MSC Arrives at Merrimac

What’s that I hear?  Is that the ping of a pick mattock hitting a rock?  The sawing of a handsaw cutting through a tree limb or bush?  The whirr of a drill driving screws to attach deck boards to a boardwalk?  Ah yes, the first Mobile Skills Crew (MSC) Event of the year was the culprit!  After a winter of weird weather, the off-season for the Ice Age Trail Alliance’s (IATA) MSC was put to bed with a flourish of activity.  The kickoff was held at the Merrimac Segment in Sauk County, on the doorstep of Devil’s Lake State Park.  The objectives were a 1/3-mile reroute with a 30-foot bridge and to refurbish an existing bridge while adding 300 feet of boardwalk to keep hikers feet dry. 

The official start of the project was Friday, but of course people got things going a day or two before that.  Thursday was filled with rain, leaving everyone cold and wet.  I thought it would be a good idea to not work in the rain so I arrived Thursday night with the hope of hitting a clearing in the showers but of course failed and had to set up in the rain.  I’ve spent a lot of nights in my tent and set up in the rain before, but I managed to do an exceptionally poor job this time, leaving my tent nice and wet.  Fail.

The rain subsided over night, but left in its wake a chilly and dreary morning.  We huddled in the shelter of an old horse stable that served as our project HQ and dining area.  The “heat” from the stoves and a heater provided us with meager warmth that allowed us to enjoy our hearty breakfast.  Thelma was at the helm so you know the meals were hearty!  The day began with the regulars reacquainting with one another.  It’s great to see familiar faces like Rich, Bill, Theresa, B Funk, Butch Mon, Groovy Struve, and the Schwilkster.  Pete showed up after finding new employment over the winter working for the Iowa DNR trails program.  He talked his boss and another cohort into coming up for the project.  I’m not sure what they expected, but I think they came away with good thoughts of MSC and the Ice Age Trail (With the project being in Wisconsin and them being from Iowa, it wasn’t hard to impress them with our varied topography and National Scenic Trail). 

The crews were mostly directed north of CTH DL to work on the new bridge and corridor clearing.  The reroute brought the trail along and over an unnamed creek that had been hidden from view because of the pervasive nature of honeysuckle and other invasives.  A small crew was assembled south of DL whose job was to disassemble the existing bridge and cut the boards needed for Saturday and Sunday.  Pete was in charge of this group and if Pete is good for one thing, it’s destruction.

B Funk led the new bridge crew as we hauled in the telephone poles to act as stringers.  Everyone pitched in a hand and both poles were moved the few hundred feet in short order.  Moving telephone poles was a heckuva way to start off the year!  Once the stringers were moved, crews broke off to begin tackling the seemingly overwhelming job of clearing the trail corridor of honeysuckle and Russian olive.  With a tenacious streak from the volunteers, the brush began to fall and dragged to piles to burned next winter.  By lunchtime Bill’s and my crew had drastically changed the scenery.  The hidden stream had been given the Heimlich and released from the choking grasp of the honeysuckle (at least for a short distance). 

Before Bill's crew

After Bill's Crew

All the corridor clearing and restoration work created a lot of burn piles!

It was great to work at the western end of the project area with the bluffs of Devil’s Lake rising through the mist and the glacial plug of the terminal moraine completing the horizon between the bluffs.  When working on the Ice Age Trail, one of the best things you can do is stop and enjoy your surroundings.  The beauty of the glacial landscape is unparalleled in the country, if not the world.  It can be easy to not notice the scenic value surrounding us, so take time and appreciate Mother Nature at her finest (so if you see me standing around at a project, I’m taking time to enjoy the scenery).

