Getting There
Since the Historic Highway 30 is closed between Wahkeena Falls and Multnomah Falls, you have to take I-84 to Ainsworth and double back to the Oneonta Falls Trailhead.
I was the first to arrive but the rest of the work crew showed up shortly thereafter.
I left both water bottles at home. Fortunately, Oliver showed up and had extra. He gave me a full bottle of water. Thank goodness because I needed it.
We had the safety talk and geared up.
The Hike
Elevation Gain: 765 feet
Highest Elevation: 650 feet
This was a trail work party with TKO but we did a decent hike so I added to the stats.
The original project plan was to replace the gabions on one of the switchbacks but scrapped due to unfavorable weather forecast. So they would be stolen at the trailhead, we carried the the gabion cages up to the #400 Gorge Trail junction.
I carried a grub hoe and snatch block. We were going to be fixing the tread along the way but the main goal was to clear some trees and root balls near Triple Falls.
At our first big task, we had to bring down a tree that was suspended over the trail. While evaluating the cut plan, I started limbing the trunk as far up as I could reach. I felt fine but out of the blue, I got really woozy. I had to sit on a rock and let it pass over me. I didn't want to alarm the new orange hats. After 10 mins, I finally felt good enough to start moving again.
I went back to my pack and ate one part of my sandwich and drank some water. I didn't want to be the "new" guy that needed help. Note to self: make sure you hydrate and eat sufficiently before a strenuous hike & work party.
We cut down the log but it didn't roll off the trail. We used the old "butts & boots" method to got it off the tread. Basically, you sit on the ground or hillside (on yer butts) and collectively push the log (roll it) with your boots. There wasn't much tread repair so we wrapped it the task. The rest of the team was already having lunch at Triple Falls.
We met them and started out lunch while reviewing the next task.
It was a bit of a complex situation. There was a big root ball right off the trail. The goal was to cut it off and roll it off the hill. There were some other trees that it was rest on, a bind. We spent a lot of time preparing the root ball by removing dirt and rocks to expose the wood (roots).
We had two crosscut saws working in parallel and some long-bladed hand saws.
A hiker showed up but had to wait while we B&B'd a log off the trail. When the coast was clear, I learned he was just hanging out to watch us work, fascinated by the process.
The main root ball turned out to be a tough task than expected. We used a rope and winch to pull the cut pieces but it was quite stubborn. After cutting the root ball off the trunk and pull it upright with winch it landed in the middle of the trail instead of tumbling over the side of the cliff. Crap!
It was getting later in the day and we still had to hike back down to the trailhead. We could leave it as-is.
We identified some roots that could be cut to make the ball actually roll. We took turns on the saw as folks' energy was waning.
Triumphantly, we got the job done. The piece fell into the ravine and we quickly repaired the tread. Woohoo! Teamwork.
We packed up and started our descent.
