# Life after a clear cut............



## Summit Ridge Guy (Aug 16, 2010)

Do we have any examples of trail areas that got clear cut and the trail life afterwards. Is this what is going on at Tokul? I will be sharing the reason for my question soon. There will be another local trail area that will be clear cut later this summer. Currently it has some great trails. I have reached out to the land owner and they seem open to rebuilding the trails after the clear cut. But, trails without trees? How does that work?


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## Skookum (Jan 17, 2005)

Yes it's quite common, happens constantly on DNR land where mt. bikers ride. See Capitol Forest/Tiger Mt./Green Mt.

Also on Galbraith up North.

Obviously it changes the whole character of the trail, and there are new challenges that come with it. Typically what you're going to find is the tread will be more vulnerable since you don't have the canopy to minimize the volume of water, or allow for more shade for drying out.

And typically as the years roll by and the forest recovers, you have alot of work to do clearing out all the fast growing trees/bushes etc that sprout up aggressively until the big trees take back over in 40 or so years...


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## ferday (Jan 15, 2004)

One of the local favorites went from minor damage









To outright devastation. The flip side....the loggers cut some new trail which is more interesting than the old, and there are views now that weren't there before 









So far the new trail is holding up very well. Logging is a part of life here and it's best to focus on the positives, and to design the new trails properly to keep erosion etc at bay!


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## Summit Ridge Guy (Aug 16, 2010)

Thanks ferday. 

So, the scoop is the 243 acres behind Summit Ridge is owned by Plum Creek. There are some great fun flowy (gray) trails there. They are selling the land to Herbrand Company. They had their forester they hired contact me since I am the "Summit Ridge Guy" :thumbsup: and I also oversee the church property. I am meeting with the forester today to workout some logging operation logistics. Plum Creek was never interested in any kind of a landowner trail stewardship arrangement but I have already reached out to a guy at Herbrand and they may be open to that. (Pray and cross you fingers on that.)

I have personally never ridden or build trails in a clear cut area but I have to imagine it is way different that doing it in the woods.


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## GeePhroh (Jan 13, 2004)

Skookum said:


> Typically what you're going to find is the tread will be more vulnerable since you don't have the canopy to minimize the volume of water, or allow for more shade for drying out.
> 
> And typically as the years roll by and the forest recovers, you have alot of work to do clearing out all the fast growing trees/bushes etc that sprout up aggressively until the big trees take back over in 40 or so years...


+1

For those who remember the clearcut on Gun Range at Tokul East a few years ago, the scrubby vegetation very quickly took over, especially since the trim piles weren't removed.


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## HighFivenWhiteGuy (Apr 5, 2011)

Taylor mountain has sections of trail that were built after a clear cut. It definitely presents challenges but has advantages as well such as being able to get a good feel for the landscape you have to work with. With the exposure to sun and rain without the canopy as a buffer soil erosion can be a real problem. Also with the lack of trees there will be an explosion of weeds and brush, so clearing on a regular basis is a necessity.


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## bweide (Dec 27, 2004)

It isn't the felling of timber that really messes up a trail but the skidding of the logs afterward. Often times the trail corridor becomes a skid road. See if the land owner will allow you to mark the trail as a place for the skidders to avoid. Sometimes it is as simple as running caution tape down the trail corridor from tree to tree. Remember to leave gaps in the caution tape to denote places for the skidders to cross the trail corridor.


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## pinkrobe (Jan 30, 2004)

Summit Ridge Guy said:


> Do we have any examples of trail areas that got clear cut and the trail life afterwards. Is this what is going on at Tokul? I will be sharing the reason for my question soon. There will be another local trail area that will be clear cut later this summer. Currently it has some great trails. I have reached out to the land owner and they seem open to rebuilding the trails after the clear cut. But, trails without trees? How does that work?


I guess it depends. I'm used to riding trails that are 90% in the trees, with few open sections. I remember riding in parts of the US and thinking that something was missing... 
As Ferday shows, the before and after can be quite severe. There's a trail 'round these parts that was clear cut in the late 90s. I rode it just before the logging, and then again the summer after logging. The singletrack was there, but that was it. It was like they laid down a force-field 2' wide over the trail and then carpet-bombed everything around it for miles. One tree that had an orange trail marker on it was left standing. Riding through that section and then back into the forest on the far side was weird.

The effects of clear cutting on singletrack depend on the trees, slopes and soil conditions. Cutting upslope of trails increases the effects of erosion on the trail. Depending on your area, a minimum width section of uncut trees is required to keep them all from blowing over. Snow and wind can also make a big difference to the trails with no trees around. Overall, a clearcut highlights any sustainability issues your trails may have.


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## ebxtreme (Jan 6, 2004)

They've logged well over 800 acres on Galbraith this year. Initially, we didn't have much interaction with the logging company and the trails were getting totally destroyed. We finally got in touch with them and we now know where they're going to harvest and when they'll be there. 

So, we hang pink flagging on both sides of the trail (important because orange can be hard to see) about every 25 feet. That way, the machine operators know when they're coming up to a trail. Then, they pick the spots where they will cross the trail vs. just crossing it everywhere. On U Line, they only crossed the trail once. On Atomic dog, 4 or 5 times. Of course, there is branches and debris everywhere when they're done, but it makes cleanup 100x easier!

