Twelve
volunteers met in the Short Springs Natural Area parking lot at 9:00AM on
Saturday June 30,2012. Everyone signed
in and after safety instructions, we divided ourselves into two work groups. Tennessee Department of Conservation and
Environment Naturalist Robin Wooten led the first group Pat Bigbee, Joan
Hartvigsen, and Linda Hudson. This group hiked in to the wild flower bottom on
Bobo Creek and pulled a good amount of the alien invasive Nepal grass.
Friends of
Short Springs chairman Jeff Stewart led the second group: Brian, Jeanie and Stewart Coulter, Bryan
Webb, Sidney Sexton and Will Perkins.
We went on the Bobo Creek Trail to the plank bridge that crosses Bobo
Creek. Two wide planks had been fastened
side by side by 2”x 2”stringers that had rotted and loosened. The team removed these stringers and replaced
them with 2” x 6” boards that were bolted in place. The team shifted the planks until they were
stable for walking. This was a great
improvement.
The second team
moved along the Bobo Trail and closed a social trail leading away from the over
view area of Lower Busby Creek Falls.
Hiking on we came to a blow down that was cut by chain saw and removed. On the Machine Falls Trail at the top of the
stairs we put more deterrent limbs on a social trail. We descended into the gorge and found the
first team hard at work pulling nepal grass.
We joined in and were almost able to finish the pulling around the loop.
We went back
toward the parking lot but 3 men carried the chain saw to cut and removed a
large down tree from the Machine Falls Trail just down from the power line
right of way. We had no injuries worse than stinging nettles
and returned to the parking lot for rehydration and talking. We did not attempt the placing of the wooden
blocks on the steep steps because of initial concerns about manpower and the 90-degree
plus heat.
Report by Wally Bigbee Work Day Coordinator
Highland Rim Chapter Tennessee trails Association