Speaking of Mother Nature and her inherent beauty, the Merrimac Segment resides on land once pegged for a coal-fired power plant by Wisconsin Power and Light.  Try and imagine standing on the East bluff at Devil’s Lake looking towards the Wisconsin River only to see a hulking eyesore, irreparably degrading the viewshed and surrounding landscape.  Thankfully the locals came out to defeat the coal plant.  Wisconsin Power and Light realized the coal plant wasn’t going to happen so, you have to give them credit, they turned the property into a preserve.  The property has grown to 1800 acres, a huge swath of land in southern Wisconsin.  The power company created the Riverland Conservancy to oversee the property and efforts to restore and reclaim the land back to a natural state.  Kudos to Wisconsin Power and Light and the Riverland Conservancy for preserving valuable land and hosting the Ice Age Trail in the Baraboo Hills! 

The sun came out and B Funks bridge crew chugged along, moving at great speed as the structure came into form.  Theresa got a crew going corridor clearing, as the soil was still too wet from the rain of the previous day.  By the end of the day, the reroute was completely cleared and brushed back at least 10 feet on either side, setting the stage for the knockout punch on Saturday with the installation of tread.  

Uh oh.  Tim's talking, everyone back up

Thelma whipped up another great meal that we gleefully horked down.  After dinner I got the campfire started as people drifted out to enjoy the pleasant evening before the cold of the night set in.  You never know what kind of conversations will arise around an MSC campfire.  I meant to write down what we talked about but all I can remember is talking about cannibalism… Yep, cannibalism.  The Hoofers arrived and brought a welcomed spark to the evening with their lively game of Hot Coal (or Hot Shalaka if you prefer).  It’s the classic campfire game where everyone wins.  You select a hot ember from the fire and proceed to pass it around, hot potato style.  I know you’re thinking that sounds really dumb, but if you play it right, your hands come away unscathed.  The folks who misplay the shalaka and burn their hand provide laughter for those not in pain.  Another beer always helps eliminate any lasting discomfort from the shalaka.

Hot Shalaka!

Saturday brought sun and warmth, which led to more volunteers.  The Riverland Conservancy provided their own volunteers.  The preserve has strict limits on who can hunt there and to be one of the hunters selected to hunt, you have to volunteer at least 16 hours a year on the property doing conservation work.  Crews again were split on either side of DL with the crews on the north focusing on tread and the south crews working on the bridge and boardwalk.  Bill and Struve led tread crews on the toughest section of trail, tearing into it like seasoned pros.  Matt and I led crews in the “easier” sections leading out to Rozno’s Meadow.  It was great to have a crew of younger folks who take to my sarcastic verbal derision better than other people (my leadership techniques are a little odd to say the least).  Bre, Brent, Matt, Julia, Leah and at times, Forrest learned the 4-step method of building trail (well except for Leah who is an expert already).  They took to the new skills quickly and started pounding out great tread. 

Heeeyyy Baaaabbby

We left the field early to head back to camp for lunch.  This was one of the workdays for Riverland Conservancy so they provided lunch for everyone!  It’s always good to give Thelma and her crew a break from a meal even though she is indefatigable.  The tread was mostly done, except for one section, conveniently next to mine, that needed a rock wall.  Spirit Stick award winner and all-around excellent teacher, Luke, showed up to save the day by joining my crew and tackling the rock wall.  Struve’s group was dissolved and Matt and Bill’s crew finished their tread work and started pushing the corridor farther back.  In the process of removing more invasives, Bill and his crew began opening up a view to an open marshland where they discovered the unnamed stream running.  Who knows where else it flows around the property?

The rock wall came into being slowly but surely with hard work.  At one point we were lifting a heavy rock amongst the jumble of rocks and I looked up to find Leah’s butt staring me in the face.  “Um Leah, please don’t fart.”  It’s always good to laugh while lifting heavy rocks… At the end of the day Craig or should I say 2012 Spirit Stick Award winner Craig came over to me and remarked how my crew looked like they’ve been doing trail work for years.  The folks he was looking at were all new to trail building at the beginning of the day, but caught on quickly.  There were a lot of new people at this project and the story was the same in all the crews, the newbies learned the correct techniques to build sustainable trail.  This is a testament to the great crew leaders we have at MSC events (Me notwithstanding.  My crew performed well more from having Leah showing them what to do, than my teachings).

