Post-Irene Clean Up

So first off let me say that we were relatively lucky with damage inflicted by Irene on 8/28/11.  I look around at folks in Western MA and in VT and see how bad it could have been and am just really thankful.  Yes, we were without electricity for five and a half days.  Yes, that sucks.  But I still have a house and my basement is dry and the limbs that came down in the yard didn't hit anything.

Three days post-Irene, our Wednesday night ride group went out to Douglas State Forest to ride, do reconnaissance on the damage and clear what we were able with tools we could carry while riding.  We met at the Wallis Street dirt lot for our usual 5:15 start.  It was a good turn out.  Me, Jess Bly, Dave Violette, Bryan Quach, new Chris, Ron Erickson, Jon Modig, Brandon O'Neal and Rob Laprel.  Yes, you heard right, Rob Laprel.  It was absolutely great to see him out again.

As we headed down the Ridge Trail out of the lot we were riding through a minefield of small twigs across the trail.  They were too numerous and too small to bother with.  We agreed we'd be stopping for anything significant.  As we closed on Route 16, we started coming across the first real blow downs.  There were several huge oaks in a row that blocked the way.  We cleared the first one, rode around the second (too big) and cut the limbs off the third to make it possible to ride up and over it.

Jess brought a really cool tool that is kind of like a chain saw blade that is one long piece between two handles.  It worked great.  Certainly better than the folding pruning saw I was packing.

We never crossed to the south side of Route 16. We stayed on the north side and went through the rock garden into pine needles, clearing a couple of trees and building some log pyramids over another.  In retrospect, that pyramid was a little large.  I think someone (Jess?) took a digger going over it on the way back to the cars later.  Here's some footage of Jess making it through the rock garden.  And proof that Laprel was actually at the ride!

It was pretty clear pretty quickly that there was no way we were going to  get any significant riding in.  Douglas looked like it had been hit hard.  But as they say, the darkest hour is the one right before daybreak.  Just as we were starting down the Midstate toward the two little wooden bridges, things started to clear up. There were a couple of good trees down and then nothing.  Just clear sailing.

We made it past the waterfall and out to the rope swing where our youngest rider, Jon, took a quick swim, shrieking like a banshee as he let go of the rope.

We finished up by climbing Double Hills (I made the first hill for the first time in a long while!!!) and winding our way back to the Wallis Street lot without hitting anymore blow downs.  All in all, a good ride.  Not so much in how far (6.9 miles) or how fast we rode (not very), but in accomplishing some quality trail clearing and still managing to get a ride in at the same time.

Since that Douglas ride we have also met at Uxbridge and cleared the West Hill side of the park.  Jess has worked really hard along with some other folks to get the rest of Uxbridge cleaned up.  Looks like its all cleared now and much of it in better shape than before Irene.  I've also spent a couple of lunches walking Douglas with a chainsaw and clearing the blow downs I've encountered.  The NEMBA group has been working in Douglas as well.  Still a lot of work to do in there, but pecking away at it.

If anyone is looking to see where they can clear through Douglas, as far as I know, check the Wednesday Night Riders page on FB.  I'm trying to keep my activity up to date there.