On Saturday we had a great group of 15 representing Sandia Nordic Ski Club, Friends of the Sandia Mountain and Volunteers for the Outdoors up on the cool and shady Klaus Trail for our first Saturday session of the year. We split into two groups with one group doing finish work along a section previously leveled with the mini-excavator. The second group removed old logs and branches piled up along the edge of the trail decades ago done at that time in support of the UNM ski team led by Klaus Weber.  Workers included Jenny Blackmore, Sim Cook, Jon Dellios, Scott Dietrich, Paul Gourley, Vicky Kaufman, Glen Koelling, Mike Madden, Chris Mommsen, Steve Roholt, Luke Schnickel, Michael Arndt, Ralph Wrons, Chris Murray and Jeff Huser.  Both tasks were handily completed, and we will continue with leveling, and a couple reroutes to make the Klaus trail into a very nice  addition to our groomed trail system. Look for more Saturday opportunities in the weeks to come.
Kneeling L to R: Scott Dietrich, Mike Madden, Steve Roholt, Vicky Kauffman, Gita Standing L to R: Luke Schnickel, Glen Koelling, Michael Arndt, Sim Cook, Jenny Blackmore, Jeff Huser, Paul Gourley, Jon Dellios, Chris Murray, Ralph Wrons. Chris Mommsen (not pictured)
The new and improved Klaus trail. We plan on completing work to be able to groom this approx. 1 mi of trail next season.
The combination of superb weather, decent snow conditions, great turnout of SNSC members and skillful instruction by Jon Dellios, Karl Walczak and Lis Quinley was the formula for a very successful clinic. Skiers ranging in abilities from beginning to advanced were all striding, gliding and skating with noticeably greater proficiency and enjoyment by the end of the clinic. For those of you who missed the clinic or wish to continue to improve your technique, Jon Dellios has availability for additional private lessons ( www.sophrosynenm.com sophrosynenm@gmail.com ) . Thanks to all who attended and for your support of SNSC.
A super nice fall day on the mountain and a great hard-working group digging and pulling stumps and doing finish work at the Bunny Hill reroute. The crew of Scott Dietrich, Steve Roholt, Sim Cook, Tim McDonald, Liz and John Quinley, Bill Stanley, Pat and Mike Madden, Bruce Hansche, Jon McCorkell, Eric Spoerke and Michael Arndt and myself utilized the SRD griphoist device to pull stumps clearing the way for leveling and finish work. We will now get a couple skid steer sessions in and then have a hand finish work day possibly on Saturday. Oct 23.
Jon, Steve, Sim and Bruce setting up the griphoist
Bruce expertly pulling out a big one after rigging a 2:1 cable
Tim leading the crew back home , heavy equipment and a broken wheelbarrow
Throughout the summer and now into fall, hardworking volunteers from Sandia Nordic Ski Club (SNSC), Friends of the Sandia Mountains (FOSM), and Volunteers for the Outdoors (VFO) in conjunction with Russell Berman, Trails Foreman SRD and under the direction of Kerry Wood, Trails and Wilderness Program Manager, Cibola NF have completed over 500 hours of work on designated re-routes of the ski trails. Some sections required tree cutting, expertly performed by the FOSM saw crew led by Sam Beard. Volunteers then cleared the new corridor of saplings and brush and significantly sloped and rocky sections were made level by Russell Berman on the SRD skid steer and followed up with hand finish work. All this making for some beautiful new sections of ski trail.
Through fall, we will be focusing on a significant re-route of a difficult to ski section, aka Bunny Hill, which we plan to complete before winter. Work will continue next year on other sections of the ski trails, including Klaus Trail, to make for safer, more enjoyable skiing. Thanks to all the great volunteers and the Forest Service for making this a reality.
FOSM sawyers Sam Beard and Michael Arndt cutting new corridor
On Wednesday, June 9, 2021, five FOSM volunteers felled trees along segments of planned Sandia Nordic Ski Club’s groomed trails that will be constructed later. Michael Arndt and Sam Beard had hiked the trails with Jeff Huser and Scott Dietrich on Sunday, June 6. The trees to be felled were marked with a blaze in the bark. This trail system is located between 10K South Trailhead and Ellis Trailhead. The sawyers and swampers were Dennis Crowther, Jerry Carroll, Cliff Giles, Sim Cook, and Sam Beard.
