Note: This is the first part of our trail maintenance highlights series, featuring Southern California and the High Sierra. Stay tuned for part 2 covering the Oregon Cascades and the North Cascades.
SoCal crew in collaboration with the American Hiking Society, Angeles National Forest, PCTA staff, and the PCTA’s longtime Trail Gorillas volunteer group.
Each year, the Pacific Crest Trail Association facilitates a wide variety of trail maintenance projects on the Pacific Crest Trail. Projects range from general annual maintenance – like brush and blowdown clearing and tread work – to reconstructing entire trail sections.
Given that the PCT extends from the deserts and mountains of Southern California to the snowy peaks of the North Cascades in Washington, the seasons for trail projects vary significantly. Although much of the trail is only accessible for a few months, some lower elevation sections are accessible year-round but may be too hot for summer labor. Safety is a top priority when we plan projects. Working conditions (particularly access to water) are among the first things considered when making our project calendar.
PCTA works closely with federal agencies and partner groups to plan and complete projects. Thousands of volunteers, hundreds of corps crew members, and dedicated agency staff get the work done, one trail maintenance project at a time. Whether it’s closer-in day projects or weeklong events in the deep backcountry, the spirit of partnership and “many hands make light work” make it all possible.
We’ve gathered a few examples from 2023 that showcase the kinds of projects that take place all along the PCT. These projects were supported by federal, private, and Great American Outdoors Act funding. GAOA funds are special in that they (among other things) enable PCTA to bring on additional field staff, such as regional trail stewardship coordinators and field project specialists.
Southern California
SoCal volunteers on National Trails Day.
On June 14, 20 PCTA volunteers gathered in the San Gabriel Mountains to celebrate National Trails Day. The group got to know each other over coffee and doughnuts at the Inspiration Point trailhead. Collaborating with the American Hiking Society and the Angeles National Forest, PCTA staff, and the PCTA’s longtime Trail Gorillas volunteer group led general maintenance on a popular stretch of the PCT between Inspiration Point and the Grassy Hollow Visitor Center.
Seasoned volunteer crew leaders, including Tim Morris and Jim Richter, shared their years of expertise with new volunteers eager to learn. Israel Hernandez, recreation management specialist with the Angeles National Forest, worked alongside them as they built rock structures, cut brush, and cleared drains. This work was crucial to help mitigate the effects of the historic 2022-23 winter. Care and attention were put into erosion mitigation to help ensure the trail can withstand general wear and tear and sudden deluges of water, which are becoming more common with climate change.
This trail section had received an unusual amount of snow and roads to the trailhead remained closed well into the spring, making it a planning challenge. But PCTA volunteers, adaptable and enthusiastic as ever, were still able to come together to celebrate, collaborate and work hard. The Inspiration Point project is an example of the types of projects volunteers, PCTA, and partners can complete in a day at a relatively accessible location. But with more than half of the PCT passing through federally designated wilderness, many projects require multiple days.
High Sierra
South Sierra photo of Lily Sporleder, Shoshana Halev, and Dylan Koop. Photo by: James Canada
From late August to mid-September, PCTA staff and an American Conservation Experience Corps crew spent two eight-day hitches in the High Sierra backcountry at Silver Pass. The ACE crew was supported by PCTA coordinators Jake Rawdin, Michelle DiMeglio, Michelle Daneri, and PCTA specialist Andy Nguyen. Additionally, Deb McDougald, a wilderness specialist and forest stock manager from the Sierra National Forest, led a stock team with food and tools for the base camp.
The project continued work begun in 2022 and was supposed to pick up again in July 2023. It had to be rescheduled for August, however, because of persistent snowpack in the High Sierra. The project was then impacted by Hurricane Hilary. Fortunately, when the crew was able to set out, they were rewarded with a full reservoir, lush meadows, blooming wildflowers, and cold, fresh stream water at camp.
Newly repaired steps in Northern Sierra. Photo by: Clare Major
The intended work included replacing a series of eroded check steps. While scouting the site with McDougald, the crew discovered a rock wall that also needed repairs, as well as water bars requiring maintenance. The crew broke into two teams: four to rebuild the wall and everyone else working on check steps and fixing or replacing water bars as time allowed. The Sierra Nevada mountains have excellent granite for building structures, but the rocks are heavy. It took four days to rebuild the wall and construct two new check steps. Next, the whole team turned to a set of switchbacks that stock users were having a hard time getting up. The crew replaced and added 12 steps. They also repaired eight water bars and rebuilt 25 cubic feet of rock retaining wall.
Northern Sierra, Hoover Wilderness Photo by: Matt Rump
Further north in the High Sierra in August, another backcountry project took place in the Hoover Wilderness near Harriet Lake, Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest, just north of Yosemite National Park. This section of the PCT is far from trailheads. Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest staff have been clearing downed trees and keeping the PCT passable here for decades, but recently more erosion issues, structural damages, and subsequent resource damages have called for additional work.
As is often the case, the project required collaboration between PCTA and Forest Service staff and involved folks from the Forest Service as well as a local partner organization. Many of the repairs proved to be extremely technical, but the crew brought the skills to take on the challenge. They removed trees and root wads from the trail, installed extensive rockwork structures, constructed drainage features, and improved creek crossings – all over the course of two 8-day hitches.
Northern Sierra Crew moves rock. Photo by: Clare Major
The crew included Forest Service wilderness rangers Hunter Kruse and Spencer Rogers, Forest Service Trails Manager Elizabeth MacPhail, Friends of the Inyo Trail Ambassador Kelly Kish, PCTA volunteer and section adopter Clare Major, and PCTA regional staff Bobby Hebel, Thomas Calvery, Connor Swift and Matt Rump. They were supported by packers from the local Leavitt Meadows Pack Station. The pack support included transporting tools and gear from a base camp 12 miles from the nearest trailhead. The project was so successful that the PCTA and Forest Service plan to do more work in the Hoover Wilderness in 2024.
Caring for the PCT and the lands through which it passes is led by our incredible volunteers and donors. To get involved in trail work in 2024, contact [email protected], or make a donation to support this on-the-ground work, visit pcta.org/donate.