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This is a call to any Glasgow-based riders to let you know about plans for some maintenance of the existing trail network up at Mugdock Country Park. Back in November GMBC approached the Park Rangers to offer help to maintain the trails. After some discussions and a walkabout the Rangers are really enthusiastic to get local bikers involved. To that end GMBC have teamed up with the Meet Up group to enlist volunteers and there's been a great response from both groups. But there's probably quite a few folks on here who don't subscribe to either group so I thought I'd spread the word.
There are 3 dates planned at the moment (all of which are Saturdays), 11th February, 10th and 24th March (10am - 3/4pm). More details of the specific tasks involved will be available closer to the time. At this stage it's just to make you aware of it so you can mark it in your calendars if you're interested.
If you have a burning desire to participate in organising & leading the trail maintenance work then please get in touch with GMBC Committee Member, Graham, at the email address below as some initial training & survey work (prior to actual maintenance work) will be starting this Saturday for the leaders. NB: by direct request of the Ranger places are limited on this initial training/survey session so you won't be guaranteed a role but any experience of trail work could be useful to us so will be considered.
If you want to volunteer for the maintenance sessions in Feb/March then send a note of your interest along with which dates you're available to grahamDOTandertonATgmbcDOTorgDOTuk.
It won't be easy but with some hard graft early on in the season the hope is we can maintain the trails in the face of increasing use by all of Mugdock's visitors. It's a chance to show that we're prepared to give something back and it'll be a sociable effort too. Hope some of you can make it along to at least one of the sessions.
Thanks
Iain
11th Feb is in my diary. Looking forward to it, should be a laugh.
Great idea.
Sadly Saturdays are no good for me as a rule. However, I'll do my best to make at least one of these maintenance days.
Excellent, the more the better !
Which types of trail are you maintaining and in which area? I only ask as I do very little riding within what I believe is Mugdock park itself and am not clear of the boundaries of the park/ranger authority.
mr plow - as we are doing this with the Park Authority we are only working within the park. This includes areas like Drumclog Moor up to the visitor centre and as far down as the riverside trails, but not out over the road to the top moor.
cheers
This should be a very interesting and worthwhile exercise.
The erosion on a lot of the trails has been bad in the last year, with horrendeous weather and quite heavy use. It will be good to put something back and try and protect as many trails as possible from getting any worse.
Over the last while we have been conciously avoiding a lot of the affected trails to try and help them recover - Riverside, Rocky Rooty, etc, and of course have been avoiding Pietche's moor.
I do hope this is a sucess.
Check out this site and you might get more helpers - http://www.trailscotland.co.uk/forums
thanks trekstar - one of the GMBC Committee guys is on there too 🙂
Saw the group out today at the riverside trail.
First time up there this year. I headed up to the plantation/voodoo hill and can say that it has been pretty much decimated by the recent winds. Headed up flux by the cow shed but would guess the other entrance is ruined with tree fall. All the good steep tracks on voodoo are covered in massive trees apart from the one at the end with the drop (still has one small broken tree over it but I will sort it next time) but none are easy to get to. Lots of climbing over stuff with my bike.
Other areas close to the top Mugdock moor are also covered in trees including quite a few trails. Someone has chainsawed a load of trees at the top of voodoo but it looks to be for safety and not access. It actually blocks the usual access to the top of the trails and where they link up with flux and cliff run...
Pretty much all the trails I enjoy riding have massive trees over them. 🙁
I will try to get to the first maintenance day. I hope to learn something and maybe meet some people that want to do something sympathetic with voodoo hill which may open up some fun tech riding in it again without causing conflict with users/owners etc.
Maybe working with the Mugdock rangers will lead to working with others in the area. 🙂
yep, riverside is the first port of call, looking to put in some drainage around the muddy sections..cracking piece of trail but to be honest I have rode there for over a year due to the condition of the trail so will be good to see if any of the drainage ideas work 😕
Voodoo and the Plantation are outside the Park, so are not being considered in the initial bout of maintenance. However as you say Mr Plow, there is the possibility of working with other landowners round and about if this is sucessful.
Also, I see nothing wrong in clearing fallen trees that are blocking paths, it probably helps the walkers and other users too.
Looking forward to the first real session!
Unfortunately the trees that have come down in the plantation and voodoo are massive.