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[RC] Trail News - Alleghany Highlands Trail System (Virginia) - saungier@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxThought ya'll might like to hear some good news! Alleghany Highlands Trail System During the March 15, 2008 annual conference of the Virginia Horse Council, everyone was excited about the upcoming completion of the Alleghany Highlands Trail System on the George Washington and Jefferson National Forests. This 63.3 mile trail system will be the end product of what was originally proposed as a horse trail connecting the Virginia Horse Center with the Homestead Resort in Bath County. When that project proved infeasible, the Virginia Division of Conservation and Recreation (DCR) decided to build an equestrian campground at Douthat State Park, and the US Forest Service agreed to further develop its already existing trail system in the area. On March 14, in a show of support for the project, the Virginia Horse Council board voted to donate $1200 towards materials needed during the massive work effort on the trail system. The project is located in Alleghany and Bath Counties, on the James River and Warm Springs Ranger Districts of the George Washington and Jefferson National Forests. The Forest Service has already completed some of the trail work near Douthat under a grant from the DCR, but the big news is that about 1,000 boy scouts, members of the scouting service group called Order of the Arrow, will be descending on the area June 21-28, 2008, to construct all of the remaining trail routes. Of the 63.3 mile system, about 14 miles will be new construction, while the remainder is made up mostly of existing trails and some old closed roads that will be incorporated into the system. The scouts will also be reconstructing or improving much of the previously existing routes, and installing all of the signs planned for the project. The result will be a network of loop trails that can be used by equestrians, hikers, and bicyclists. This is one of five big service projects that the Order of the Arrow (OA) will be implementing on five national forests this summer under an event called "ArrowCorps5." The Forest Service and the OA will be managing the project under the "Incident Command System", a method of management originally developed for fighting wildfires, but now used for managing all kinds of emergencies, including natural disasters and terrorist attacks. OA youth, less than 21 years old, will lead the work, with older OA members and Forest Service employees holding parallel positions and assisting as needed. The Virginia Horse Council hopes that other organizations supporting trail development will follow their lead by donating either funds or in-kind support. The Golden Horseshoe Backcountry Horseman's Association has been working on sections of the trail system for several years and has offered to assist by packing in supplies to the Scouts. Currently, the Forest Service is working on getting the trees and brush cut out of the new trail routes. They are seeking volunteers from the equestrian community to come out on March 29 and do some tread construction work on one of the new trails. This will not involve bringing your horses on that day - plan to come prepared to do some digging! If you can help, contact Sally Aungier or Sharon Mohney (see contact info below). Wear non-skid boots with good tread and high ankles (preferably 8 inches) and bring along a pair of leather gloves, lunch, and plenty of drinking water. For ongoing information on the project subscribe to http://groups.yahoo.com/group/AlleghenyHighlandsTrail. For a map of the trail system visit http://www.vahorsetrails.org/trails.html www.vahorsetrails.org/trails.html For more information contact: Sally Harris Aungier. Chair, VHC Trails Committee Phone 804-379-9829 (evenings/weekends) saungier@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx Sharon Mohney Recreation Forester, James River Ranger District 810-A Madison Avenue Covington, Virginia 24426. Phone 540-962-2214 smohney@xxxxxxxxxx Sally Aungier Sally Aungier =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Ridecamp is a service of Endurance Net, http://www.endurance.net. Information, Policy, Disclaimer: http://www.endurance.net/Ridecamp Subscribe/Unsubscribe http://www.endurance.net/ridecamp/logon.asp Ride Long and Ride Safe!! =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
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