By John Roberts
The Oakland Devo middle school mountain biking team did their share of trail work this season. Covid did not stop these youngsters from improving the drainage at Joaquin Miller Park and then some. Following various precautions including wearing face masks, workdays were broken up by pods. One pod insured there was proper drainage on the Sinawik and Palos Colorados Trails on both sides of the Palos Secos Creek (between the stone and wood bridges). The latter trail is also affectionately known by the youth as “pipeline“.
The second pod worked on another separate day. The second pod insured there was proper drainage on the Sunset Loop Trail. The reason this last trail was more work is because it has many railroad ties for erosion control that have already been swamped by dirt getting pushed down the trail on rainy days. The work involved digging spoon-tip knicks right before these railroad ties to ensure the water on the trail drains off instead of staying and running down the trail, causing erosion.
In addition, the second pod encountered another work project that needed help. A separate volunteer group was putting the Fern Trail sign back up after it had fallen because of wood rot. These other volunteers did not have a way to dig into the rock as they only possessed a post-hole-digger. The youth came to the rescue and dug the two holes into the rock using their borrowed BTCEB trail tools.
Many of the youth worked with their bike helmets on for safety and also park users get to know know who is working the trails. Many on the Oakland Devo team have already done trailwork at Tamarancho, and Crockett. This means they will be able to handle more complex trail work projects next season.
Thanks to these great athletes, Joaquin Miller Park will be in better shape for the next rain season.
