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Miner's Ridge Trail Closure Update
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Author:  bankerboy [ Mon Mar 27, 2017 3:53 pm ]
Post subject:  Miner's Ridge Trail Closure Update
I met with Senior Ed Christensen and City Project Managers Laura Ball and Betsy Miller on Friday March 23 to discuss the arsenic issue. Here is what they shared:


Miner's Ridge is still officially closed per the city order.

The signs are tossed in the bushes and the tape ripped down within 40 minutes of it being put back in place. Entitlement at its finest.

The scope of work needed is defined, contractor selected and purchase order is being worked on.

Contamination testing of the dust cannot begin until it is sufficiently dry to test it. It will most likely be fall, think fire season. Testing of the animals (mainly wood rats) and local flora will be conducted during that time as well. It appears the city is most concerned about the airborne arsenic and if it is at a toxic level. The testing and reporting period is supposed to be 3 months. Mother nature kind of messed up the testing with all of the ample moisture this year. Once the testing is complete, the testing agency will publish reports. From there, it is entirely on the city to make a final decision on access.

Sorry for the less than fantastic news but it is how it works at the city level.
Author:  jhardeman [ Thu Mar 30, 2017 9:35 am ]
Post subject:  Re: Miner's Ridge Trail Closure Update
What are the possibilities on rehabbing the glider port trail to regain a loop option rather than up and down the fire road to get to the new stuff?
Author:  rodster [ Thu Mar 30, 2017 2:25 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Miner's Ridge Trail Closure Update
jhardeman wrote:
What are the possibilities on rehabbing the glider port trail to regain a loop option rather than up and down the fire road to get to the new stuff?


I walked it, shovel in hand, right after the closure and realized I'd brought a plastic picnic knife to a gunfight. Now, I am told that it is not appreciably worse after the mega storm we had that one day. So from 0.5 on the ten scale to 0.4 . . .

In retrospect I should have had this on our agenda for the meeting Matt mentions.

Other than getting an update on the Arsenic testing the balance of the meeting was with respect to new trails/reroutes to existing trails.

Without boring everyone . . . there are two adopted social trails in the trails plan. One is a trail off the east side down to Cuca Street. The other is the scar (aka Black Widow) that drops off the service road near the summit.

Black Widow is our priority. The trail plan calls for keeping the trail within the existing disturbance. Another proposed config, one that we all prefer (everyone that was in the room) deviates from the existing corridor. There were actions items identified to determine what latitude we have within the management guidelines. Dependent upon that review we'll have to choose our path forward.

One of those paths is related to new parcels that have been added to the park. Those parcels need a management plan with a trails element also. The tweaks we all agree make for a better trails network and better habitat protection can be written in to that plan if need be. It's a longer timeline but this has always been a marathon so from my perspective I'm OK with it.
Author:  Ray Dolor [ Thu Mar 30, 2017 7:24 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Miner's Ridge Trail Closure Update
Who the hell knew about the arsenic mines? Our equestrian friends? After all that hard work, we all get poisoned, and they can then take the trails we built over, as they are too far above the dust, you see, to affected by the trifling shit thats killing us...

Ah, the Natural Order asserts itself again.......
Author:  bankerboy [ Thu Mar 30, 2017 7:54 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Miner's Ridge Trail Closure Update
Nothing quite that covert.

Long ago they ranched cattle in Lusardi canyon. The cattle kept getting sick. Over time the ranchers were able to trace the toxins up the canyon to where the mines are now. Once they realized the problem, an opportunity presented itself. There was a extensive boll weevil outbreak in the cotton fields of the midwest and south. Thinking the arsenic was going to be a huge income for the ranchers, the mining started. Unfortunately for the miners, a very wet winter or two killed off the majority of the boll weevils and they mine never really paid off. It was abandoned. The rest is history.

Open space was bought, trails were put in, testing happend, city pooped its pants over the results, and here we are.
Author:  OldDogDan [ Thu Mar 30, 2017 8:03 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Miner's Ridge Trail Closure Update
Ray Dolor wrote:
Who the hell knew about the arsenic mines?


Lots of people. I've hiked and ridden to 'em a couple of times, years ago.

https://www.mindat.org/loc-91146.html
Author:  Dirtrider [ Fri Mar 31, 2017 7:32 am ]
Post subject:  Re: Miner's Ridge Trail Closure Update
I've lived on the other side of the hill for 30 years and never heard anybody worrying about. Hikers have been down inside the mine and if it was so bad one would think the city/county/state would have closed it off. We all know how they like to keep people out of areas :roll:

The new CalAtlantic 1M+ homes are right there and below the "flow" of water coming from the mine. Did they know about this? Did they disclose it to buyers before as most items like are required to do?

Let's see what they find. Maybe nothing and it will be all good to go in a short 5 years or so..
Author:  rodster [ Tue Apr 04, 2017 2:11 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Miner's Ridge Trail Closure Update
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZAX7wNanPUk

Slide deck used in our meeting with city open space staff.

