OVERVIEW:
Hello everybody. Our first full month as a crew has passed and we’re just itching to tell you about it.
May started off with quite a bang on Sunday, May 1st. A fisherman broke his leg on the rocks below O’Shaugnessy Dam so six members of the crew-- Kiva Vigil (Crew Supervisor), John Knotts (WEB—Redding, CA), Jenna Haywood (WEB—Lansing, MI), James Sylvia (CCC—Tahoe), Steve Yune (CCC—Chico), and Ryan Wells (WEB—Fortuna, CA / CCC Alumni)—responded along with emergency medical personnel to carry the injured man to the road and waiting ambulance. Due to some miscommunication, all of us with the CCC just thought it was a training exercise and did not realize it was the real deal until after the incident was over. I guess we did just fine from the outcome.
Also, in the beginning of May, six of our crew were called off of work to help look for some overdue hikers coming from Lake Vernon. The hikers were eventually found by helicopter on its last fly over and taken to safety. Many thanks to Chris Lerman (WEB—Redding, CA / CCC Alumni), Jenna Haywood, Steve Yune, National Park Service (NPS) crew foreman Stevie Lynds (Yosemite, 1990), NPS trailworker Eddie Corona (Yosemite, 2001), and NPS foreman Doug Matheson (Yosemite, 1997), for their great effort, leaving the jobsite at 3 PM and not making it back to camp until 10:30 PM.
So the Yosemite II crew has gotten a first hand glimpse of how unforgiving this beautiful country can be. We’ve all become rather experienced in living and working in wet, snowy weather. While it hasn’t been the most fun, we’ve all learned to make the best of our situation.
We have been working up a lot of trails and refining our applicable skills. The work has consisted mostly of maintenance which means cutting back brush, removing logs and hazardous rocks, and digging out drains and waterbars to accommodate drainage. Most of the crew has also had a chance to start on some rock work projects and get to enjoy some of the frustrations of placing two rocks together. A day was spent filling and placing sandbags in Yosemite Valley when the Merced River flooded. El Houcine Ait Ahmed (CCC—SLO), Ryan Wells, Bridgette Payne (WEB—Napa, CA), and Chris Lerman went out with Stevie Lynds to set up the Little Yosemite Valley Ranger Station. We also spent two days working for Camp Mather, cutting brush on the shaded fuel break that protects the camp.
We are looking forward to the month of June. The weather has warmed up a bit and our weekend hikes have grown in distance. We hope to move to the backcountry in about two weeks.
CURRICULUM:
Our evening classes have covered a wide variety of topics. Classes have consisted of a review of the performance evaluation process, sexual harassment, weekly community meetings, how-to-play cribbage, writing our mission statement, and crew development team building. Ryan Wells taught an informative class on Salmonids. El Houcine Ait Ahmed did his best to teach us the Arabic alphabet. Doug Matheson—NPS Foreman—gave us a great curriculum on knots. George Hawley stopped by for two evenings to present some meditation and massage techniques.
PERSONNEL CHANGES:
Cory Weatherford accepted employment with CalTrans and left us on May 11th. We were sorry to see him go and wish him the best.
Larry Evans delivered Dylan Tracy (CCC—Fortuna), to us on May 17th. Dylan has done a fine job in getting up to speed with the rest of the crew.
INJURIES:
After a week of rest, our injured crew mate was raring to get back on the trail, fully healed from his calf.
Another crew member strained his back and had to take it easy for a week, but is all better now.
One other crew mate looked like Rocky after a fight with poison oak around his eyes and had to get some medication to combat the rash.
Finally, one last member of the crew smashed his finger pretty good. The jury is still out on whether he’ll lose his fingernail or not.
PRODUCTION:
Trail Maintenance: Beehive Trail -- 4 miles
Miguel Meadows Trail -- 2 miles
Wapawma Trail -- 4 miles
Poopenaut Trail -- 1 mile
Cottonwood Trail -- 3.5 miles
Aspen Valley Trail -- 1 mile
TOTAL: -- 15.5 miles
Retainer bars: -- 10 each
Trail Tread Rip-Rap: -- 5 linear yards (15 lin. ft.)
Multi-tier Retaining Wall: -- 20 square feet
WORDS:
"There is nothing more exhilarating than running through Wapawma Falls under a starry night." Jenna Haywood
