pibbles
Well-Known Member
We shall see sir! Gonna name him Gransfor?
Wharton Conditions
- Thread starter moray42
- Start date
No. Gave the pup a good Polish name.
Will be bringing the Gransfor, a saw or two, and maybe a come-along this Saturday morning.
A few of us will be meeting at the firetower at 8:00. Then walking down the hill to clear the two big pines there. And then back up to clear the several pines near the trail head. Planning to work until 11:30 or until it starts raining.
All are welcome to join in and help clear the trail. You can park at the firetower, or at the more secure Batsto lot if you are planning on a ride afterwards. Thanks.
pibbles
Well-Known Member
Arggghhhh! Just re-hung my old ax and got a new one! One for each arm! I gotta work and can't make it! Then after work I have to be at my nephews graduation party! Arggghhhh! On a more serious note thanks for heading out three weeks in a row so myself and others can hit the trails! If you guys gotta leave anything let me know and I'll take care of it Sunday if it's not to sketchy.
moray42
Merman
Sorry I missed this, as I definitely would've been there. Hadn't looked at the forum much the last few days and completely missed the post until now.
There will likely be more storms and storm recovery tm days in the future. Will keep you in the loop and tell you to bring your restored crosscut saw.
Much thanks to Gerry and Kevin for working today. We removed all the blowdowns east of the trailhead near the fire tower. That one large dead oak was saved for last and took the most time with axe n saws.
wonderturtle
Well-Known Member
Wow. Sounds like Wharton got slammed and y'all have been doing lots of good work.
So what is the status now? Was hoping to hit it up this week.
So what is the status now? Was hoping to hit it up this week.
I can vouch for the inner red, white and blue trails (Tea Berry, Oak Hill and Huckleberry Trails) and say they are ridable. An occasional new logover and duck-under, some left over storm limb litter, the usual spring/summer proliferation of ferns and scrubs, but still enjoyable to ride.
Jim (Chuck Norris) pedalled the full orange with pruning saw, cleared out a lot, and deemed it passable. Jim (Chuck Norris) started riding moto in Wharton during the '60s. So his interpretation of *passable* can be a 'lil gnarly. But most enjoy that.
Yeah, Wharton got slammed in that June straight line wind/thunder storm. Big thanks to everyone thats been volunteering, these trails would not be ridable now otherwise.
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BigDB67
Well-Known Member
I did the entire orange loop this past Saturday morning. A couple of downed trees but nothing major out there.
I have hiked and camped out in Wharton a bunch of times and I was nervous about the sand. The designated MTB loops are hard-packed dirt and fantastic! Nothing technical, just A LOT of quick turns. The 19.3 miles got old by the end, but I will be going back. This place definitely looks ride-able in the Fall/Winter.
I have hiked and camped out in Wharton a bunch of times and I was nervous about the sand. The designated MTB loops are hard-packed dirt and fantastic! Nothing technical, just A LOT of quick turns. The 19.3 miles got old by the end, but I will be going back. This place definitely looks ride-able in the Fall/Winter.
theranch
Active Member
Check out the Blue loop. It has some nice contour trails not found in the orange loop. If you started from the lot it's almost 10mi for one lap so I wind up doing 2-3 laps with one in the opposite direction.
BigDB67
Well-Known Member
I will have to do that thanks!
Did my annual "I need a break from my In-Law Family Vacation in Cape May" and headed out to Wharton for some afternoon fun this past Tuesday. Brought my Bro-In-Law who rides once a year. A LOT of work has been done recently to address the many....many blow downs. THANK YOU!!! Trails were in great shape with minimal sand. Tried to do the entire park, but my Bro-In-Law started bonking just as we were at the farthest point. Had to take fire roads back to the lot. Regardless, a polar opposite of what I typically ride and a ton of fun. Great job to the crew who keeps this place in check!!
moray42
Merman
Early afternoon drive to check out what sort of flooding and damage is around this time. Wandered out to Wharton to check on last week's erosion control project. Catching and diverting sand, so I'd say successful thus far. Took the cinder path out to avoid damage, but was good enough for light foot traffic. This was just after cleaning out the nick.
