United States Department of Agriculture Trail Forest Service Technology & Construction Development Program and In Cooperation with United States Department of Maintenance Transportation Federal Highway Notebook Administration 2300–Recreation July 2007 0723-2806-MTDC OF TRAN T SP EN O M R T T R A T A I P O E N D 2007 Edition U N I A T C E I R D E ST M ATES OF A a b You can order a copy of this document using the order form on the FHWA’s Recreational Trails Program Web site at: http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/environment/rectrails/trailpub.htm Fill out the order form and either submit it electronically, fax it to 301–577–1421, or mail it to: FHWA R&T Report Center 9701 Philadelphia, Ct, Unit Q Lanham, MD 20706 Produced by: USDA Forest Service • Missoula Technology and Development Center 5785 Hwy. 10 West • Missoula, MT 59808-9361 Phone: 406–329–3978 • Fax: 406–329–3719 E-mail: [email protected] F TRAN O SP NT O E R T M A T T R I O A P N U E N D I A T C E I D R S E TA A M T E S O F This document was produced in cooperation with the Recreational Trails Program of the Federal Highway Administration, U.S. Department of Transportation. 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Trail Construction and Maintenance Notebook 2007 Edition Woody Hesselbarth Arapaho-Roosevelt National Forests and Pawnee National Grassland Rocky Mountain Region Brian Vachowski Missoula Technology and Development Center Mary Ann Davies Project Leader USDA Forest Service Technology and Development Program Missoula, MT 6E62A33—Update Trail Construction and Maintenance Notebook July 2007 i ii Acknowledgments he authors are grateful to the trails experts who reviewed and suggested Tupdates for this revision of the notebook: Ellen Eubanks James Scott Groenier International Mountain Bicycling Association Jonathan Kempff David Michael Jaime Schmidt Thanks to Ted Cote, Bert Lindler, Jerry Taylor Wolf, and Deb Mucci for their help in the layout and editing of this revision. iii iv Contents Introduction ______________________1 Metrication _______________________3 The Job of the Trail Crew ____________ 4 Setting Priorities ___________________5 Trail Planning _______________________9 Accessible Trails __________________10 Avoiding Trail Disasters ____________ 11 Planning the Route on the Map _______ 12 The 10-Percent Guideline ___________ 12 Trail Design _____________________________________15 Scouting the Route in the Field _______________________ 15 The Half Rule _____________________________________ 17 Trail Specifications _________________________________18 Flagging _________________________________________20 Light on the Land __________________________________ 23 Natural Forces at Work ___________________________25 Dirt, Water, and Gravity _____________________________ 25 Critter Effects _____________________________________26 Surface Water Control ____________________________29 Sheet Flow _______________________________________30 Grade Reversals ___________________________________31 Draining Water Off Existing Trails ____________________ 32 Knicks ______________________________________________33 Rolling Grade Dips ____________________________________ 34 Waterbars ___________________________________________36 Maintaining the Drain ______________________________ 39 Relocating Problem Sections of Trail ___________________ 41 v vi Trail Corridor ___________________________________43 Clearing and Brushing ______________________________ 44 Removing Trees ___________________________________48 Trail Foundation _________________________________51 Rolling Contour Trails ______________________________ 51 Full-Bench Construction ____________________________51 Partial-Bench Construction __________________________52 Moving Dirt ______________________________________54 Tread __________________________________________57 Outsloping ________________________________________59 Removing Roots and Stumps _________________________ 59 Rock Removal _____________________________________60 Tread Maintenance ________________________________ 62 Slough and Berms __________________________________ 63 Tread Creep _______________________________________64 Trails in Wet Areas _______________________________69 Geosynthetics _____________________________________70 Rock Underdrains __________________________________74 Turnpikes ________________________________________76 Turnpikes Without Ditches ___________________________81 Puncheon_________________________________________ 81 Subsurface Puncheon _______________________________87 Corduroy _________________________________________88 Crossing Streams and Rivers _______________________89 Shallow Stream Fords _______________________________ 90 Culverts __________________________________________93 Bridges __________________________________________96 Additional Trail Elements ________________________ 101 Climbing Turns ___________________________________103 Switchbacks _____________________________________105 Retaining Walls ___________________________________111 Steps ____________________________________________116 Pavers __________________________________________123 Signs __________________________________________125 Installing Signs ___________________________________126 Installing Reassurance Markers ______________________ 128 Maintaining Signs and Markers ______________________ 132 Reclaiming Trails _______________________________135 Check Dams _____________________________________138 Revegetation _____________________________________140 Tools __________________________________________ 141 Tools for Measuring _______________________________ 142 Tools for Sawing __________________________________ 143 Tools for Chopping ________________________________ 145 Tools for Grubbing ________________________________ 146 Tools for Digging and Tamping ______________________ 149 Tools for Brushing ________________________________ 150 Tools for Pounding and Hammering __________________ 151 Tools for Lifting and Hauling ________________________ 152 Tools for Peeling and Shaping _______________________ 155 Tools for Sharpening ______________________________ 155 Mechanized Trail Building Equipment ________________ 157 Selected References ______________________________161 vii viii Introduction hy write another trail construc- tion and maintenance guide? Good question. Since publication Wof the first edition of the “Trail Construction and Maintenance Notebook” in 1996, several excellent books about trail construction and maintenance have been published by the International Mountain Bicycling Association (IMBA), the Student Conservation Association (SCA), and the Appalachian Mountain Club, among others. At the same time, this notebook has remained popular, especially because of its pocket size and its wide availability through a partnership between the Forest Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture, and the Federal Highway Administration’s Recreational Trails Program. Based on helpful critiques of our earlier edition, we made numerous changes to reflect the latest thinking about constructing and maintain- ing trails. Much remains from the original edition. True to our original intent, the Missoula Technology and Develop- ment Center (MTDC) has again pulled together basic trail construction and maintenance information, presented it in an easy-to-understand fashion, and oriented it to the needs of the trail worker. To keep the notebook’s size manageable, we did not