Sierra Buttes Trail Stewardship

We had our second successful winter trail day, NOT cancelled. Winter has seemed to be working in our favor with our scheduled Trail Daze dates so far. No rain during trail work, though there was a little before and after. 17 folks came out to work on the North Yuba Extension to dial the trail in. We widened the bench and prepared it to withstand the oncoming storms. Trail is looking in fantastic condition. Thanks so much for those who made the trek out.

19 SBTS'rs showed up to work on the North Yuba Extension contributing a total of 152 hours, with 2390 miles driven. Soil conditions were perfect and 200 yards of trail were improved, along with complete brushing of the Goodyears side of NYT. In addition, 2 substandard switchbacks were widened and Henry, Dave and Brad and Brewski built a nice rock wall to support the trail around several trees. Melinda and Ron had a chance to ride all of the NYT (upper and lower) in both directions and can report that trail conditions are perfect. The improvements made a big difference and NYT is better than ever. Here are the rest of the pictures from that trail day.

Maggie wandered into Yuba Expeditions in 2003, wanting to try the famous Downieville Downhill ride. Being a local girl, we set her up on a Santa Cruz bike and shuttled her to the top of the mountain with a famous guide (and SBTS Hall of Famer) by the name of Metal Mike. She rolled back into town, bleeding from a gash on her shin and covered in dirt, but she still had a huge smile on her face. For the next several seasons Maggie worked at Yuba Expeditions, handling reservations and mountain biker mayhem. Maggie graduated from Downieville High School and just recently received a degree in Psychology from Mills College. Maggie continues to volunteer on her local trails, and attends nearly all of the SBTS volunteer work days and events. As a token of our appreciation Maggie will be receiving a soft and cozy red custom SBTS Hoodie. Thanks again Maggie!

Long time Sierra Buttes Trail Stewardship member and local Calpine resident Dave Orozco is shown here hard at work on the new Mills Peak Trail located in Plumas National Forest and adjacent to the town of Graeagle. In addition to attending numerous Trail Daze events for many years, Dave put in over 100 hours of his time this fall to help build the first 2.5 miles of trail on Mills Peak. With over 4 miles still to build next year, we know he is as excited as the rest of us to get back to work when the snow clears next spring. As a token of our appreciation Dave will be receiving a soft and cozy red custom SBTS Hoodie. Thanks again Dave!

The Sierra Buttes Trail Stewardship was recently visited by professional trail builder extraordinaire Matt Roberts from the American Conservation Experience (ACE). Matt is Director of Ace, a trail building company located in Flagstaff Arizona. Matt came to check out the trail building scene in the Plumas and Tahoe National Forests. In addition to working on the growing trail system in Forest (located between Downieville and Nevada City) Matt spent 2 solid weeks contributing his time on several Downieville trails and on the new Mills Peak Trail. Matt is a real pro and we were thrilled to have him with us. As a token of our appreciation Matt will be receiving a soft and cozy red custom SBTS Hoodie.Thanks again Matt!

We completed 2.39 miles of trail before the winter weather shut us down. Here are some shots of the final work days on Mills Peak.

With snow blanketing the high country, we turned the attention of our November 14th volunteer work day towards protecting the Pauley Creek Watershed and winterizing the tread on Second Divide Trail; a motorized, multiple-use trail located in the Tahoe National Forest near the town of Downieville. Second Divide Trail is part of the world famous Downieville Downhill trail system and is listed as a high-use trail by the local Forest Service. This popular trail sees several thousand users per season, most of which are mountain bikers and motorcycle riders. Second Divide Trail is also part of an on-going Trail Adoption program supported by the Sierra Buttes Trail Stewardship and sponsored by Fox Racing Shox. Like a lot of our restoration work this time of year, the focus was on installing and cleaning drains, off-sloping tread and constructing rolling dips; all techniques aimed at reducing natural and user caused erosion, and keeping our streams clean for the fishes and folks downstream. We strategically chose Second Divide, as it sits in the sunshine amongst the oaks, which were dropping their leaves in the breeze and providing what some described as a psychedelic experience...  Read More »

The Plumas Forest recently received $1.5 million in American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) funds, to be used for forest wide trail maintenance and restoration work. Key components to receiving ARRA funds is to demonstrate a strong "working partnership" (SBTS and Plumas Forest) and to have projects that are considered "shovel ready" (completed environmental work). One SBTS project to receive ARRA funds is Smith Lake Trail. The scope of the work is focused on realigning a section of trail out of a wetland and installing two low water crossings over Smith Creek. In order for us to get the motorized wheel barrow in and out safely with construction materials for the low water crossings, the Crew had to to rehabilitate the tread on Smith Lake Trail, starting from the trailhead to the work site at Smith Creek. The wheel barrow works well in the backcountry, but can be a bit tricky to handle in the rough, especially with a heavy load and at the end of a hard day of digging. For reference i have attached a photo of the strongest 120 pound man in Plumas County, Lil' Brad, making it look easy. Once Smith Lake Trail was complete, the Crew started constructing the realignment. The existing and heavily eroded trail featured multiple user made routes that crossed the creek in four separate locations, and allowed users to trample vegetation on their way across.  Read More »