Berkshire NEMBA proposal for the Pittsfield State Forest Trail System

11/23/2009

Mission

Berkshire NEMBA's mission is to make the Pittsfield State Forest a destination for those who wish to pursue healthy non-motorized recreational activity with mountain biking being our primary focus. We plan to accomplish this by establishing new trails and rehabilitating old ones. We will also advocate for the closure of trails which are unsustainable, redundant or beyond repair. We have identified a need for both advanced and beginner level trails within a connecting network. There is a benefit in having family friendly loops at both the base of the forest and near the summit. We also recognize a clear need for improved riding access from the base to the summit. Currently there is only one rideable trail to the summit (the Turner trail) and we believe there should be at least three. We would also like to point out that, although there currently are many trails which are open to mountain biking, only one, the Turner Trail (less than 2 miles long) was specifically designed for mountain biking and several compromises were made in it's design to accomodate hiking which make it a rather difficult trail for less experienced bikers because it maintains fairly constant and steep grade the entire way up the mountain. The network we envision will encompass enough singletrack mileage to be a weekend destination for riding enthusiasts, will have several miles of easy singletrack trails and will almost totally eliminate the need for bicycle or foot travel on any ATV trails.

Background

Back in the summer of 2007, at the Pedros Mountain Bike Festival, the idea of making the Pittsfield State Forest a mountain biking destination in the Berkshires, possibly similar to the Kingdom Trails in Vermont, was hatched. Meetings were held with the DCR over the fall and winter of 2007/2008 and they were supportive of the concept. The first project we tackled was the rehabilation of the Turner Trail which was completed late in the summer of 2008.

The next phase proposed was the creation of a family trail consisting of a series of beginner-level mountain bike trails in harmony with the DCR's No Child Left Inside initiative. On Tuesday, November 17, 2009, Brad Herder, Mike Coyne and John Jansen (of Berkshire NEMBA) met with Becky Barnes, Bob Mellace and Gary Briere (of the DCR) to discuss the project. The DCR asked us to go a step further than just a Family Trail and asked for our input towards a "Master Plan" for the Pittsfield State Forest. On Nov. 22, 2009, ten Berkshire NEMBA members met and came up with our ideas which are presented below.

Please note: although we refer to making mountain bike trails, all trails would be SUSTAINABLE MULTI-USE NON-MOTORIZED SINGLETRACK trails, built to mountain biking standards to maximize the enjoyment for mountain bikers. Any other non-motorized use such as hiking, walking, bird watching, snowshoeing, etc. would be compatible.

We would like to point out that in the Pittsfield State Forest, we currently have only a have one singletrack trail which can be mountain biked in both directions.

PITTSFIELD STATE FOREST - SINGLETRACK TRAILS
Trail Name	Level of Rider	Trail Length
Turner Trail	Advanced - Up or Down	1.5 miles

Map Legend

Color	Meaning
	Existing Singletrack
	Existing ATV trail (some closed to ATV's now)
	Proposed Singletrack
	Existing Hiking Trail (many open for non-motorized use)
	Paved Road or Trail
	Dirt Road

Signs, Maps and Gates

For safety purposes, we firmly believe it is important for visitors to be able to tell exactly where they are. Many of the trails do not have signs or what usage is allowed and a few don't even have names at all.

All trails should have signs at each end of the trail and at any intersection with a cross trail.
A professional quality trail map similar to the Kingdom Trail maps is a must.
"You are Here" maps should be posted at major trail intersections.
All trails should be clearly marked if ATV use is not allowed and gated if there is any likelihood ATV's will ride them.
Parking Areas such as the Lulu Parking Area should be better marked to indicate ATV's are not allowed to unload there.
There is a critical need for gates where any new/rehabilitated trail interfaces with motorized use trails.
All other means possible should be employed to deter motorized use such as narrow entrances, rocks and winding entry/exits, etc.

We will begin making a list of signs needed in this table. A huge inventory will need to be done when we write up a grant proposal for the signs and maps. It would be wonderful if the State were to write up the proposal. I think they might have more leeway in the usage of the funds than NEMBA would. We would like to have Mike Tabaczynski make our maps if possible.

