and parked.  Gathered my gear and headed for Blue Jay.  The north facing hills had a couple inches of snow, the south facing hills were almost completely clear.  I made good time.  I was using my pulaski as a walking stick.  Shears and loppers in pack.  At the bottom of the boulder field I saw no sign of blockage (little did I know it was just above- had I known what to look for) so I carefully negotiated my way up it.  I was so glad to see that narrow spot widened by Michael, Ken and the others.  At the top there was a tree down.

It was laying parallel to the trail and probably just on the downhill side of center.  I could see the trail on the other side.  As I was walking in there were two sets of footprints, a big and a medium.  They did not go up the boulder field, I did find them on the other end of the tree and then could make out the bypass that was being used around the blockage.  Basically a scramble from the lower end of the boulders to the trail at the south end of the blockage- about 40' of path and 20' elevation gain.  Lots of blackberry through there too.

I started throwing limbs out of the trail, clipping what was still attached with loppers or chopping with pulaski depending on how big it was.  Some stuff got stacked beside the down trunk to make for better footing.  The rest tossed over the side.  I moved a few rocks into position just below the point where you have to step up on the trunk to continue.  It all cut and chopped more easily than I would have expected, and I got the trail clear to where the footprints rejoined it.  Split rock is very near, but I didn't go to it due to snow covered trail.

At the stump end there is still a pretty good step over, but there are two ways to get up to the position to step.  Anyone that can get through the boulders won't have any problem.

The trail is open for business.

The work went quicker than I expected, but having extra time to get out (and back up Dogback) was a good thing I decided.  I worked my way back to the truck, stopping in a few places to catch my breath and take pictures.  

At the truck I got in put it in one, about 1/3 to 1/2 gas pedal, and the truck never stopped climbing.  Got pretty slow in the steepest part, but it kept pushing me up.  At the top I took off the chains (prior to the paved part) and drove the rest of the way out.  

It was a great day in the woods

Jim d

Southern RJ 11-10-2010

Date of work 11-27-2010

Number of workers: 1 Jim de Friess

time spent:9 hours- includes commute

Work accomplished: Worked RJ from the back of Mossy canyon around to past Mossy falls with shears and pulaski as needed.

I had intended to camp at the Mossy falls- well sometimes you get the gorge and sometimes the gorge gets you.  I arrived with aspirations of finding suitable poles and pitching my hammock in that area.  The wind was whipping up when I parked, and there just isn't a place out there, without dead trees threatening.  I could have slept on the ground but that would have been under a widomaker too.  I don't think any of them will fall immanently but if you are wrong you are dead or hurt.

I did start a small fire before I gave up.  It was scary how fast and easy that wood burned.  I match started it, and consequently I kept the fire quite small.  I threw some of wood over the cliff.  The wind kept it fanned at times, even in the canyon.

I cleared the branches at the falls leaving just the trunk over the falls, its now much easier to get to the falls to get water.  The falls was running by the way it took about 3 minutes to fill up a quart canteen at the best spot, there was probably 20 similar to less streams.

I took turns pondering hammock set up and doing trail work.  I worked from the falls north up to the first hill top.  Then back to check the fire and I worked the scramble part we refer to as Underwood's stairs.  They are much better now.  One trunk across the trail there, but easy to step over.

After doing Underwood's stairs I left the tools on top, and went back for the backpack.  The fire was about out, but I put about 4 quarts of water on it and the rearranged the rocks to improve footing over toward the falls.  This decided it for me to hike back out to the truck- putting my water on the fire.  I watered the rocks too.

Then I snipped and walked south by the cave.  I de-branched a pine trunk to make one area easier to pass. I got the little hemlocks near the big trunk I notched.  At the back of Mossy I just walked out.  A couple of trees that need to be straddled but I was tired and had a hill to climb. 

I took a few pictures, very few, nearly lost my Rat Hat in the wind.  I did see a laurel bloom (November bloom)- pretty neat.  It was at the top of Underwood's stairs.  I saw some icicles hanging from the falls when I got there- about 10am.

