Saving the Deer Valley Trail of Northern California
Land Use Updates September 14, 2017 Del Albright
Modern jeepers and many four-wheeling volunteers stepped up to help save the famous California trail, Deer Valley, located in the high Sierra Nevada mountains weaving its way through a non-Wilderness corridor of the Mokelumne Wilderness (Eldorado and Stanislaus National Forests). Closed by court order several years ago, the trail is being repaired by volunteers and is now open again to four-wheeling.
Dating back to the 1850’s with Snowshoe Thompson carrying mail across the mountains, and the Mormon Emigrants migrating west, the Deer Valley trail has a long and distinguished history of use. The author, Del, representing the BlueRibbon Coalition /Sharetrails and a member of the California 4Wheel Drive Association, want to make sure this access and history stays alive for all of us, forever!
Thanks to the Motherlode Rockcrawlers 4Wheel Drive Club, working with the South County Trail Riders 4WD Club, three weekends of rock hauling, puddle filling work has made the difference!
The Yosemite Toad is an endangered species of true toad that lives in the area and requires protection. The four-wheeling volunteers filled mud puddles that potentially could damage the habitat of the toad, and re-routed a section of trail that was too close to toad habitat. All in all, the toad is now happier and the four-wheelers are back on the trail.
The project was very successful and proves once again how four-wheeling volunteers CAN and DO make a difference!
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