			Stickers
Trail	Signs	Gates	Bike	Hike	XC Ski	ATV/Motorcycles	No ATV/Motocyles
Blair Witch	6	2	6	6	0	0	6
Churchill Brook	6	0	6	6	0	6	0
Deer Hill	4	0	4	4	0	0	4
Ghost Trail	2	0	0	2	0	0	2
Hawthorne	6	0	6	6	0	0	6
Honwee Mt	6	0	6	6	0	0	6
Lulu Cascade	2	1	0	2	0	0	2
North Branch	2	1	2	2	0	0	2
Parker Brook	6	0	6	6	0	0	6
Peter Cotton Trail	4	0	4	4	0	0	4
Pine Mt	8	0	8	8	0	0	8
Pine Tar	4	0	4	4	0	0	4
Radio Tower	4	0	4	4	0	0	4
Shadow Trail	2	0	0	2	0	0	2
Summit's Shortcut	4	0	4	4	0	0	4
Taconic Crest	?	0	?	?	0	0	?
Telephone	2	0	2	2	0	0	2
Tilden Swamp	4	0	4	4	0	0	4
Tower Mt.	2	0	2	2	0	0	2
Turner Trail	4	1	4	4	0	0	4
Vosburgh XC	6	0	6	6	0	0	6
Wild Turkey	4	0	4	4	0	0	4
Woods Ramble	4	0	4	4	0	0	4

Lulu Family Trails - Beginner Level

We would like to create some beginner level mountain bike trails at the base of the Pittsfield State Forest. The DCR would like parking for these trails to be at the Lulu Cascade Parking area because the Ski Lodge is rented out frequently during the summer and parking there is an issue. So here is our proposal for the new family loop, trail improvements and trail closures (which are optional, but might make the plan more palatable to the State since one of their complaints was that they don't have resources to maintain the trails they already have).

Family Loop would start at the Nature Center and take old ATV Trail shown in Blue.
Branch off old ATV trail onto new singletrack.
New Singletrack connects with existing singletrack and descends gently down the hill to Wild Turkey.
Take Wild Turkey
Take right on old ATV trail and cross brook. We want to build a bridge over the brook.
Climb up Deer Hill and follow all the way to the entrance road.
Create a new trail linking end of Deer Hill with Ski Lodge Parking Lot
Create a loop above the camping area for campers to use. This would use some pieces of an existing trail along with new trail. It would be a nice loop for campers to hike or bike and would connect Turner Trail with Deer Hill.
Improve existing snowshoe trails for mountain biking.
Improve existing XC ski trails for mountain biking and running.
Optional trail over to the swamp.
And back to Deer Hill on existing singletrack trail.
Close this trail down. There is a huge culvert out, huge trees down and the trail is terribly muddy and rooty.
Close this trail down or connect it to the trail shown on #12.
Close this trail down or at least the section from the group campsite to the brook.
Close end of this trail where new singletrack #2 leaves it.

If soil conditions permit, we would also like to:

Make Deer Hill into a complete loop.
Hook Deer Hill up with the trail over to the swamp.

which, after all these changes would result in the Family Loop shown on the right.

Wet Feet Bridge

On the Family Trail Loop, there is one stream crossing on an old ATV trail which requires a bridge. This bridge is particularly important for snowshoeing and cross country skiing because the brook rarely freezes over anymore due to global warming. This is a high priority for us and we would love to see the State create this bridge before the winter of 2009 begins. If the State cannot, we would very much like to create this bridge ourselves, preferably with lumber from the State if they could supply it.

Tower Mt. / Tilden Swamp Trail Alignment

The trail down from Tower Mt. comes out on the Taconic Skyline trail several mud-holes north of the trail to Tilden Swamp. Rather than subject mountain bikers and hikers to travelling along the Taconic Skyline and getting all muddy, we would like to propose re-aligning the entrance to the Tower Mt. Trail so it is directly opposite the entrance to the trail to Tilden Swamp.

Before

After

Berkshire Ranger Trail (aka Boy Scout Trail) Work

Up near Berry Pond, there are some trails in need of repair, and maybe re-thinking.

The trail on the north side of Berry Pond that runs straight through the campsite is in very poor condition, but could make a beautiful trail with some nice boardwalk. As it stands though, pallets and other wood has been thrown on the trail and it's a mess. We feel either the campsite should be eliminated or the trail should be discontinued beyond the campsite and a new trail should be created north of the campsite. Whatever piece of the trail remains should be changed to a much better board walk. We do need a trail in this area for cross country skiing because the Berry Pond Circuit Road is always bare due to high winds and we need a way around that.
Boardwalk is absolutely needed along this section of the Berkshire Ranger Trail. It's frequently wet both in the trail and on both sides. Maybe boardwalk from the Berry Pond Road, through the campsite and out this trail would be very beneficial.
There is a trail paralleling the Berkshire Ranger Trail which is much less nice and we think should be eliminated.