Next time I'll plan to go where there are suitable trees. 

Jim d

Work day, 11nov2010, Rockjock trail

Date of work: 11/11/2010
Workers: 1 Ken Crump
Time spent: 9.5 hours including commute
Work performed: Sheared Rockjock from back of Mossy Canyon to Zen Canyon.  Removed fallen debris from trail.

Jim pretty much covered it, but like he said our goal was to make sure the trail was open and easy enough to follow.
Shearing involved anything that was hanging over the trail, and as much of the uphill side that we could get at a slow
walking pace.  There were also a few decayed fallen trees that we were able to upend and flip out of the trail along
with associated limbs.

Overall the summer growth seems to be less heavy each year as the brush and small trees get larger and provide
more shade. 

Hopefully we will be able to make a trip through soon and remove all the smaller logs.  Most were easily stepped
over, but a couple are almost waist high and require sitting and swinging over. 

Thanks for another great day in the woods Jim.

My photos are here:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/ojc/sets/72157625243454689/

Ken

southern two-thirds of official RJ 11-11-2010

Date of work: 11/11/2010
number of workers: 1 (Jim de Friess)
Time spent:9 hours- includes commute
Work done: Shear work along Rock Jock trail from southern entrance to Zen creek, we also threw the light brush out of the trail.

The story:  I met Ken at 8am at the south end of Rock Jock trail along NC 105.  We started hiking down into the gorge and turned North through Mossy Canyon.  Our plan was to try and get somewhere near the middle of RJ and then clip back south on the way out.  We clipped minimally, but some as we progressed North.

At Mossy Canyon we looked for a way to avoid the really steep and tricky section we have named "Underwood's Stairs".  There was a cliff preventing easy access to the saddle on the west side of Mossy point.  We followed the trail to the top of the stairs.  Coming down one section of the stairs we then headed North crossing the area above the Falls.  We continued a slow descent and were able to work our way back to the trail without having to descend the part that must be scrambled up.

Once back on the trail I stopped briefly to get to flat rock below the trail to take some of the pictures of the mossy canyon area.  It is fabulous.

Back on the trail we continued to Tee shirt point, clipping a narrow path to make the trail easier to follow.  At tee shirt we began the climb I had realized was there from tee shirt to the back of the canyon when I backpacked South two weeks ago.  I took a few pictures, and paced myself arriving at the back of the canyon along Rockjock.

From there the terrain is up and down, but no long sustained climbs or descends.  We could see we were progressing toward Sunshine because it has some live big trees.  We clipped the briers, the blackberries and the devil's walking sticks, mostly.  Some grass when the sticker bushes were minimal. 

Once above Sunshine point we saw a path out to it.  Someone had de-brushed about a 10' corridor for a while and the path was well worn.  In some respects the path down to Sunshine looked better (clearly more used) than the trail south that we had just come through on.  We dressed RJ to make sure it looked like the primary trail.  Hopefully people study their maps. 

We went down to Sunshine point and took a break there, and lots of pictures.  There was a chain bolted to a rock near a cliff, and the path had been well worn.  Nice little plateau below the trees right at the cliffs.  It would be hard to hammock camp there, but mature live trees and hammock camping possibilities exist up the hill from the plateau but still below Rock Jock (RJ).

After that detour we continued North on RJ.  The trail here had been well used  for a while.  When we started our descent on the North side of the hill toward razor creek the growth was thicker.  Ken wondered how the people going out to Sunshine had gotten there.  Just then practically we saw a well worn path to the left up the hill.  Ken investigated and found a fire circle.  We would later see where this path goes.

We noticed that the north sides of hills seemed to have the thickest growth along RJ.  We decided after discovering the side path to try and work RJ further north to the place where a 70' hemlock fell along the trail.  The area has plenty of devil's walking stick, and we wanted to make sure people could find an easy way through.  This took us to Zen creek. 

