The Woodland Trail Project

It's the beginning of March and the perfect time to build a woodland trail. At this time of year, the foliage is still all down and I can see where to safely cut a path. It's also the time of year when the woodland ephemerals (dicentra, for example) are just beginning to emerge and I can safely dig and move them out of the way of the impending trail. The days are also a bit longer and I have more time to work outside before I lose daylight.

The woodland trail will be leading down the slope, through giant ferns, past groves of native trillium and dicentra, under the giant mossy vine maples, past ginormous western red cedar, past the salmon berry grove, around the ginormous stumps enveloped by red huckleberry that are all that remain of the old growth forest that once covered this land before it was logged off in the teens and 20's, down to the stream and back around to the other side of the yard. Phew! It's kind of a big project but I am so very determined to create a fantabulous path through the woods that I can presently only peer down into.

In case anyone is curious, the tools used for this project include a big-ass pick ax, loppers, hand saw, mini pick ax, and a chainsaw. Oh, and occasionally a buff  hubs to help move large rocks and logs about.

So far, I have managed to cut my way through the ferns and down the slope and created a few switchbacks. A large swath of native dicentra (bleeding heart) had to be moved to a new location at one point. I refuse to crush any of those lovelies!:

The next leg of the trail will require the chainsaw to cut fallen logs out of the pathway. Hopefully I'll have the trail finished in another month or so, weather permitting.