Tools of the trade for winter trailbuilding.

[Coop]

Hey Dudes,

I have been putting in piles of time creating my trail, and I'm having a pile of fun doing it.

Lately I have been busy at work, and thats been forcing me to go out and work in less than optimal conditions. Rain, icy rain, and outright snow.

Here's what I consider essentials for every trip out into the forest:

- 1 roll toilet paper, ziploc'ed : no excuse to come home.
- Petzl Headlamp : I got this one here (http://www.mec.ca/Products/product_detail.jsp?FOLDER%3C%3Efolder_id=673277&PRODUCT%3C%3Eprd_id=663565&bmUID=1070262067849), on the LED setting it lasts 180 hours and is enough to work by, as long as the materials are close by.
- tape measure (more useful than you think)
- flagging tape : I use it to mark stuff (duh) like blowdown that I find that would be good to use.
- some sort of munchies
- bottle of water
- gloves : i got a pair of some "watson gloves tough guy lined" they are grey type cotton gloves with some sort of rubber grip. they are ok till they get wet.

I want to know if people know what is a good really really tough gore-tex jacket. I hate slickers because I work hard and sweat, but if I took off my helly gear I'd be soaked in 30 seconds. I dont know if there is a gore tex product out there that can take heavy bushwork, but if there is I want it.

Any suggestions ?

[rasd1]

i wear my old mec gear which is goretex...it has proven durable and works well.--flashlight eh? you are hard core.

[Sharon]

Buiding in Prince Rupert! Great! I bet you have a lot of Cedar! and wet riding...

MEC has some water 'resistent' abrasion resistent wear. I find my Roach pants and heavy roach vest, with a non-coated nylon jacket with an inner liner work great.

If you get a thick polyester shirt you stay warmer when it is wet.

NEVER wear cotton, but you probably already know that.

A change of gloves (wool or fleece) and fleece jacket make the hike out more comfortable.

[tazzmenn]

Home depot sells work gloves that are completly rubber covered except the back of hand. I find that these work the best at keeping your hands dry. But still give you contol over the hammer or saw. When it getts realy cold I put a liner under the gloves.

I have a FarWest gortex jacket and pants. They are very durable and are guarenteed for life. So if you rip it (not likely) they will fix it free. They are a BC based company. The other trick is to wear an old set of leg armour, for when your rocking sections in.

I will be in rupert this summer and would like to see some of your work.

[Coop]

Tons of cedar!! Though, not very conveniently located near my trail, its close to town and the area was picked over for cedar when they built the road up the mountain. There are some 30 foot remnants of cedar trees near where I'm building, but I'd rather leave them intact for the aesthetics. And yeah, it's pretty wet, but I am trying to work in drainage from the start to avoid it becoming a problem in the future.

Light is a must, I work every day but Sunday at my job, and I want to make the most out of my day off.

I think I have those gloves there Tazzmenn, I find they rule in the control department, but the water flowing off the slicker soaks the back pretty quick.

My idea for getting a good jacket was to find one on the MEC buy and sell that was gore-tex xcr and then try to get warranty on it - does anyone have any experience with that ? My friend seems to think it'd work, as he has returned his gore - based jackets several seasons in a row for losing their repellancy.

I often wear my roach leg pads, it makes kneeling on gnarly spots less of an issue, but when they get soaked and heavy its more of a pain than its worth.

[piledriver]

It's up to the individual, but for winter time, being hot and sweaty is still better than getting hypothermia...so keep it in mind.
Always good is a change of gloves, shirt and a emergency thermal blanket if you get stuck.

But number 1 - a cell phone and / or letting someone know where you are and when you should be out. All else is meaningless if you hurt yourself and die on the trail.

Have a blast

Kepp Diggin' The Shore.......PD
:thepimp:

[dirty deeds]

Way to go on the trail building in PR. Good to hear.

I've had an MEC gore tex coat that I've used and abused for 10 years now and it's still going strong.

I think they are the best and well worth it.

[Bryce]

Originally posted by Coop
My idea for getting a good jacket was to find one on the MEC buy and sell that was gore-tex xcr and then try to get warranty on it - does anyone have any experience with that ?