We made it to Zen Creek meaning we had hiked from the South 2/3s of RJ.  The path to Razor's edge was also well worn.  We again tried to make sure RJ trail would be clear to anyone trying to follow it.  We then worked our way back to the path heading west up the mountain.

A quick check of GPS showed that this path would need to gain 700' of elevation in about 0.3 miles (1500') of horizontal distance.  We realized it would probably have parts steeper than Pinch In.  We decided to follow it.  There were regular rock stacks and as we ascended the brush had been cleared.  A nettle thicket had been clipped back, it had briers and blackberries and it was steep- straight up the grade in places.  As we progressed there started being switchbacks.  Easy to follow once we ascended to the brushy part.

Eventually we popped out on the road near where the road starts to seriously descend Dogback toward Conley.  Knowing now what to look for the path is clearly visible from the road, and there is a place to park about two cars across from it.

Once I had worked on an official trail, I think RJ, and tried to block a side path someone had created with brush, only to come back for the next work session and find the brush moved from where I had put it back into the official trail.  Since that experience, I have only tried to make the official trails more inviting, and not block.

As we walked over Dogback along the road I considered the effort that someone put in to create those paths- too bad we can't get that kind of help for legal trail work.  If the cliffs at Sunshine were the goal then the path from the road to Sunshine would be about 1/2 mile total.  To get to Sunshine from either end of RJ would require about 2 miles of hiking, and require negotiating the loose rocks and Underwood's stairs in Mossy, or the loose rocks in Blue Jay canyon.  I can certainly see why they did it, and it has been pointed out to me that the trails in the gorge were at one time a path that somebody took to some feature, and then came back to show someone else. 

It was a great day in the woods, RJ is discernible all the way through.  There are some trees that need to be removed from the trail, but that will be a later trip.  The 60 degree weather helped my stamina.  At 80 or above we wouldn't have gotten nearly as much accomplished.  All days in the woods are good, but this one especially so.

Thanks Ken.

Pictures are at:

http://picasaweb.google.com/jdefriess/RockJockVeterans2010#

Trail up Shortoff

Date of work: 11/6/2010
number of workers: 1 (Jim de Friess)
time spent: 7.5 hours- includes commute

Work done:  Continued from where I left off.  I made or opened water bars, lopped the bigger trees, then sheared the trail and pushed uphill.

I went out there today thinking I was close to a turn west switchback, and then not far from MTS.  As it turned out there are two abrupt left (west) turns and I started out below the lower one.  I ended up at the upper one, and then walked up to the MTS intersection.  293 times my right foot touched on the way back to where I stopped.  From there I covered about 270 right foot touches then coming back down the hill to where I started the day, and from where I stopped work back down to the truck was 1080 right foot touching.  So I'm three fourths of the way up.  Anything else up to now has been a guess, now I have data.

Very interesting day, there was horseshoe prints in the trail, but no trail apples.  One place where the horse appeared to have done the other.

Several middle aged men passed by "been hiking up Shortoff for 25 years", all were appreciative and said they were glad the trail was getting some attention.  It was several groups, that said the same thing, all from the triangle (Raleigh Durham Chapel Hill area).  One wanted to know where he could send money to support trail work.  Had I been thinking - I should have said I would take his donation- just kidding.  Seriously if I can get some business cards with an AAT contact number, email address, etc- I could just pass them out to anyone that expresses interest.  Lots of middle aged (50s) men camping on Shortoff tonight.

I think working that trail on a weekend as busy as it is, is great exposure for the AAT program.

I had two guys pass me, one is a neighbor of my first WPCC boss.  We talked about him in a good way.

Two weeks ago I was sweating and hot out there doing trail work. Today I looked out and would have sworn I saw snow squalls off in the distance.  Guess what one came over me and, it was snow.  I worked in a couple of brief flurries.  The cooler weather helped my stamina as well.  The wind picked up at sunset, and it was a low hanging sun, and chilly in the shade walking out.

This now makes two consecutive Saturday adventures in the gorge.  Totally awesome.  On next Thursday I hope to do some work on Rock Jock - the South end.

Good days in the woods.