Hey gang, this work & fly party is coming up soon. I was thinking a tentative list of people planning to attend should be helpfull, to better coordinate our efforts and in case anyone wishes to carpool.
Attached is a excel spread sheet to list your name, phone, and date planning to attend. Please fill free to mark in your date(s). For this upcoming first week Please Send your response back to me by No Later Than Friday, Sept-21st. I will then post a updated sheet by Sept-22nd.
For later dates, feel free to fill those in too or you can add them later. I will post an updated list each week.
Last year a couple of us shared a Hotel. It was close to town and the price was most reasonable at:
Mountain View Motel & RV Parkmore infoAddress:
Not true?Show all editsNot true?
Placement on map is approximate83450 Joseph Highway
Joseph, OR 97846
Get directions
(866) 262-9891
Dave
________________________________
From: Todd Weigand <toddweig...@hotmail.com>
To: CPC Groups <cpcl@googlegroups.com>
Sent: Monday, September 10, 2012 9:05 AM
Subject: CPC: Mt. Howard work party!
Hey CPC pilots,
Just wanted to invite all of you over for the final stage of the Mt. Howard launch improvement! This is our last chance to make any changes on the launch as the permit will expire on October 31st! Come on out and let's get it finished!
Just to recap for anyone who is unfamiliar with the project. The site is very sensitive to the public and involves multiple agencies (Federal Forest Service, Oregon State Parks, Oregon Division of State Lands, private land owners, Oregon Fish and Wildlife, and the Wallowa Lake Tramway). I initially approached the Forest Service back in 2002 with the hope to improve the launch. Funding was collected from the Foundation, CPC, and private donations from around the NW to pay for the Biological Assessment and Biological Evaluation which was required by the Forest Service. A few issues, one involving a bald eagle's nest (within 1/2 mile of the lakeside landing field), and a few incidents with visiting pilots put the project on hold for a few years. A permit was finally granted in July of 2011 to improve the launch.
Last October, many members of the CPC and other areas contributed hard physical work in some tough conditions during the first stage of the launch construction. We cut down most of the trees on the first day, and spent the next 2 weeks removing root wads and boulders! Thanks to Michael Flemming, Dave Cantrell, George McPherson, Peter Barry, Douglas Peck, Nick Fulmor, Jim Baldo, Luke Danielson, Dan Wells, Jeff Whishney, Megan Rose, Matt Beechnior, Rusty, and James Bender for the hard work!
Now we just need to remove the remainder of the boulders and haul a few truck loads of dirt to spread around and level the launch area. Native grass seed from the surrounding area will be broadcasted and certified weed free grass straw will be used as a mulch to reduce any erosion and promote vegetation growth. I will only be able to haul the dirt out to the launch when the conditions are ok (minimum impact on vegetation and soil), which will probably be first thing in the morning when the ground is frozen.
The more people we can get working on the boulders the better! With a small group (2-5 workers), I estimate that we could be removing rocks for around a week before we start hauling dirt. If a larger group shows up, we could start hauling dirt earlier. Anyway, there is plenty of work to be done, so the more that show the quicker we can get finished! Hopefully the weather will hold a bit longer this year!
So, here is the schedule:
Sept. 26-30th: "Unofficial start of rock removal"
We will be able to do some rock removal during this time. I will be in Joseph by Sept. 26th to take advantage of the last few days that the Wallowa Lake Tramway will be open to the public for the 2012 season. If the flying is good, I plan to fly a bit. If not, I will be prying rocks out of the ground! The Alpenfest will also be happening the last weekend of September for some side activities. Any P-4 pilots are welcome to come out and fly/work on the launch with me!
Oct. 1st-7th: "Official start of work party"
The tramway is closed to the public, the tourist season is over, time to get to work on the launch before it starts snowing! I hope we can get all the rocks/roots removed this week! I also plan to burn the giant slash pile from last year when it gets cold! The tramway will be available to give us a lift up to the top most mornings, and then we can fly down in the afternoon when we are finished (or take the tramway if not flyable). If the tramway is not available, then we will be driving up the service road, but they should be doing maintenance work most of the week and are going to help us with transportation as much as possible.
Oct. 8th-16th: "hauling and spreading dirt"
This depends on how much work we get completed during the first week. Hopefully most of the rock removal will be completed and we can start hauling dirt out to the launch earlier. I will have a skid steer halfway up the service road where I will be loading dirt into the back of my pickup. Then, when the conditions are ok (minimum soil compaction when ground is frozen), I will be able to haul up to 5 truckloads of dirt out to the launch area. We will need to unload this dirt and spread it with manpower! After the soil has been spread, we will broadcast the local native seeds and spread certified weed free straw. And that should be it! :)
I believe that Dave Cantrell has some burlap erosion control material that we can place in the heavy use area.
Bring some good gloves! We could use a few more rock bars, palaskis, picks, adze hoes, rakes, and shovels if you have any.
There should be lots of room at the Wallowa Lake State Park campground which is near the gondola and the lakeside landing zone (large at this time of the year). Bring your gliders and let's fly down after working!
Please contact me and let me know if you are planning to come out! :)
Cheers,
Todd
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Todd Weigand
wallowaparaglid...@gmail.com
http://www.paraglidingtrips.com/
http://www.paraglidingtrips.com/
http://www.paraglidingtrips.com/
http://www.nzgforce.com/
GRADIENT http://www.gradient.cx/
+1.541.325.9407 (USA) (after September 21st)
+1.778.883.9443 (Canada) (before September 21st)
+64. 21977415 (New Zealand)
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Mt. Howard Restoration 2012.xlsx
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