Before

After (Campsite Removed)

After (Campsite Open)

Narrow Trail and Scace Farm MTB/XC Ski/Snowshoeing/Hiking Trails

With the recent acquisition of the Scace Farm, the opportunity to create some trails on gently sloping terrain in beautiful open fields would enhance the Pittsfield State Forest tremendously. The propery would be ideal for cross country skiing and snowshoeing as well as beginner level mountain biking.

The 1998 map of the Pittsfield State Forest clearly shows a trail called the Narrow Trail going up and over in the direction of the Scace Farm property. With the culvert washing out on the bottom portion of the Ghost Trail and due to the generally unappealing nature of the bottom of the Ghost Trail with the rockiness and water running straight down the trail, we would like to revive the Narrow Trail.

We would reconstruct the Narrow Trail and bring it over to the Scace property where we like to build more beginner-level mountain bike trails which would also be ideal for cross country skiing, snowshoeing and trail running. The two loops shown on the map below are just an idea. We are uncertain of the property boundaries and characteristics of the land, but this would be incredible territory for some beautiful trails.

Scace Farm to Tilden Swamp Trail

At the present time, the only trail that is any good for mountain biking to the top of the mountain is the Turner Trail and many people find it very difficult to bike up. We would like to create at least one and preferably a couple alternate ways up the mountain. Just south of the Ghost Trail, there currently exist two possibilities we looked at, both of which are terrible. Brickhouse Mt. Road used to be rideable, but now it is a totally washed out gully, almost 100% rock with water running down it continually. The other alternative we were thinking was the Brickhouse Mt. Trail - a hiking trail running right along (and maybe in) Smith Brook, but it too is nothing but a gully with boulders and water running down it.

What we are proposing is a trail from the Scace property up to the Pine Mt. Trail to get us up to the top. And to make a nice loop and because some sections of the Pine Mt. Trail are impossible to bike up and quite dangerous to bike down, we would like to continue the trail beyond Pine Mt. and over to the Tilden Swamp Trail in the vicinity of the Tower Mt. crossing.

We would recommend discontinuing the Brickhouse Mt. Hiking Trail that runs along Smith Brook.

With the addition of the Tilden Swamp - Turner Trail Connector (below), this would give all users the ability to bike up from Scace Farm to Tilden Swamp and then cut over to the Turner Trail and go down or vice versa.

Hawthorne Trail Improvements

The Hawthorne Trail is open to mountain biking and although very few people ride it, it is a challenging downhill. There is no way to fix it up to be anything you could ever ride uphill, but we do have suggestions for several improvements to it.

The very top is very steep and is eroding worse and worse each year. We would recommend creating some switchbacks and bench cutting to make the top more sustainable.
There are two stream crossings which we would like to put bridges over.
The trail could use improved bench cutting.
The section of trail down to Woods Ramble is eroding and the water bars are ineffective. Recommend switch backing it or eliminating it.
The section of trail down to Parker Brook is always wet and eroding. Recommend relocating trail slightly to the south and creating switchbacks to make this section more sustainable.

Radio Tower Loop and Tilden Swamp - Turner Trail Connector

Up near Berry Pond, we would like to create two new trails:

Radio Tower Trail - to make a loop around Berry Pond (Radio Tower Trail to Berkshire Ranger to Bypass above campsite) for campers up top.
Tilden Swamp to Turner Trail Connector - to tie Pine Mt. Tower Mt trails to Turner Trail and Boy Scout Trails. (This is more important to us than the Radio Tower Trail)

Turner Trail Intermediate Trails

The Turner Trail is a great trail to mountain bike but many people find it too difficult to ride up and some find the corners too sharp. We would like to build two more intermediate level trails from the half-way point up the mountain which would have a more gentle grade and would contain more flat stretches for rest while climbing and less sharp corners so you wouldn't have to brake as much coming down. These might also be pretty fun to XC ski.

The upper trail would wind slowly down the mountain and would come all they way down to the Lulu Picnic Area.
The lower trail would also wind slowly down but would come out at the intersection of the Turner Trail and the Vosburgh XC ski trail.

Honwee Circuit Replacement

The West side of the Honwee Circuit Trail and the Lulu Brook Trail run parallel to each other very closely most of the way up, but couldn't be more different trails. Lulu Brook is wonderful, but Honwee is a mess with many rocky and very wet sections. The East side of the Honwee Circuit Trail is impossible to ride up or down. Erosion has destroyed the trail. Since the Lulu Brook Trail is a gem of a hiking trail and the Honwee is just an ugly bony gully, we recommend keeping the Lulu Brook Trail (as a hiking trail) and replacing the entire Honwee Circuit Trail (both the East and West Sides) with a single trail similar to the Turner Trail, but with mellower grades if possible complete with several rests built in where the trail might descend a little on the way up.

