Hitch 1 - Indian Crossing Trailhead

June 6 - June 14, 2011

Greetings from Joseph! Our first hitch was a success. We worked from the Indian Crossing Trailhead, which follows the mighty Imnaha River into the Eagle Cap Wilderness. The forest surrounding the trail is recovering from a forest fire and is full of charred and downed trees.

Starting on Monday we drove from along the Imnaha River to the Indian Crossing campground just outside of the wilderness. Route 39 still had snow on it, so we had to take the long way. From Tuesday to Friday we brushed over 8600 feet of trail. On Saturday, we built 7 drainage dips and 5 notches. These were built in order to allow water to easily be diverted off the trail in wet spots. We also redirected a stream that was flowing onto the trail. This helped dry out approximately 300 feet of trail that was previously rushing with water. On Sunday and the first half of Monday we brushed another 3250 feet. On the second half of Monday we hiked further up the trail to inspect further damage. We found many downed trees and a bridge that needed replacement. The scenery on the hike was beautiful and, besides quite a few run-ins with ticks, was very enjoyable. On Tuesday we returned to Joseph along the same route with hopes to find our trailer’s license plate that had disappeared on our way in. We failed to spot it, but we made it back safely and de-rigged from the hitch. Now we’re waiting for some snow to melt so we can go deep into the backcountry and continue our fine work!

- Joe

Hitch Totals:
Trail Cleared Of Brush & Branches: 11,875 feet
Trail Cleared Of Running Water: 300 feet
Drainage Structures Completed: 12