New trail addition with 36’ bridge

Meet at the intersection of Greenwood Ave. and Stone Ridge Rd. – Map

Tools provided – should you bring your own – loppers, folding saw, pick mattock, etc.
Gloves, sturdy shoes/boots, eye protection, bug spray, water/snack, recommended

Work until 1 PM or done, light lunch/refreshments provided, possible bike ride to follow

Only severe weather will cause cancellation

Contact: Dan, trailwork@nsnemba.org, 978-618-8596 or
Frank, president@nsnemba.org, 978-580-0236

Sunday September 26, 8:30 AM – Noon
Charles Ward Reservation(Trustees of Reservations), Prospect St., Andover MA
Map

Project is to add several sections of bridging (48′ total) on the Judy Family Trail

Sturdy footwear, work gloves, eye protection recommended, tools provided
A lunch and refreshments will follow, along with a ride, weather permitting

Only severe weather will force a cancellation – work will continue even in wet conditions
Contact: Dan trailwork@nsnemba.org 978-618-8596

The last NSNEMBA Trail Care event for Spring 2010, originally scheduled for Willowdale SF, will be held at Tompson St. Reservation in West Gloucester MA. This Essex County Greenbelt property is home to the Bruce and Tom’s trail system. We will be refining some lines in the Sunset Mountain area, relocating some trail sections, armoring a few spots, and performing general maintenance.

The workday is part of the Trek Bicycles/ NEMBA Trail Care Series. Every NEMBA member attending will get a chance to win a great Trek bike.

We will be working with volunteers from Greenbelt, Dieselbikes, and Sinister Bikes.

Tools will be provided as will some food and refreshments. Given the type of work and rocky terrain, sturdy footwear and work gloves are recommended. Bug spray might come in handy. After lunch, a ride is possible, weather permitting, so bring your bike if interested in riding.

Questions? trailwork@nsnemba.org 978-618-8596

NSNEMBA will be building a section of new trail and associated boardwalk in the morning from 8:30 to 11:30 AM. The project is located on the Willowdale Mill Reservation managed by Essex County Greenbelt Association.

REI will provide event t-shirts to all trail workers who sign uphere.

Throughout the day there are many activities at the Bradley Palmer Headquarters area – additional trail projects, walks, displays, hayrides, kid’s bike slalom race, music. Lunch can be purchased for a reasonable price at the site or bring your own picnic to enjoy on the lawn. For a full listing of the day’s events and sponsors see:

http://www.ectaonline.org/news/join-ecta-for-national-trails-day-june-5

It’s a wonderful event for families and children.

At 1:45 PM, after the REI bike raffle, NSNEMBA will lead 2 mountain bike rides. One will be a beginner/family ride on easy trails in Bradley Palmer about an hour in length. There will also be a longer intermediate level ride that will head over to the Willowdale singletrack for 2 hours.

Come enjoy part or all of the day supporting and celebrating the great trails that we have in our area!

Contact trailwork@nsnemba.org if you have any questions.

There will be a number of different approaches used in several locations along the trail – reroutes, a short causeway, drainage features, a boardwalk. When we are done we will retire to the Ward Reservation parking lot for some refreshments and go for a ride.

Meeting location is along Tucker Road, Andover MA. Please do your best to park off the road and away from nearby driveways and mailboxes. Map As usual, the meeting time is 8:30 AM. Hard to picture any weather that would keep us away, but any changes will be noted in the mtb-northshore mailing list and the NEMBA.org forum.

Part of the Trek/NEMBA Trail Care Series, each work day giving you a chance to win a Trek bike at the end of the season.

Contact trailwork@nsnemba.org with any questions

To find the trail make your way to the Bay Circuit Trail, marked with white blazes. Follow the BCT toward 114, crossing Middleton St. near the picnic pavilion and the entrance to Andover Sportsman’s Club. The sound of gunfire from their firing range is often heard and can get you headed in the right direction. About ½ mile north of Middleton Rd. Lock ‘n’ Load starts by heading west on an old woods road, marked with blue arrow blazes.

After gaining some elevation, the singletrack starts. Soon you will find some rolls and drops, some with multiple options. Do look at some these features closely before attempting to ride them.  There are easy lines around anything serious (if headed north stay left for the tamer lines). While the trail works in either direction, south to north makes best use of the terrain.

From the northern end of the L ‘n’ L, you can loop south through the backyard trails and the Ledges Trail back to Middleton St. or head out toward 114 on the Bay Circuit.

The trail was mostly built in 2 work days with 14 volunteers each day. Countless additional hours were put in by a core crew in preparation for the trail days and final completion of remaining details. Thanks to all who contributed to the creation of another great trail in Harold Parker.

Kirk gets the first shot at some of the rock features…

It’s a pretty ambitious effort, so we have 2 days back to back April 10 and 11, with a good possibility of a 3rd on April 24. 2000′ of rocky sidehill to traverse with new singletrack (lots of benching and rock work), several boardwalks to haul in and construct, rehab an old woods road. With plenty to do, we are hoping for a lot of help.

Joe and some slackers have been out getting it all ready.

roll or huck?

When: Saturday 4/10 and Sunday 4/11, 8:30 AM start to about noon – 1PM.
Where: Meet/park at the DCR Picnic Pavilion, Middleton St., North Andover MA Map
Bring: Sturdy footwear, work gloves, your own digging tools, bug spray, water bottle
Contact: Dan Streeter  trailwork@nsnemba.org  978-618-8596
Lunch will be provided and a ride will follow, weather permitting.
Only heavy rain will cancel. Cancellations/updates will be posted to mtb-northshore email list and the NEMBA forums. Call if lost or you have questions.

Hope to see you there.

The plan was to do some work along the Bay Circuit Trail where it crosses Jenkins Rd. A large boardwalk was constructed on the east side of Jenkins where recent beaver activity had flooded the trail. Some of the NS members helped haul lumber from Jenkins Road to the work site. However, the ATC members took responsibility for building this large boardwalk. While most of the ATC members built the large boardwalk, everyone else headed over to the west side of Jenkins to build a smaller plank boardwalk, close down an old trail, and perform some routine drainage work.

Last September, NS NEMBA rerouted the trail heading west from Jenkins towards the glacial erratic (Details of this Project). During the September project, we closed down a portion of the original trail that went through a large pit. However, we left open the remainder of the original trail. Today, some of the volunteers spent time closing down the original trail. Also, along the September reroute is an intersection for a trail that heads towards Skug Reservation. The very beginning of this Skug Reservation Trail can be very muddy, so a short plank boardwalk was built over this muddy section.

The planned work for the west side was wrapped up very quickly today. So once completed, we checked on the progress of the large boardwalk and then headed back to the Jenkins parking lot to perform some routine work on the Root Ball trail. This is the trail that begins just beyond the open area near the parking lot.

Our next trail day is on April 25th and will also take place at Harold Parker. Details