Lots of maintenance!

By Daniel Barringer, Preserve Manager.

It takes a lot of work to keep the preserve looking the same, given the entropy of rust, rot, and ruin that otherwise may determine its future. Here are a few of the recent projects that have kept us busy:

Photo: Daniel Barringer

We maintain a public trail that is under conservation easement on a property in Wallace Township—the former Camp Indian Run Girl Scout Camp. Over the summer a large number of trees blew down in a storm (one that missed us at Crow’s Nest). We estimate we spent 20 person-hours over two days to clear the damage. Here Cody Hudgens poses with the chainsaw early in the process.

Photo: Daniel Barringer

We try not to build more infrastructure than we can maintain—because no matter what, it will need maintenance. This is a boardwalk I built around 1996 or 1997 (before digital photography, and my memory is  not entirely reliable). It’s had many generations of oak deck boards and is nearing the end of its service life. But we’ll eke out another season with some new boards and longer screws.

Photo: Daniel Barringer

Some of our equipment is also getting old, and so maintenance needs are greater now than when new. This summer we replaced a broken driveshaft on this mower deck, then replaced a worn out belt. We tightened the tension when the belt stretched, as new belts do, and then had to replace one of the spindle bearings since it too was wearing out. I am fortunate to have lots of help with repairs—thanks Cody and Jim!

Photo: Daniel Barringer

Building Stewardship staff have been catching up with maintenance this summer. If you don’t look closely you might miss it. Several of the windows in the visitor center barn have had frames replaced as they had begun to rot. They look the same as you recollect, but better than they would if nothing had been done.

Photo: Daniel Barringer

We did another round of hazard tree work along roadsides. Above, contractor Kevin Lamphere prunes a dead limb from a tree as he worked his way down Piersol Road from larger trees that had to be removed. We feel strongly that managing these hazards are the responsibility of the landowner and steward and have been aggressively working on mitigating them. It’s not a small job. Below, Kevin removes limbs from a declining tree before felling it. Once the tree’s canopy has been reduced the trunk can be pulled back into the woods with minimal damage to the surrounding forest. And you can clearly see the reason for the need for removal: wires along the roadside of Harmonyville Road.

Photo: Daniel Barringer

Photo: Daniel Barringer

If you’ve been to the preserve in the last couple weeks you’ll see that we refreshed the gravel in the parking lot, including the part that was grass (or mud, seasonally). There aren’t more spaces, but we think it makes the parking area more usable and accessible.

Photo: Daniel Barringer

A cobblestone driveway apron on Piersol Road needed repointing. Luke DiBerardinis thinks that road salt was dissolving the cement, leaving the sand, which washed away. Without his efforts that infrastructure would be lost.

Photo: Daniel Barringer

We had some trees to clean up at Crow’s Nest this summer as well. This tree fell in a meadow—not during a storm but just because its time had come. We cleaned it up so that we will be able to continue managing this corner of the meadow with annual mowing and occasional prescribed fire.

Photo: Daniel Barringer

We’re always replacing fence rails like this one on Bethesda Road. This section of fence consists of boards that can be removed for access. The new plank replaces one that became weak and broke.

Photo: Daniel Barringer

Finally, a preview of the next big project: replacement of the silo roof. Here is a view inside the silo looking up. When it was built in 1915 it had a conical roof (we have a photo of a Model T pickup parked in front of it from that era). More recently it had a flat roof of boards covered with tar, and it was beginning to leak and rot. Building Stewardship are working with Lou Schneider Architect to design a conical, peaked roof replacement.