OVERVIEW:
We began our Backcountry experience at the Delta CCC Center in Stockton on April 18, 2005. Our time there was brief and filled with paperwork and information for the upcoming season. By Wednesday the 20th we were ready to head for the hills or, in our case the ocean. We drove from Stockton to Big Basin State Park (Rancho Del Oso) where we met our state park sponsor staff --Kirby Fosgate, Chris Pereira, Patrick Courtright (Stanislaus, 1999), Bill Muir (Stanislaus, 2004), and Chad-- who were waiting and ready for us. They began by sending us out on a maintenance run within the first half hour of our arrival. During our first week and a half we have been working on clearing trails form the winter storm damage and installing seasonal bridges – one 60’ here @ Rancho del Oso and another 100’ @ Henry Crowell State Park. Besides all the projects Kirby and company have lined up for us we have been working on getting to know each other and beginning work on developing a strong functioning community.
CURRICULUM:
Our first week and a half of curriculum and classes has been overwhelming and informative. We’ve spent a lot of time going over policies, rules, and procedures. We have also made a trip out to Ano Nuevo State Park to see the elephant seals and have been learning a lot about the history, flora and fauna of this area.
PERSONNEL CHANGES:
Cameron Kester (LACC, Strike Team), returned to the LACC after one week with us to finish completing his AmeriCorps project in the San Bernardino National Forest. He will be returning to the Stanislaus as soon as possible.
Dominique Knecht (WEB—OH), from Cincinnati Ohio joined our crew on April 24th after a three-day bus ride.
INJURIES:
Besides the many blisters the crew incurred while breaking in new boots, we had to take one crew member out to the doctors with a severe case of poison oak, and another to the dentist to reattach a crown that came out. Other than that we’re all healthy and recovering from the blisters.
ODDS AND ENDS:
- Thanks to the Delta CCC Center in Stockton for housing us during our orientations
- Thanks to Peter Lewis for traveling to Big Basin with us and helping us set up camp.
- Happy 19th birthday to Shawn Tillman (CCC—Fortuna) on April 29th.
- Happy birthday to Philip Godoy (CCC—Monterey) this month.
- Thanks to our awesome cook Doug Vanderberg for tall the good food, good music, and good vibes.
Members of Stanislaus 2005 Backcountry Trail Crew:
1. Jorge Acosta, CCC--Fortuna 9. Rosa Lizarraga, Orange County CC
2. Sean Bascom, WEB--Ocean, NJ 10. Christian McQueen, CCC—SLO
3. David Gallaty, CCC—Chico 11. Mehmood Nawaz, CCC--Tahoe
4. Philip Godoy, CCC—Salinas 12. Nubian Newsom, East Bay CC
5. Marvel Haynes, CCC—Norwalk 13. Jeremiah Scharton, CCC--Fresno
6. Gardner James, CCC—Tahoe 14. Kevin Stanley, CCC/NEG--San Diego, CA
7. Cameron kester, LACC—Strike Team 15. Shawn Tillman, CCC--Fortuna
8. Dominique Knecht, WEB--Cincinnati, Ohio 16. Jon Ziegler, WEB--Boulder, CO
PRODUCTION:
Our work projects here at big basin are many and varied. Kirby and the state park sponsors have lined up over 30 projects for us to complete during our 3 week stay. We have been doing maintenance runs on trails here in Rancho del Oso as well as Henry Cowell state park and opened up a number of trails that were closed due to storm damage over the winter.
Trail Maintenance:
Beach Access Trail -- 0.01miles
Slide Trail -- 0.02
West Trail -- 1 mile
Marsh Trail – 1.2 miles
TOTAL: – 2.23 miles
Bridge Construction (Seasonal):
Marsh Trail -- 60 linear feet
San Lorenzo River --100 linear feet
Causeway & Single-tier Wall: – 5 linear yards ( 15 lin. ft.)
Restoration & Rehabilitation:
Meadow (Henry Cowell State Park) — 14,520 linear yards (8.25 miles /.
3 acres)
WORDS:
"A group becomes a team when each member is sure enough of himself and his contribution to praise the skills of others"
-Norman G. Shidle
