Trailmakers get set to return to work

Sisters area trailmakers are waiting for a break in the weather to get back to work on projects needed to complete the Tollgate-to-Sisters High School trail.

Discussion of those projects and plans for a committee retreat highlighted the March 10 meeting of the Sisters Community Trails Committee.

As soon as weather conditions improve, sprinklers damaged by initial trail construction alongside the high school practice field will be replaced and the sprinkler line moved off the trail route, Chairman Jeff Sims announced.

“We will likely have some donated labor for this work and we will share the materials cost with the school,” Sims said.

Other work on that trail scheduled for April includes building concrete footings and a wood bridge across Trout Creek, applying gravel donated by Hap Taylor and Sons, picking up bentonite and mixing it with the gravel, and compacting the trail surface. The 4,000-foot trail runs from the Tollgate subdivision to the north side of Sisters High School.

In other business, the committee agreed to acquire a storage building for trail signs and tools. They also heard a report of a national bicycle riders conference and plans for a similar meeting in Oregon.

Members will hold a committee retreat in early April to review their progress since a community trails plan was adopted in 2003. This will be followed by a public meeting in May to report on progress made to date, hear recommendations for adjustments to the plan, and present a proposed adopt-a-trail program.

The Sisters Trails Committee was organized in late 2001 to develop a community trails system connecting the City of Sisters with schools, residential areas, local scenic areas and the trails network of the Deschutes National Forest. Initially, some 36 trails were proposed covering 143 miles. A trails plan was developed and informational kiosks were constructed. Some routes have been marked and some trails constructed.

The committee first worked with the Community Action Team of Sisters and is now associated with SOAR.

For more information, contact Jeff Sims at 549-7706.