Busy, Chaotic, but Successful September Updates
– Overall, the month of September was super busy, as well as hectic at times. However, the craziness of it all paid off with lots of projects getting planned/completed and volunteer projects being accomplished.
– With autumn approaching, trail use has seemed to decrease slightly, while users are preparing for the leaf foliage display that is set to arrive in a few weeks.
– Synchronized trail counts are COMPLETE for the 2012 trail use season! The final trail count of the season took place Saturday, September 22. The data compiled from this year’s trail season will be used in the end of the year’s final trail use report of the GAP. A special thanks to all of my dedicated volunteers, who have sacrificed time with their friends and families to help harvest data to help the Trail Town Program!
– Manual trail counts are still underway, as the season begins to wind down. We plan to continue trail counts as long as the weather permits, aiming to complete this project by the end of September. Again, the data collected from manual trail counts will be used in the final report of the 2012 trail season.
o Rockwood’s trail counter was moved to a new location on the GAP trail. Instead of being on the south side of the trail, it is now located on the north side. The original intention of the trail counter was to be located north, however, there was miscommunication at the beginning of the trail season in May as to where the post needed to be. My supervisor, a volunteer, and I ventured out onto the trail mid-September to dig a new hole, insert a new trail post, and cement it into the ground. A simple task you might think? Think again. Ballast from the past railroad, snakes, bobcats, and tricky combination locks, were obstacles faced during the process. Despite these minor setbacks, we accomplished our final task after much determination!
