Welcome to the third blog post in a new series. Each month we want to share our stewardship efforts of the Whitefish Trail and our community's beautiful open lands. Stewardship means the responsible planning and management of resources. The management of the trail itself will be the focus throughout this series, but we will also discuss stewardship of the land beyond the trail.
July was a busy month out on the Whitefish Trail. We completed a wide range of trail maintenance projects, from installing trail crossing signs to introducing the next generation of stewards to the basics of trail work.
With funding though Flathead Electric Coop's Round Up For Safety grant and the power of our committed volunteers, we were able to install eight trail crossing signs across the Beaver Lakes trail system.
During our Girls on the Trail summer camp, we introduced maintaining water drains and clipping back overgrown vegetation to the campers. We focused on the Swift Creek Loop. Additionally, we hosted a volunteer day with Powdered Soul at Woods Lake to introduce trail stewardship to another group of engaged youth.
Our trail crew also completed routine maintenance on s third of the Lupfer loop. This was our first evening Trail Crew workday - it is great being out on the trail during golden hour! We came across a terrific example of what a clogged water drain looks like on a trail. You can see in the before and after photos below that there is a "berm" of pine needles that has accumulated on the edge of the trail. The excessive pine needles are a great indicator that water is flowing to this area and that the drain needs some attention. See the after photo below to see how we cleared it!
In mid-July a small fire popped up near the Whitefish Trail at Lion Mountain. Thanks to DNRC and our local firefighters for responding quickly. Crews were able to put the fire out and contained at half an acre. It will be interesting to watch the small burn area revegetate.
Check out these new Whitefish Trail Crew shirts! If you see someone wearing one around town, ask them about their experience volunteering out on the trail. If you want to earn one of your own, all you need to do is attend three volunteer events this year. Email whitefishtrail@whitefishlegacy.org for more info.
Thanks for reading and stay tuned for August's Trail and Stewardship Update!
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