Yesterday, July 2, 2021, we hiked Rocky Point trail to remove a fallen tree reported Thursday by Phil Cromer on Thursday. It was a 15-inch diameter dead fir that was across the trail at about waist height completely blocking it. It also took down several small aspen trees whose leafy branches contributed to the blockade and also created spring poles that had to be cut away to allow access for the needed cuts. Although the base of the tree displayed some rot, the upper trunk was solid and provided a good workout with a crosscut saw. After two cuts and some work with the cant hook, the tree was cleared away.

The fallen tree was not present when we hiked this trail the previous Friday, so it had not been down for long. There was no evidence of any walk-around on either end of the tree. We started the hike early to avoid expected crowding later in the day, which happened as expected. The morning was cool and partly cloudy with increasing clouds as morning went on. Large fog banks covered the mountain early in the day. There were puddles on the service road and the trail was quite moist. The mountain is responding to the rain and the vegetation has shed its recent stressed appearance. More flowers are beginning to appear.