Out of Bounds

 

Not my usual stomping grounds.

Visit #1555, Saturday 11 October 25, 7:15-10:05AM, 4.1 miles, 1.0 lbs. of litter. Temps in the 50s, sunny and pleasant.

Visit #1556, Sunday 12 October 25, 7:15-9:50AM, 3.8 miles, 1.0 lbs. of litter. Temps in the 50s, overcast with rain developing later in the day.

As I mentioned in a Early September post, the Meriden Parks Department is hosting a long range hike in Hubbard Park, in November. It will encompass East Peak, West Peak, and adjacent to Hubbard Park, South Mountain. I attended the hike for the first time last year and have signed up for this year's event. I figured it wouldn't hurt to perform some trail maintenance on South Mountain in preparation for the Three Peaks Challenge since I never go there the rest of the year and I have no idea if anyone else maintains it.

On Saturday I brought only hand tools - loppers, hedge clippers, a pruning saw, and a bag for litter.

I trimmed using what I had on hand and took note of what would need a chainsaw.

The land on South Mountain is comprised of three donated parcels, if I interpret the signage correctly.

The graffiti on the back of one sign is not welcome, and I removed it.

I completed the loop in three hours with a good plan to remove the large fallen trees with the chainsaw.

I returned Sunday morning with just my chainsaw to address the dozen or so spots which needed attention.  I will only show you one example.

I was making quick progress, UNTIL I DIDN'T.

First, my chainsaw got stuck in this tree.

It took a good twenty minutes of wrestling with this until I freed the bar.

Then, no matter how hard I tried, my saw would not run. It would start albeit with difficulty, but when I squeezed the throttle it would die.

I will have to quickly make repairs if I'm to complete the trail maintenance on South Mountain before November's event.