Ever wonder how trails are built? Well, I can tell you firsthand. This was our first time with TAMBA, or the Tahoe Area Mountain Biking Association. We were helping build a trail for both mountain biking and hiking, making sure that it was actually walkable/rideable. What we didn’t know when we showed up was that we were in for a challenge much harder than what we were accustomed to.
This wasn’t my first time doing trail work, I had participated in an event at Crockett Hills, a popular trail for mountain biking. But then, all we were doing was laying down bricks to allow proper drainage so the trail wouldn’t become a swamp. This time, we were moving several thousand pound rocks. On top of that, we had to make sure the rocks were flat enough for mountain bikers, and fill in gaps where someone’s leg might fall through and cause injury. As you can see, working in a landslide isn’t exactly the safest thing to do. We had a couple close calls with heavy rocks and limbs. If you move the wrong rock, the entire mountain side will come crashing down. For several hours, we moved enormous rocks, with only ropes and manpower. Gaps were filled in with more rocks, scavenged from around the area. And so we made progress. Of seven feet. But it was progress nonetheless. Hooray!
AJ Writes 