East Cadillac Trail Modding

Scroll waaaaay down past all this annoying text to view the photos! Also known as "Lower Cadillac" Trail. 14 Oct '07 - photos to #111: A build (berm construction and debris removal for drainage correction) adjacent to marker #46C on Cadillac Trail. Berm currently bypassed by new lowside and highside trail segments. 19 Jan '08 - photos 112-126: The first barbed wire removal party. Westward from the Hill of Death to Fishing Finger #6. 26 Jan '08 - photos 127-155: The second barbed wire removal party. Westward from Fishing Finger #6 to the parking lot. These two wirey workdays were preparation for a weeklong trail building visit from Woody Keen beginning 28 Jan. Woody was last here Dec '07 during an IMBA/SORBA Trailbuilding School: http://tallahasseetrails.smugmug.com/gallery/3996331 Woody's company: http://www.traildynamics.com/ 28 Jan '08 - photos 156-252: Scouting/layout/flagging Monday with the Trail Dynamics crew. A huge reworking of "Cadillac Trail East" from the parking lot to the Hill of Death was done. What was a 1.5M point-to-point is now a 2.5M loop with a 2Km "highside" and 2Km "lowside." To make the comparison meaningful, those distances are taken from as near common points as possible. (Cadillac Trail "West" was not affected.) 29 Jan '08 - photos 253-339: Most photos are of the "lowside" crew as we cut and cleared, bucked and swamped the corridor. This was rough preparation for Woody Keen and Valerie Naylor to actually carve the singletrack with their magic machines. 30 Jan '08 - photos 340-416: We worked to clear the highside corridor - complete by lunch. I missed mid-afternoon to end of the day. GPS track of the highside corridor (some revision could be possible): http://trail.motionbased.com/trail/activity/4881219 31 Jan '08 - photos 417-481: Began some finish work behind the machine cut trail, lowside at Hill of Death westward through Sherwood Forest. Even managed to get in a post workday night trail ride with Valerie for attitude adjustment. GPS track: http://trail.motionbased.com/trail/activity/4886045 1 Feb '08 - photos 482-551: Framing the ravine bridge, more benchcutting, stumpgrinding/rootraking and tread defining. Basically, getting as much machine work done as possible before the weekend workparties arrive. 2 Feb '08 - photos 552-667: The Saturday group Cadillac workday. Ravine bridge finished, several mini-ravines bridged/armored, tread prep on the lowside nearing completion. 3 Feb '08 - photos 668-789: The Sunday group Cadillac workday. Sheldon Brown passed away today. Sheldon: http://sheldonbrown.com/harris/index.html and http://tinyurl.com/329q9q More tread refinement/finish work all over the place. Rock armoring the Hill of Death. Berm placement in Sherwood Forest (needs to be refined). 4 Feb '08 - photos 790-791: Val/Woody/Lisa goodbye look at the little bridges. 6 Feb '08 - photos 792-818: A rainy evening walk on the new lowside trail from the Big Hickory to the Hill of Death. I was checking for drainage and tread wear problems on this greasy, machine chewed section. Tread improvement will be necessary. Tread prep was neglected/rushed due to everyone being pulled to work on armoring the Hill of Death. The raw tread has been heavily ridden, and didn't receive proper finish work after the build week. No biggie - we just need to shave some areas, do some tamping. Finishing tread is not as sexy as adding special or technical trail features. But it beats closing the trail and using the doubletrack to get to the Hill of Death! 10 Feb '08 - NO PHOTOS. Treadwork on highside in Sherwood Forest, lowside from Big Hickory Tree through Sherwood Forest. Work continued on Hill of Death armoring. Measured the abandoned/replaced East Cadillac Trail segment to see how much trail's been added with the new loop. GPS track of old East Cadillac: http://trail.motionbased.com/trail/activity/4954617 Comments on that track: "Measuring abandoned trail. Lumpy actual distance 2.43Km ~1.5M. Takes into account one small error. Measured from woods east of [holding] pond to New lowside/highside old trail common point." That makes the net gain something over one mile. (Lumps add distance, so the 2.43Km/1.5M on the calibrated odometer is longer than reality.) No, I'm not going to go back and smooth out the lumps to get a more accurate measurement - like it or lump it. Want more TTF (technical trail features) NOW? So do these PG-13+ guys: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sdobNE4xWP0 With a gallery full of shots, you may find it easier to navigate if you change the gallery "style" (top right) from "smugmug" to "all thumbs." Or "slideshow" or "filmstrip" or . . . you get the idea, it's configurable by you. I usually like "journal." THIS SITE is private property, and doesn't necessarily represent any other individual or organization. You are welcome to download/use my photos for your private enjoyment, including printing them. Any other usage/linking must come from me in writing (email ok), with credit given. Questions, pre-scoldings, comments, ID, complaints? Thanks, John Kalin Email me "If I fall you're going down with me" - Trail running advice from my Dixie Chicks http://www.tallahasseetrails.com/