Again, trail closures are optional, but if done, this would replace approximately 4 miles of unsustainable trail miles with approximately 2 miles of new sustainable trail.

Eliminate West Side of Honwee Circuit Trail Eliminate East Side of Honwee Circuit Trail Eliminate Connector Trail over to Churchill Brook Eliminate Trail that runs straight down Eliminate Trail that runs straight down from Middle Bridge to Lower Bridge	Keep the Lulu Brook Trail Wind our way up to the Top of Honwee Mt as gently as possible. Utilize the existing trail over to the Middle Bridge on Churchill for purposes of connecting over to Blair Witch/Potter Mt. Road. Begin the new Honwee Mt. Trail at the point where the connector to the Family Trail leaves the original ATV trail.
Before	After

Blair Witch

The Blair Witch Trail is a singletrack trail which existed for several years, but was shut down when ATV's began destroying it. As we get farther from the center of the Pittsfield State Forest, the fear that ATV's will ride and destroy singletrack trails increases very much. In order to make this trail useful, we would need to:

Connect the Taconic Crest Trail
Establish gates to protect both sides of the trail from ATV's.
At the bottom, we envision creating a trail similar to Sidewinder in the Northeast Kingdom dumping out on the Daniels Brook Trail.
We also need a singletrack trail coming back to Churchill Brook
We would utilize the only section of the Churchill Brook Trail that's not totally destroyed to get over to the middle bridge that crosses Churchill Brook for purposes of connecting back to the Honwee Mt. Trail and getting us back to the Lulu Parking Lot. Also, we'd recommend closing the old logging road which goes up the very steep grade just to the right of the #5 in the picture.

Please note: in the picture above, Burgoyne is labelled with a bicycle on it, but it's really an ATV trail, very steep, muddy at the bottom, eroded.

6-Mile

The 6 mile trail is an existing trail which is nowhere near 6 miles long and runs from the top of Potter Mt. Road to the Brook on the ATV trail leading from Balance Rock to the bottom of Potter Mt. Road. There are some sections of the trail that need a little work.

Although the trail can exist without a link from the Taconic Crest Trail, it would be nice to have a connection to the Taconic Crest. (optional)
6 Mile begins near the top of Potter Mt. Road
Ends near the Brook and needs to be fixed in this area.
We would like to create a connector trail utilizing a little bit of ATV trail and its bridge over Daniel's brook. This would connect 6 Mile and Blair Witch. (optional)

Again, the same fear exists with this trail - ATV's could quickly destroy the trail if allowed to ride it so we'd like appropriate gates and signs at all intersections with ATV trails.

Pine Mountain

When coming from the Hawthorne, there is a very steep climb up to the concrete marker on the trail. We would like to switchback that short steep pitch. We would also like to fill in or remove the roots at the point where you get a view of Tilden Swamp just before the railing that's affixed to the trees.

Taconic Crest Trail

Utilizing the Taconic Crest Trail from Tower Mt. over to Potter Mt Road to connect Berkshire Ranger, Lulu, Blair Witch and 6-mile is fine except there are several sections which are too steep to mountain bike and which we would like to add switchbacks to making the grade gentler. These include (as heading from South to North):

The section steep downhill as you leave Tower Mt (heading North).
The steep dip approximately across from the top of the Churchill Brook Trail.
The steep climb approximately across from the Blair Witch Trail up to the open field area.
The steep descent after the open field area.
Another steep descent a little before the last flat stretch before the trail plummets down to Potter Mt. Road.

And again, we believe any trails crossing the Taconic Skyline Trail will need to be carefully protected with lots of signage and gates like at the top of the Turner Trail on both sides to make it positively clear that ATV's are not allowed.

Jiminy Peak

We used to be able to ride up the Taconic Skyline Trail to the top of Jiminy Peak, but the trail has deteriorated so badly it is no longer possible to ride all the way to the top without walking several sections of the trail. There used to be a trail to the West of the Taconic Skyline going up to Jiminy Peak, but it hasn't been used in a long time and nature has pretty much re-claimed it. It would be nice to resurrect this trail.

If putting the trail on the left crosses on to private property, we could put it on the right side and there already exists an ATV alternative over there beginning above the mud hole the ATV's like to play in, so this would not be ideal and likely won't last long with ATV usage.

Also, if connecting directly into Jiminy Peak is an issue, we could come out on the Taconic Skyline Trail so the existing Skyline would be the only trail connecting into Jiminy Peak land.

