Aug 20 Trail Work Day

Posted on August 11, 2016 by 44trails

August 20 Cooks Meadow Extension Hand-Built Singletrack

Saturday, Aug 20 is our is our next full-scale trail work day of the season, and we will be working on the Cooks Meadow Extension Trail.

We made great progress in July and look forward to more good work on Saturday Aug 20. We need you, of course, plus Metal Rakes, a few McLeods and some flat shovels

WHEN:
Saturday Aug 20, 2016 @ 9am – 2pm
Meet 9am @ Little John SnoPark on Highway 35
We’ll have coffee thanks to Dog River Coffee in HR and sign-in at the SnoPark and then move up to the work site as a group.

PROJECT:
Hand-Built tread work on Cooks Meadow Extension trail.

TOOLS:
Helmet/hardhat REQUIRED!!! (bike helmets ok), long pants gloves, and work boots required.
Hand tools – METAL RAKES ARE TOOL OF CHOICE

We’ll probably work ’til about 2pm and will have sandwiches from the awesome NYC City Sub Shop in Hood River for the crew.

Although the trail is arguably just roughed in, it can be ridden, especially the lower half. In fact, riding it will help establish it. So, bring your bike for an aprés trail work pedal!

Want to know more about the trail? check out the map

Polallie Cooper Timber Sale

Posted on January 28, 2016 by 44trails

In case you were not aware, the Forest Service is preparing a longterm timber / fuels reduction plan, aka a Timber Sale, for what is called the Polallie Cooper area on the east side of Mt Hood.

The Environmental Assessment (EA) for the Polallie-Cooper Timber Sale was released recently and the public comment period ends on February 25, 2016.^.

You can download and view a pdf copy of the Polallie-Cooper EA here. It’s a long (300+page) document, but one of the critical concerns to 44 Trails is the USFS proposal to move ahead with a 55-foot buffer on either side of trails that fall within the timber sale. This means cutting to within 55 feet of either side of existing trails.

44 Trails Association, among other groups involved in a collaborative process before the EA was completed, suggested a 100-foot buffer (on each side) be used. The idea behind our 100-foot per side recommendation is to preserve the quality of the trail user experience as much as possible. The trail user experience being based on forest quality and trail/tread quality, both of which, we believe, are directly related to forest canopy where more forest canopy equals a better experience and better tread quality/durability.

Of the trails impacted by the proposal, the Dog River Trail (#675) is the highest profile within the mountain bike community. Not only, could the proposal result in cutting within 55 feet of the trail, it will surely impact the trail with extended closures while the work is being done.

There is a public meeting on Weds., Feb. 10 from 5 to 7 pm at the Hood River fire station in next to the pool in Hood River. We hope to see you there.

This is an important opportunity to let the Hood River Ranger District hear your opinion of the proposal.

You can also submit written comments to the Forest Service, by February 25^th, your opinion could help preserve the riding experience on the Dog River Trail and beyond into the future.

To comment or to learn more
contact: Casey Gatz – Interdisciplinary Team Leader
(541) 352-1255 cgatz@fs.fed.us
www.fs.usda.gov/projects/ mthood/landmanagement/projects

Download Polallie Cooper Timber Sale Environmental Assessment

November 21 Trail Work CANCELLED

Posted on November 20, 2015 by 44trails

We are CANCELLING the November 21 work day due to snow. The 44 road is a mess of frozen snow and slush.

We will look toward December 5 as the next possible work day, weather permitting and will keep you posted here, on FB and via our e-mail list.

Thanks for your support!

October 18 Work Party

Posted on October 10, 2014 by 44trails

The final work party of the season is almost here. This round, we’ll be working on the 450 Trail doing some repair and enhancement projects. As usual we’ll meet down at Little John Snopark at 9am.