26 JAN 2013 ENO MST WORKDAY

Eno River MST
Trail Work Day
Saturday
January 26th, 2013, 9AM-4PM

Our first Eno River MST trail workday of 2013 will be doing repair work on the Laurel Bluffs and Eagle trails on Saturday January 26th.

We will be meeting at the Eno River Association
headquarters on Guess Road.

We will be cleaning waterbars, removing trash, and working on
repairing the trail near the Guess Road bridge.
We have all of the tools we will need for this workday.
The workday will be canceled in the event of rain or other inclement weather. An Email will be sent out Friday before the workday canceling the event, if necessary.If possible it is great if volunteers can car pool, as parking is limited.

On our workdays last year we repaired the MST/Laurel Bluffs Trail under the Cole Mill Road Bridge, did erosion prevention work, and collected and carried out some trash from the Pump
Station and Laurel Bluffs Trail, including carrying out the frame from a pickup truck. We cleaned water bars, repaired a trail bridge, and built steps, cleaned up trash, and did some muchneeded
work on the connection between the Laurel Bluffs trail and the Eagle trail. We also did multiple workdays repairing the very pretty, but eroded section of the MST/Cabe lands trail
where it runs along the river. We installed trail signs, cut logs, cut brush, filled stump holes, and generally worked to keep this section of the MST trail in good shape.
This year we look forward to continue working on repairing and improving the MST trail along the Eno River. We are also working hard to get permission to build the section of trail connecting
the Eno River section of the MST to the Falls Lake section. Progress has been made on the approval process, and I am optimistic that this will be the year we move ahead on that project.
The FMST Eno River group is now working closely with the Eno River Association on trail
maintenance at Eno River State Park. Kurt Schlimme is coordinating this trail maintenance work.
This collaboration has allowed us to expand the trail maintenance work to the entire park trail network. Kurt is still looking for volunteers to help maintain specific trails on a monthly basis. If
you are interested, contact Kurt at kurt@enoriver.org.
Volunteers under the age of 18 are welcome, but will require a signed parental form.
We want to thank REI for sponsoring the food at our workdays. They have been providing coffee and biscuits to get us started in the morning.
For the MST, our goal is eventually to have a trail that runs the length of this park. However, every bit as important to this project as the building of new trail is the maintenance of the
existing trails, both the MST and the connecting trails. More information about this ambitious project to build a trail across the state can be found at http://www.ncmst.org . Here in the
Triangle, if all goes well, in a few years it will be possible to hike on trail from the Eno River State Park headquarters all the way to the dam on Fall’s Lake.
Important things for the Saturday January 26th workday:
If the weather looks bad, (heavy rain, thunderstorms) then the workday will be canceled. I will send out an E-mail the day before if this is the case. Please dress appropriately. For trail work,
long pants and a long sleeve shirt are often good, as there is a lot of brush and brambles,
particularly along the river. If you choose to wear shorts, be aware that you may get somewhat scratched up.
What you will need.
Work clothes and solid shoes or hiking boots.
Plenty of water
Lunch
Work gloves, if you have them (If not, we have some)
Sunscreen
Work Safely. This is the most important thing, and our main goal.
In particular:
Use tools carefully. If you do not know how to use a particular tool, or what to do in a particular
circumstance please ask. Do not work too close together and be careful with rakes, shovels,
and mattocks to avoid hitting the person next to you. When walking past another volunteer,
please say something so they know you are there.
Do not lift anything heavier than you can comfortably lift.
Know you own limits. This is not a race. We will be working on and maintaining this trail for
years to come. Take plenty of breaks. Make sure to drink plenty of water.
Remember that building trail is not like walking on a finished, well maintained trail. There are holes in the ground to step in, branches to trip over, thorns, wasps, poison ivy (fortunately not too much of that on this segment of trail), ticks, chiggers, and other hazards. Please be cautious.
Have a good time. This is a scenic area. There are box turtles, heron, woodpeckers, deer, beaver, and other wildlife in this area as well as scenic overlooks of the river, and historic sites.