Project Description

The ArrowCorps5 Shasta-Trinity National Forest Project (ASTP) is located in the Shasta-Trinity National Forest an hour drive through 60 miles of magnificent country side north of Redding, California. The California /Oregon border is another 60 miles north. Interstate 5 (I5), a major north-south highway, bisects the project into east and west sections, with the city of Mt. Shasta, at an elevation of about 3600 feet, being at about the center of the entire project elements.

The ASTP consists of several elements of work on the Pacific Crest Trail (PCT), feeder trails to the PCT, illegal dump site clean-up, and fuel reduction. The purpose of the project is to provide much needed assistance to the National Forest with trail maintenance and clean-up that otherwise would not be done. The projects require a range of abilities that should be sufficient to provide all participants with a satisfying experience, while rendering a service to the forest and future visitors.

To the East of the I5, there are two main elements of the project. There will be standard trail maintenance done for the approximately 69 miles of PCT from where is enters the Forest at Peavine Creek to the I5. Standard trail maintenance provides restoration of the trail as needed, and could include installation or re-construction of water bars, tread reconstruction, brushing, possible signage at trail intersections, and restoration and/or construction of new erosion protective structures adjacent to the trail. Additionally, there will be trail maintenance on the approximately 7 mile McCloud Loop Trail, which will include brushing, tread work and route markers. Elevations along these elements of the project vary from 2200 feet to over 6100 feet. Preliminary planning indicates that this work will require approximately 21 crews, with 10 members in each crew.

West of the I5, there have been three trails identified as in need of maintenance. Directly west of the I5, the PCT passes through the Castle Crags Wilderness (CCW), with slightly over 15 miles of trail that needs standard trail maintenance. All work in this area will be preformed with hand tools and/or pole trimmers. No mechanical type of equipment will be allowed to be used on this element of the project. Beyond the wilderness area, there is an additional 46 miles of the PCT out to Bull Lake that will need standard trail maintenance. Additionally, a PCT feeder trail slightly over 24 miles in length, known as the Sisson Callahan Trail (SCT), in also in need of some heavy repair. Some of this trail, about 1.5 miles in length, has gullies 2 to 3 feet deep that will require intense rock work to bring the tread back up and create lead off ditches through adjacent berms. The elevation at the I5 starts these elements of the project off at 2200 feet and can get over 7600 feet, with the average at around 5500 feet. It is presently planned that 4 crews will be needed for the trail within the wilderness, 12 teams on the balance of the PCT, and 18 crews on the Sisson Callahan Trail work.

The final trail project is the construction of a new South Gate Trail at Panther Meadows, north of the city of Mt. Shasta. This 1.1 miles of trail is partially in the Mt Shasta Wilderness and is presently in the environmental evaluation and permitting cycle. It is hoped that the approval process will be completed in time for 2 crews to construction this new trail at a 6500 foot level.

In addition to the trail work, other projects have been identified. Two of the projects will involve the removal of illegally dumped materials in the forest, normally adjacent to accessible roads, within a five miles radius of the towns of Mt. Shasta and Weed. Presently there are 6 crews anticipated for the week long project to clean-up the majority of the sites.

Additional projects have been identified, but are presently in the preliminary stage of definition. They involve maintenance on buildings within the forest and removal of brush from a publicly accessible area of the forest

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