6-Mile to Balance Rock Boy Scout Trail

There used to be a trail from the base of 6-mile over to Balance Rock/Boy Scout Loop, but it was destroyed by logging. It would be nice to recreate that trail. Part of the Boy Scout loop is being destroyed by ATV's and we would like it protected with appropriate signage and gates.

Balance Rock Boy Scout Trail to Balance Rock Entrance

We would like to create a trail from the top Boy Scout Trail down to the Balance Rock State Park entrance.

Parker Brook Boardwalk

When we cleared Parker Brook, we pointed out to Gary Briere a wet section of trail near the bottom of Parker Brook where it meets the Hawthorne that could use a boardwalk, rock armouring or something along those lines. He might be having the PSF guys take care of it, but if not, it would be nice to fix this up so you didn't have to walk through 100' of mud.

Conclusion

We believe this master plan would give us a significant amount of nice riding for local mountain bikers and would make the Pittsfield State Forest attractive as a mountain biking destination for visitors to the Berkshires. The trails would be considerably nicer than the trails that are available now.

Please note: these trails are not only great for mountain bikers, but runners, dog walkers, hikers, snowshoers and even cross-country skiers (on the not as windy trails) could all enjoy the Pittsfield State Forest like never before.

ATV's are obviously a huge concern as just a few can do an incredible amout of damage very quickly to these trails so we would like to concentrate our efforts on the core of the park, near headquarters where there are more bikers and hikers whose prescence would discourage ATV's from riding trails they shouldn't be on. We would anticipate working our way out over the years to the more remote trails like Blair Witch, 6 mile, the trail to the top of Jiminy and anything over near Balance Rock.

Timeline / Status

These tasks are pretty much in the order of importance to us. If public hearings change, add or remove things in the plan, we will modify this document. The Goal dates are something we'd like to establish and agree on. We certainly can move something up, say we get approval for 6 mile SOON, we could do that right away. Same with any bridges or boardwalks if you had any lumber or if we could change our grant from buying tools to building board walks.

		Date Permission		Date Project
Project	Goal	Requested	Granted	Began	Completed	Current Status
Master Plan Approval	2009	12/09				11/27/09 Berkshire NEMBA delivered master plan to DCR.
Tower Mt. / Tilden Swamp Trail Alignment	2009
Wet Feet Bridge	2009	11/09				DCR going to conservation commission.
Berkshire Ranger Trail Boardwalk	2010
Hawthorne Trail Two Bridges	2010
Lulu Family Trails	2010	08/09				Waiting for Natural Heritage review.
Signs, Maps, Gates	2010
Tilden Swamp to Turner Trail Connector	2010
Narrow Trail	2010
Scace Farm Trails	2011
Pine Mt Switchbacks/Roots	2011
Scace Farm to Tilden Swamp Trail	2011
Turner Trail Intermediate Trail #1	2011
6 Mile	2011	08/09				Waiting for Natural Heritage review.
Honwee Circuit Replacement	2012
Taconic Crest - Switchback Tower Mt.	2012
Turner Trail Intermediate Trail #2	2012
Berkshire Ranger Trail Through or Above Campsite	2012
Hawthorne Trail Switchback Top	2012
Radio Tower Loop	2013
Taconic Crest - Switchback near Churchill Brook.	2013
Hawthorne Trail - Switchback near Parker Brook	2013
Taconic Crest - Switchback ascent to open field.	2013
Taconic Crest - Switchback before last descent to Potter Mt. Road.	2013
Blair Witch	2014
Taconic Crest to 6-Mile Connector	2014
Taconic Crest - Switchback descent from open field.	2014
6-Mile to Balance Rock Boyscout Trail	2014
Jiminy Peak Trail	2015
Hawthorne Trail Switchback near Woods Ramble	2015
Balance Rock Boy Scout Trail to Balance Rock Entrance	2015
Parker Brook Boardwalk	2015					Mentioned to Gary, think he might be pursing having DCR do this.

Legend
On Schedule
No Progress in 1-3 months
No Progress in 3 months or more

What's Next?

Questions for the DCR:

What's the next step? Public hearings? How soon can we have them?
Can everything be submitted to MESA and Natural Heritage at once so somehow we can reduce the amount of time to get approvals?
Or, could MESA and Natural Heritage give us GPS coordinates of all endangered species and natural heritage areas we need to avoid in PSF/Balance Rock North of Brickhouse and South of Jiminy Peak so we could make sure every trail we layout will have no problems ahead of time instead of after we go through all that effort.
Can we establish the time-line above for accomplishing these tasks?