Saturday, a hardworking group of 7 set off on our first of many Saturdays to clear corridor in trail sections flagged by Kerry Wood, Forest Service Wilderness and Trails Manager. Weather at 10K was pleasant with still some moist ground here and there. Within 3 1/2 hrs. the crew consisting of Jenny, Vicky, Barry, Paul, Mike, Steve and myself, made quick work clearing small trees, brush and stumps completing the first 3 of the 9 sections designated for reroutes. So nice to be out, vaccinated and mask-less enjoying great company and our beautiful mountain! Our next scheduled ski trail work day is scheduled for Saturday, June 12, meeting at 0800 at the Ellis Trailhead. Hope you can make it out for that day or June 19 and 26.
I am extremely excited to announce that the Sandia Nordic Trails Improvement Project (SNTIP) has received final sign-off from USFS allowing us to begin implementation of modifications to our trail system. Sections selected for reroutes had been previously identified over the course of several years and are based upon input from discussions with numerous trail users, the Sandia Nordic board, and on-site evaluations with Kerry Wood, Trails and Wilderness Manager for the Cibola National Forest and National Grasslands. Issues related to these modifications fell into several categories, including concern for skier safety, line of sight issues, difficulty for beginner and intermediate skiers, difficulty in grooming and erosion control.
As we move forward, Jeff Huser, in close consultation with Steve Roholt, will be heading up the implementation of the SNTIP. Much of the work will be done by our own Club members, as well as members of FOSM. Please keep your eye out for communications from Jeff announcing calls for volunteers to help on planned trail work dates.
This is a very exciting time for Sandia Nordic, and I cannot express enough gratitude to all those who have provided input to the Club regarding the planned modifications. Special thanks as well to Sam Beard and all of the members of FOSM, to the members of Sandia Nordic’s board, to our Sandia District Ranger Crystal Powell, to Kerry Wood, and to all of the other members of USFS who helped usher this approval through the administrative process.
Hope to see you out there on the trails!
Scott
Get ready to get to work and make our trails great(er)!
Scott and I made the rounds on the ski trail, clearing debris and several downed trees. One more big down tree in need of a larger saw but otherwise all clear. Planning to mow the lower meadows in Oct and then get the storage unit and the equipment on the mountain. Then let the snow dances begin!
After a good winters work logging over 600 miles of grooming, the ATV is in need of some routine maintenance and summer hibernation. Scott, Steve, Paul and I loaded up the Beast and the grooming toys and hauled everything down. Next season we will likely store equip near the ski area as our storage container suffered some damage from snowboarders using it for a launch pad. Have a great summer!
Klaus Trail Work Report for 7-23-22
On Saturday we had a great group of 15 representing Sandia Nordic Ski Club, Friends of the Sandia Mountain and Volunteers for the Outdoors up on the cool and shady Klaus Trail for our first Saturday session of the year. We split into two groups with one group doing finish work along a section previously leveled with the mini-excavator. The second group removed old logs and branches piled up along the edge of the trail decades ago done at that time in support of the UNM ski team led by Klaus Weber.  Workers included Jenny Blackmore, Sim Cook, Jon Dellios, Scott Dietrich, Paul Gourley, Vicky Kaufman, Glen Koelling, Mike Madden, Chris Mommsen, Steve Roholt, Luke Schnickel, Michael Arndt, Ralph Wrons, Chris Murray and Jeff Huser.  Both tasks were handily completed, and we will continue with leveling, and a couple reroutes to make the Klaus trail into a very nice  addition to our groomed trail system. Look for more Saturday opportunities in the weeks to come.
Standing L to R: Luke Schnickel, Glen Koelling, Michael Arndt, Sim Cook, Jenny Blackmore, Jeff Huser, Paul Gourley, Jon Dellios, Chris Murray, Ralph Wrons.
Chris Mommsen (not pictured)