Earth Day Service

On Sunday April 20, 2008, I made my way to Alum Rock to join VO-CAL (Volunteers For Outdoor California) in their trail restoration project. The task at hand for our group- to close off an old unsafe section of trail and create a detour. This meant a series of steps. Firstly, we had to pound, dig up, and loosen the dirt along the closed section to allow for new growth to counter erosion. Next, we simultaneously collected old dried out branches and other forest refuse to cover the old trail while clearing the new trail. Lastly, the new trail had to be properly leveled out, dirt was transported to fill in sections that were uneven, and beams were laid down as steps. What a great workout!

It was an educational experience as we learned about different kinds of tools used to complete certain tasks. The best thing of all was learning about Tech-nu (a scrub that breaks down the oils from poison oak) after we had been romping around and removing poison oak for a few hours!! I must’ve applied and reapplied the stuff every hour.

During the course of the day, I developed a new found appreciation for trail architecture, clearing, maintenance, and construction. It’s hard work! As a hiker, I’ve enjoyed trails in various parks, but was not aware of the work involved in trail development. It is extremely labor intensive, but a worthy labor of love.

By: Cynthia Hsu