The Northeast has experienced a very wet 2023 and 2024 promises to be more of the same. January gave us over a foot of snow in 24 hours and 3 days later, rain and 50 degree weather washed away most of the winter white.
In December of 2023, we saw massive amounts of wind and rain with power outages across the state. Trees blocked roads, driveways washed away, and people were evacuated from river towns.
SVLT has adapted to storms, both rain and snow. We own acres of forestland that are affected by high winds and know that blow downs are common after weather events. So, after the December storm, we headed out to see the damage.
Tom Ledue, volunteer trail steward, monitored the property before the clean up and said “there’s considerable tree cleanup needed… there’s about 17 trees on the ground or hanging over the trails. I estimate about 10 are at least 12 inches diameter (mostly pine) and will require some effort to clear. One large pine might require a slight rerouting of the trail as it may not be easy to take down without a set of ropes or ATV to pull down the tree while cutting.”
In other words, this was a big one. Several sections of the trail required intensive removal.
During a clean up day, Tom Ledue sawed and bucked up many large trees, while his wife, Teresa, helped clear the trail of debris.
After a few hours of hard work, our trusty volunteers had cleared the yellow trail up to the intersection of the red trail, and the red trail all the way to the river. They then moved on to the blue loop trail.
Moses Woodman is now clear to explore. Be aware when you’re out and please report any other blow downs or trail issues on SVLT properties. Happy trails!