Any "Gore-Tex" jacket will be warranteed for life by WL Gore but that only covers the integrity of the membrane. Water repellancy will fade over time but thats a matter of re-applying the outer coating. You can see if the membrane is de-lammed by holding up a bright light behind it.

Damn. I had the perfect jacket for you and I just sold it. It is an older Patagonia model that has a kevlar ripstop face fabric. It is for climbing (ie being scraped across rocks) and it would've been perfect for ya (I don't know the name). Its the toughest waterproof-breathable jacket out there.

[Niggz]

If there is a Mark's Work Warehouse up there they have a very good selection of work gloves. I saw a nice pair that were basically coated in a very rough grippy rubber and also insulated to keep you dry and warm. The local home depot didn't seem to have a very good selection of work gloves.

[tazzmenn]

I also have a pair of chem work gloves, that are gauntlet style. I use these when it gets realy wet. hands always stay dry in those.

[Coop]

I'm wondering if something like this (http://www.patagonia.com/za/PDC?OPTION=PRODUCT&merchant_rn=7385&cgrfnbr=365504&sku=81810&ws=true) would work. Seems like it might be pretty tough, but not gore-tex....

[trail worker]

A toque is a must! i have a wool toque with fleece lining(complete with ear flaps).i wear this thing all the time..even though it doesnt keep you're head dry,it keeps it warm which is very important.
for raingear i usually just wear a hooded sweatshirt in the rain.i'm not big on raingear because i can't stand having all that extra garments on.It's fairly mild here,even in the winter and i can stand the cold/wet.where you are working is different though...
gloves...in the summer i never wear gloves,and in the winter a pair of workgloves usually are used.i don't often wear the gloves for long though...they usually end up on the ground or back in my pack because i can't stand the loss of movement most gloves infringe.

always keep a pack on at all times.if you slip and injure yourself,the pack with all this stuff in it located only a few metres away could be impossible to reach if you say broke you're leg or similiar.in it you should have something like the following:
-spare batteries for the headlamp
-cell phone
-a change of clothes including long underwear(all packed in a dry-bag)
-GOOD first aid kit. this doesn't mean a ziplock full of glow in the dark spongebob squarepants bandaids and a single roll of gauze that you grabbed from the cupboard at home.get some steri-strips(plastic stitches),painkillers(T3's if you're a pill hoarder like me),several rolls of gauze,tweezers,scalpel,etc etc.
-plenty of water.if you have a bladder that you can put in you're pack all the better.usually when it's wet out,you dont think about drinking water.a bladder hose that is convenient to reach will keep you hydrated.
-instant heat pads(the ones you crack in half that are used in shoes and gloves).if you find you're fingers suddenly numb or any other part of the body,use them.hell,placing one in you're underwear keeps everything feeling toasty and comfortable.
-stiff soled hiking boots/wool socks with polyester liner socks.even better would be a set of goretex socks.
-lotsa food. If you're stuck out overnight,you want food,and lots of it.a thermos of coffee or tea would be great too.you can always warm youre hands up on it too.MEC makes some small thermos' that would do the job nicely.

[rasd1]

beer

[rasd1]

naked ladies

[hampstead bandit]

bush hat and sunglasses (eye protection very important!)

old Shift MX gloves


hydrophylic vest / mountain fleece / breathable jacket


3 litre camelbak with still mineral water

high energy food, bananas, apples

always a spare vest and fleece for journey home

1 litre thermos flask of hot Yogi tea

small towel

[rasd1]

take 2 buddies...that works really good.

[Coop]

I dont take friends. If they want to come out, then they know where to find me. I always feel like a slave-driver when I bring friends out, its not as relaxing. A hell of a lot more work, but less relaxing.

A thermos is a good idea, but I find it makes me take a million breaks.

[drezy]

Originally posted by Coop
I dont take friends. If they want to come out, then they know where to find me. I always feel like a slave-driver when I bring friends out, its not as relaxing. A hell of a lot more work, but less relaxing.

A thermos is a good idea, but I find it makes me take a million breaks. Honestly, I think I get more done when I work by myself anyways. Too much yappin' not enough building when there's a bunch of guys around. Although, I'm not near as scared of bears when a couple buddies are there too. :)