August in the Pacific Northwest is generally fantastic weather wise. So when I signed onto a PCTA work project with the North 350 Blades at Snoqualmie Pass for the last weekend in August, I was pretty sure I was in for a wonderful sunny weekend filled with mountain views and clean crisp air.
Despite sheeting rain, cold and 40 mph gusts that did their best to destroy our camp, I was right.
Blades’ crew leader Barry Teschlog and the rest of the volunteers got the job done in spite of the weather. At aptly named Windy Pass, they worked the trail on Friday, repairing the approaches to a bridge to make it safer for horses.
Volunteers Jack Jensen and Paul Gardiner work to separate timbers that will be used to construct new turnpikes.
When I arrived Friday night, volunteer Daniel Char was putting the final touches on a pot full of Swedish meatballs. I introduced myself around and started getting to know folks. It was chilly and the forecast warned of rain coming in. But we managed to get a few winks before the rain hit hard.
Saturday morning, we sat under tarps and kept warm with coffee and French toast. Sonya Rodgers of Seattle, our crew cook, has been a volunteer trail maintainer since 2007, starting on Washington Trails Association crews before moving to the PCTA in 2011. She started cooking for the Blades a few years ago.
“I really like to be out in the woods,” she said. “I think it’s important to help with the trail. Being a cook is part of being a cog in the machinery so that these people can go out and do a hard day’s work.”
A sign guides the way at the road crossing at Windy Pass.
By late morning, patches of blue sky opened and sun brought warmth as grey clouds whipped by. PCTA Regional Representative Bill Hawley joined us as we mounted up, took a short hike to the PCT and got to work, heading north on the trail to cut back alder and clean out muddy culverts. We clipped and shoveled, peeled layers and clipped and shoveled more, until the rain came again in force. Soon, we headed to camp for a late lunch and a little rest in the shelter of our tents and vehicles.
The area is typical moist Northwest forest, so drainage culverts, turnpikes and other techniques are applied here in force to keep the trail from eroding away. The land here is part of the old railroad checkerboard, a federal land grant to the railroads that helped open the West. The PCT in this area runs through beautiful mature forest and some recent clearcuts. The Plum Creek Timber Co once owned much of this property. The PCTA, the U.S. Forest Service, the Nature Conservancy and others have partnered with Plum Creek, part of a long-term effort to protect this recreational haven east of Seattle.
Thru-hiker “Ram” takes a photo of the North 350 Blades crew.
Volunteer Paul Gardiner of Sammamish, Washington, became interested in volunteering after retiring in 2014 and has taken many training sessions from Bill Hawley, who oversees trail maintenance work in the area. He loves the outdoors and plans to section hike the PCT.
“I haven’t started my PCT hike yet,” he said. “I thought that if I was going to hike the PCT, I should get out and work on it. I just love it. It breathes new life into you every time you come out here.”
Jack Jensen of Kenmore, Washington, hiked 75 miles from Snoqualmie to Steven Pass a few years back. Then he found the PCTA and attended a North 350 Blades meeting held at the Seattle REI store. He now leads projects on a three-mile section south of Tacoma Pass.
Volunteer crew leader Barry Teschlog shovels mud from a buried collection basin.
“I caught a spark and I signed up to be a steward,” he said. “There’s a certain satisfaction in taking care of the trail versus walking it. There’s a social aspect, too. It’s a group of people who enjoy doing the same thing.”
Barry started the North 350 Blades with Jim Miller in 2009. He’d thru-hiked in 2006 and was looking for a way to pay it forward. PCTA just happened to open a Seattle office in 2009. Barry and Jim called separately to volunteer and Suzanne Wilson, the former PCTA regional representative, put the two together. A trail crew was born. That’s the short version, anyway.
“It kind of just happened,” Barry said. “Suzanne led the first work party but she made it clear that it was up to us.”
Crew Leader Barry Teschlog and PCTA Regional Representative Bill Hawley inspect safety improvements to a creek crossing.
After the Saturday afternoon downpour, the rain disappeared for the evening and we all enjoyed another of Sonia’s hot meals before walking to the trail to watch runners from the Cascade Crest 100 come through after dark. It’s a tradition for this crew to cheer for the runners as they pass. These racers must volunteer for a day of trail work as part of their entrance into the race. About 30 miles of the race is on the PCT.
Jane Dods of Eugene came to this project just to see the racers. The 79-year-old former marathon runner says she still feels 19 but can’t run the distances anymore. She’s a longtime PCTA member who used to live in the Los Angeles area and volunteered with Pete Fish and the PCTA Trail Gorillas back in the 1980s. She section hiked the trail from 1996 to 2006 – about 250 miles a year – finishing at age 70.
Volunteer cook Sonya Rodgers begins the evening meal under cover.
“It’s a very nice feeling to give what little I can do back to the trail,” she said. “The trail has given me so much.”
We were in bed Saturday night when the rain really hit. It rained heavy most of the night and by morning, two of the crew’s pop-up shelters had collapsed because they filled with water. Wind made it tough to even break camp.
We managed hot coffee and homemade zucchini bread as we systematically tried to pack the kitchen, wet tents, chairs and gear into the cars. It was a soggy affair, but everyone was smiling.
The weekend reinforced what I already knew about PCTA volunteers: they are tough and selfless individuals who take the long view. They are not going to let a little rain or wind deter them.
Our trail project is never ending. With folks like these carrying the weight, I’m certain the PCT will be here for generations to come.
When rainwater fills a pop-up cover, it will come crashing down.
Want to get involved? Check out our volunteer project schedule and give a “like” to the North 350 Blades on Facebook. Interested in helping the PCT but can’t head out on a volunteer project? Join or renew your membership with PCTA today. Thank you!