The Mountaineers and WTA Team Up To Make a Difference on Earth Day Weekend

It rained non-stop on the Wynoochee valley in the southern Olympics on Earth Day weekend, April 22-23, 2017, but that did nothing to dampen the spirits of 27 members of The Mountaineers who volunteered alongside four Washington Trail Association (WTA) crew leaders for the first trail maintenance stewardship project between the two organizations. 

Conceived and organized by The Mountaineers Olympia Branch Conservation and Stewardship Committee, the trail work was supervised and directed by WTA on the northwest section of the Wynoochee Lakeshore Trail. Everyone except the winter storms had neglected this lovely trail through old growth forest, so our group needed to clear back undergrowth and remove downed trees to make it hiker-friendly. 

The combination of Mountaineers enthusiasm and energy along with WTA knowledge and trail work skills proved to be a winning combination. Besides Mountaineers from Olympia, the work party drew members from the Seattle, Tacoma, and Kitsap branches. Cheering each other on, the group sawed, clipped, and chopped their way through more than two miles of trail, enjoying a sense of accomplishment in making a beautiful trail accessible to others. At the end of the weekend Mountaineers were heard exclaiming “let’s do this again next year!”