On the last day of July this year (2023), a violent storm in Cheesman Canyon destroyed the trail system and washed decomposed granite into the South Platte River changing the flows at some favorite fishing holes. (See earlier post on this event.)
The US Forest Service called on our chapter president in an effort to bring volunteers into the canyon to repair the Gill Trail. This work required trained technical leaders to ensure the work was done correctly. Fortunately, the Colorado Mountain Bike Association (COMBA) has full time, trained individuals that work with the USFS and CPW on trail work and they were available!
On September 20 and 21, 2023, 30 volunteers along with four members of the COMBA trail team met at the lower Gill Trail parking lot, hiked into the canyon and spent the day repairing the trail.
Each day started with a safety presentation and training on how trails are properly constructed so they are not destroyed by routine weather and use. After that, packs were donned, tools picked up and crew members hiked into the canyon. Once reaching the work site, volunteers spread out repairing sections of the trail. The days were warm and dry, perfect for getting work accomplished. By Thursday afternoon the trail was completely repaired from the parking lot to the USFS boundary with Denver Water! Work from there to the upper Gill Trail parking lot will be done by Denver Water and the Coalition for the Upper South Platte.
Thank You to everyone that added their name to the Cheesman Canyon volunteer list and especially to those who came out to support this effort. If you were not available to support these dates, more days will be announced in the future when other areas of the trail system will be repaired. We hope you can join us taking care of this special location we all love to fish!