Honestly, if you can work with the loggers directly, that would make life much easier. Up here, Janicki logging is doing the work on Galby and our trails have had very little impact on their efficiency during harvest.

My only other advice around rebuilding in a clearcut is to go wider than you think. Stuff will grow like mad every spring, so don't just clear a 2 foot tread. Go wide and expect to brush once or twice a year for 10 years for maintenance.

Cheers,
EB


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## cjohnson (Jul 14, 2004)

*what he said*

we lost 2.25 miles of trail to a tornado. The down timber was salvaged logged, leaving the same landscape as a clearcut.

With no shade some spots become very loose. It is a battle to keep blackberries in check, (thank you Stihl kombi system power scythe). But we have a trail, and the shade will come back.


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## have2ride2day (Nov 7, 2009)

cjohnson said:


> we lost 2.25 miles of trail to a tornado. The down timber was salvaged logged, leaving the same landscape as a clearcut.
> 
> With no shade some spots become very loose. It is a battle to keep blackberries in check, (thank you Stihl kombi system power scythe). But we have a trail, and the shade will come back.


We lost 80% of our trail system in the April 2011 tornados. It is a daily struggle, but we are getting it back.


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## diggingtrail (Dec 12, 2009)

*slideshow of our clearcut*

I took pictures of a section of clearcut to document the process of making something out of nothing. We use manual labor only, no machines, so this trail took a long time to come together. The upside is that it is a much better trail than the one that got destroyed and is now a favorite of all park users.






A Trail is Born: "Rusty Chair" from diggingtrail on Vimeo.

And a video after it started to grow back in. Like others said, it's a PITA to keep the growth knocked back.






Rusty Chair Redux from diggingtrail on Vimeo.


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## Chris Clutton (Nov 8, 2006)

*Sweet*

Nice work! You will have to beat back the regrowth but you have done a great job reclaiming the ride! Love the fog in the build photos and your ride video rocks!



diggingtrail said:


> I took pictures of a section of clearcut to document the process of turning something into nothing. We use manual labor only, no machines, so this trail took a long time to come together. The upside is that it is a much better trail than the one that got destroyed and is now a favorite of all park users.


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## Ridnparadise (Dec 14, 2007)

Hi diggingtrail. Looks like a really good job, although with all the little features along the trail, perhaps the diagonal log-overs should be removed? They are a pain in the wet. Great work and love all the rocks.


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## diggingtrail (Dec 12, 2009)

Chris Clutton said:


> Nice work! You will have to beat back the regrowth but you have done a great job reclaiming the ride! Love the fog in the build photos and your ride video rocks!





Ridnparadise said:


> Hi diggingtrail. Looks like a really good job, although with all the little features along the trail, perhaps the diagonal log-overs should be removed? They are a pain in the wet. Great work and love all the rocks.


Thanks!

The diagonal log only lasted about 6 months at the most. I loved it b/c it was at a tricky location but I agree it wasn't the best option for that area. I just left it instead of cutting it out when routing thru there. It was rotted at a spot on the low side just off the trail and broke off. Once it broke we pulled it off trail and tossed it.


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## Megashnauzer (Nov 2, 2005)

we had gotten our trail just about tweaked when the loggers arrived. they avoided our trail whenever possible but some places got erased. after they were done there was a lot of cleaning up to do. they knocked a lot of stuff over onto the trail and killed some trees that continue to fall across the trail. the bad part was they logged in the late spring so by the time they were done it was way to hot to do any work. it's been about a year and a half and the undergrowth has come back nicely. i managed to add a bit of trail since it was easy to do.


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## jeffw-13 (Apr 30, 2008)

We lost several acres to logging a couple years ago. When they were done we rebuilt better than it was before. The cleared areas are now mostly choked with weeds and need to be cut back occasionally to keep the trails open.


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## Trail Ninja (Sep 25, 2008)

There was no trail before this was clearcut. I try to find cut areas to build in because you know they won't be back for many years.


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## zachi (Jul 25, 2006)

We got hammered by timber sales up near Dnvl this year. They did a good job on cleanup this time, but luckily was only thinning. Could our _Forest_ Trails Alliance even exist in a clear cut?

If they can build in a dessert, I guess we can work it out.

Good points on increased hydrology. Brush is huge with us after clear cuts and we had to develop new hedging techniques to deal with snow crushing the brush into the trail every winter.

Why is there so much massive logging this year when construction and timber value is so low??? End of world harvest, 12,23,12?

A good reason to create good agreements _*before*_ the land is logged. Set backs of 20ft from trail center, restricted crossing points (they are called Breaches), mitigation funds for restoration, etc...

A normal federal timber operation can take two years prior to public notification in process work with NEPA and Forestry / Bid preparation. So by the time you hear of one...really is too late.

I cant imagine dealing with the hurricane damage... A natural disaster is the worst! Who can you blame?

z


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## Trail Ninja (Sep 25, 2008)

I watched this happening from my house. I had a really nice trail going through here. At the time I was very upset until I realized that the logging had opened up the view below. There's nothing we can do on Vancouver Island about the logging because the Provincial government has actually given the land to the logging companies to save administration and policing costs. They can do whatever they want with it now. I just try to make the best of a bad situation.


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## simpterfex (Nov 14, 2010)

buy a stumpjumper...


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## driverdave (Oct 28, 2012)

we have quite a few trails that have been clear cut. with a bit of shovel work, they turn out well, besides the views. i'll try to get some pictures.


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