Poster Child doing his part

Meanwhile, across DL crews re-set the bridge and began the long task of digging postholes, moving tons of lumber and many boardwalk frames.  The Cutting Crew, did not die in anyone’s arms, but instead cut hundreds of boards to create the frames and decking for the boardwalk.  The lumber then had to be carried a few hundred yards to the bridge site where it was laid out for easy access when needed.  With postholes dug out with the gas-powered auger and manual posthole diggers, the posts were set, cross beams bolted in and frames blocked into place.  Next came the decking and finally the kick plates.  The day ended with lots of work left on the boardwalk; it was going to be a push to finish on Sunday.

A few of us headed over to patronage the Barn, a local bar and restaurant run by Amber, a big friend of the Trail.  On the way over I found Fluff Tater standing on the side of the road and asked if she wanted to go.  An emphatic “Yes” was her response. 

The Barn!

Back at camp, everyone was preparing for Thelma’s bread pudding.  It’s a staple and much anticipated dessert at MSC projects when Thelma cooks.  The campfire was lit and the crowd grew accordingly.  Aspen and June discovered the joy of burning dry leaves and kept wanting to throw ever larger bunches on.  Brad would like everyone to know that Thursday night he tied for the honor of last one up and then built on that accomplishment to finish in the top 3 Saturday night.  It’s hard pulling a Crary when there are only 2 other people.  A top 3 finish on a Saturday is way more impressive than a first place finish on a Thursday in mid-April.  Congrats Brad!

Typical Iowa move - take 3 plates of food

Sunday brought more sun, but lots of work.  A crew was sent to finish the rock wall and a few other touch-ups.  We finished in a few hours and headed over to see if the boardwalk crew needed any help.  Heading south, we crested a hill and were in awe of the work going on below us.  Over 20 volunteers were stretched out across the boardwalk in various phases of completion.  The night before Tim had said he wanted 20 people to work there on Sunday, I thought that was a big number, but looking at all the work to do, it may not have been enough!  The bridge was the middle of the structure with the boardwalk branching out on either side.  Construction pushed out from the middle with completed boardwalk creeping closer to either end.  The skeleton of the frames was fleshed out with deck boards and kick rails forming a curvaceous figure. 

The skeleton takes shape

As hard and as fast as the crews worked, the boardwalk would have to wait to be completed.  The tool trailers had been emptied out and the tools cleaned, sharpened and reorganized; the next project was just over a week away.  With everyone out of the field and heading back to camp, Leah and I walked back across the boardwalk to get to my car; we came across the Gray Ghost placing a last few screws.  He couldn’t leave without putting his mind to rest by adding the handful of screws.  The Ice Age Trail volunteers are a very dedicated bunch, always striving for the best trail, befitting of a National Scenic Trail.  

Chet "Gray Ghost" adding the last few screws after everyone's gone home

Fluff Tater with fluff taters!


Looking west towards Rozno's Meadow and the glacial plug

It was a great start to the MSC trail building season.  Friends were reacquainted, bridges were built, invasive species were grubbed out and superb sustainable tread was constructed.  There will be plenty more structures, tread and friendships crafted over the next few months.  Join the community!

Be sure to check out the next MSC project occurring this weekend (May 3-6) outside of Madison near Belleville.  The Montrose segment was started last October with thousands of feet of handcrafted tread across the steep hills.  I was excited about the trail built last year, but after walking the flag line of the soon to be built trail, I realized the real gems of the segment have yet to be built.  The work this weekend will take hikers past rock outcroppings half a billion years old and up to a remnant prairie with big views.  Crews will help with the restoration already in progress and hit a hillside strangled with honeysuckle opening up even more views.  After this weekend, the Montrose segment will be one of the most scenic sections of trail in Southern Wisconsin.