Hello Skiers,

 

The email below from Bob Lowder, president of the Friends of the Sandia Mountains (FOSM) reports the 37 trees that his crew of 7 volunteers removed from Crest Area Trails on Monday, December 2, 2019, with chain saws. The crew worked on snowshoes.

 

Photographs of the project are presented in the attached Word document.

 

Ski Club members Eric Russell and Byron Garner were in this crew.

 

Numerous Ski Club members are also members of FOSM.

 

Sam Beard, Trails Chair

New Mexico Cross Country Ski Club

 

 

 

----- Original Message -----

Hello Everyone:

 

Yesterday, Monday, December 2, 2019, the FOSM Trails Maintenance Crew removed a total of 37 trees from Crest area trails. Areas covered include Kiwanis Meadow Road, Buried Cable and Switchback trails. Chainsaws, crosscut saw and other hand tools were used for this work. The trees ranged in size from 3 to 24 inches in diameter.

 

The weather was mostly clear and cold. There was good snow cover on all the areas the crew hiked. The snow appeared to be from 14 to 18 inches in depth with deeper drifts in spots. Snowshoes or skis are required to move safely on the trails. The Crest road was mostly clear but with icy spots in shaded areas. It looked like all the paved parking areas have now been plowed. The snow ranged from slightly packed to unpacked and quite loose. There were a few sunny areas with thin coatings of crunchy ice. The loose snow presented uneven traction, especially for those carrying heavy packs and tools. Overall there does seem to be a good base of snow for the upcoming winter.

 

Based upon observation of the crew and trail condition reports that are starting to come in, it appears that the Sandias have suffered a repeat of the massive damage done by the windstorms last spring. There is still a lot of work ahead to clear the trails of fallen trees.

 

Yesterday's crew consisted of Byron Garner, Cliff Giles, Jerry Pekarek, Jim Levesque, Eric Russell, Cleve Sharp and Bob Lowder.

 

Please see the attached Word document for photos and additional narrative.

 

Bob L.