Black Mountain Ranch (McMansions) has a trails master plan. The handshake we have with Standard Pacific (the developer/builder) is that they want to build the trail heads in the neighborhoods up to the open space boundary. We then have the opportunity to build the trail within the open space with volunteers. The routes shown in the plan are intended to only communicate an A to B. The routings on the ground have to fit the intent - we'll site them where they best fit the topography/biology etc.

These in most respects are the next trails to come on line.

On the mountain itself Black Widow has the priority.

The new parcels added to the park (east ridge north of the new manzanita loop) aka the Tom Faamily Parcels require a management plan. The trails on those parcels plus other tweaks to the existing plan (possibly even Black Widow - worst case) can all be lumped in that new plan. That's not an overnight process - will take years but if you don't start the wheels turning you never reach the finish line.

There was 100 % alignment between all parties in the room as to what you see here.
Author:  OhNooo [ Tue Apr 04, 2017 3:31 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Miner's Ridge Trail Closure Update
Nice plan Rod. I'm glad to see a bypass around that awful scar that connects Nighthawk to the Blk Mtn service road too.
Author:  GMann [ Thu Jul 13, 2017 1:54 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Miner's Ridge Trail Closure Update
Awesome presentation deck and trail plan, Rod. I'm a bit late to the party on this one but you mentioned "years" before the Cuca street connector and Tom family parcel trails will be realized. Any guesstimate as to how many years you're looking at? Regardless, I look forward to helping with the build when it all happens.

Cheers,

Garrett
Author:  bankerboy [ Thu Jul 13, 2017 2:30 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Miner's Ridge Trail Closure Update
We walked the Tom property with the Rangers and City staff yesterday. The turnaround before we can have that place shovel-ready will be approximately one year. Cuca street might happen sooner, but we are not sure yet. Stay tuned, big things happening in short order.
Author:  GMann [ Thu Jul 13, 2017 10:16 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Miner's Ridge Trail Closure Update
Awesome! Thanks for the reply bankerboy
Author:  406 [ Wed Jul 19, 2017 9:24 am ]
Post subject:  Re: Miner's Ridge Trail Closure Update
I like that sun devil way reroute, nice work!
Author:  bankerboy [ Tue Mar 27, 2018 3:21 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Miner's Ridge Trail Closure Update
GOOD NEWS!!!!

No, not that good of news, the trail is still closed, but....

City came back with the impacted areas that need to be capped. It is far less than we originally thought. Ranger Ed will be out there this week calculating the amount of cubic material needed. The time frame for the repair should be about a month.

Since the area is so small and to keep the process moving there will be one substantial change to the cap introduction. No helicopter. I know, I know, I was hoping to watch it too. But, alas, it is not meant to be. Instead the material will be delivered and moved in stages. The thought process is like this:

1. Soil is delivered as far up the trail as possible. A dump truck will not be able to climb the gravel road, so there is a ways to still go.

2. The Kabota tractor will transport the soil up the trail to the split (upper vs lower Miner's and deposit it there)

3. Wheelbarrows will be used to get the soil to the location. There is a section past the large rock step-up/skinny. Soil from the wheel barrow will be dropped there. We are NOT using the soil to fill in or modify the obstacle.

4. Soil will be shoveled into another wheelbarrow on the other side of the rock garden and transported to its final destination.

5. Compaction may/may not happen, depending on whether or not we can find soil with a polymer binder in it under the City's current P.O.


In the coming weeks, I will need some volunteers to help transport the soil along with a few good wheelbarrows. Because of the terrain and weight we need three man teams on each wheelbarrow. I don't want to lose soil down the hill.

Keep your eyes open. I will post here, FB, MTBR, and Meetup as soon as I have solidified the dates.

Finally, I am asking that you abstain from using the trail for these last few weeks. Back when this all started, I predicted 8 months to a year, and in true city fashion, the risk dept exceeded my expectations, taking 14 months. At least it was a temporary close. Now we know for sure that you can be back on the trail this summer for sure.
Author:  OhNooo [ Wed Mar 28, 2018 12:01 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Miner's Ridge Trail Closure Update
Good plan. It will be great to have that trail open again. My back is toast for lifting, so I would be useless on the wheelbarrow brigade. But have an idea for soil stabilization.

One 5 gal bucket per section should provide enough to cover each patch.

https://www.homedepot.com/p/TechniSoil-5-gal-G3-Pathway-Stabilizer-Bottle-TP5/203501863?cm_mmc=Shopping%7cTHD%7cgoogle%7c&mid=sMUeBtsRe%7cdc_mtid_8903jx325196_pcrid_246392254948_pkw__pmt__product_203501863_slid_&gclid=EAIaIQobChMIjsS-0NmP2gIVT4J-Ch11WAKFEAQYASABEgJ-V_D_BwE&dclid=CO7L7tLZj9oCFRS9TwodnBADJw
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