That being said, some ruts were dug into further than would happen if it was packed while dry. Sure enough after hiking just a little further to clear the remaining trailhead nicks, 2 guys with no helmets rode by towards the lot. Little annoyed that one must have tried to jump or skid and carved a chunk out of the roller. Was going to politely suggest avoid wet condition riding and such, but their behavior back in the lot gave me the impression it would be pointless and I dropped it.
Before on the uphill side
After on the downhill side
That being said, some ruts were dug into further than would happen if it was packed while dry. Sure enough after hiking just a little further to clear the remaining trailhead nicks, 2 guys with no helmets rode by towards the lot. Little annoyed that one must have tried to jump or skid and carved a chunk out of the roller. Was going to politely suggest avoid wet condition riding and such, but their behavior back in the lot gave me the impression it would be pointless and I dropped it.
Before on the uphill side
After on the downhill side
Thanks for clearing the trees!
This the first rain for the rolling grade dips that we put in last week. They were packed, but the recent heavy rains filled the voids and floated the sand. They will settle in time.
As with any other mtb trail, its always best to wait a day after a rain before riding. One or two folks ignoring that standard don't cause much issue. But when it is several dozen riders or more, it creates more work for the trail crew, clearing the trail nicks, shoveling the loose stuff, etc. to keep the singletrack tight. (Just like a mud hole, riders will continualy ride the edges of a soft sandy section until the trail is double wide plus.)
I understand that during the winter months, people drive a long distance to ride Batsto. We ask that if they see the trail tread is soft due to a freeze/thaw or large amounts of rain and snow, that they stay off the mtb trails and ride their miles exploring the sand roads. There are some very scenic and historic spots a short ways down some nearby fun sand roads.
Buck Shotgun Season is Monday 12/7/15 am to Saturday 12/12/15 pm.
I recommend staying out of the forest this week.
I recommend staying out of the forest this week.
When the freeze/thaw becomes THAW this winter and the trail tread is soft from the THAW (or much El Nino Rain), please please please (I know I sound like James Brown) get off of the mtb singletrack and ride the Wharton Forest sand roads, firecuts and such.
If you do that one small favor, it helps to keep the Batsto mtb singletrack in good shape for many more years to come.
There are many good non-mtb Batsto non-singletrack options available in Wharton Forest. Most have scenic, historic views and/or *old school pinelands challenges* (ask the SandMan about the latter, or maybe both) to keep folks amused.
Riding a brisk pace down any Wharton Forest secondary sand road, specially on SS, is always good race training. A Batsto-Jenkins-Batsto snow ride up-n-down the Washington Turnpike is always fun. Visiting the Devious Mount db trails is definitely old school fun (woopwoopwoopcrash). And everyone needs to visit the Apple Pie Hill overlook at least once.
There are many more fun THAW/RAIN options available. If after looking at a map of Wharton Forest, you still have questions, please email, PM, or simply post, and we'll try to answer your questions.
Thanks!
If you do that one small favor, it helps to keep the Batsto mtb singletrack in good shape for many more years to come.
There are many good non-mtb Batsto non-singletrack options available in Wharton Forest. Most have scenic, historic views and/or *old school pinelands challenges* (ask the SandMan about the latter, or maybe both) to keep folks amused.
Riding a brisk pace down any Wharton Forest secondary sand road, specially on SS, is always good race training. A Batsto-Jenkins-Batsto snow ride up-n-down the Washington Turnpike is always fun. Visiting the Devious Mount db trails is definitely old school fun (woopwoopwoopcrash). And everyone needs to visit the Apple Pie Hill overlook at least once.
There are many more fun THAW/RAIN options available. If after looking at a map of Wharton Forest, you still have questions, please email, PM, or simply post, and we'll try to answer your questions.
Thanks!
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Walt's post about valuing your riding trails is two years old, but still rings true and clear.
http://waltworks.blogspot.com/2013/12/the-last-rant-probably-of-2013-you-dont.html
http://waltworks.blogspot.com/2013/12/the-last-rant-probably-of-2013-you-dont.html
Happy New Year!
2016's first safe riding tip for WSF, at the instigation of some WSF regulars and the WSF staff.
The PBT crosses sand roads about two dozen times. All of those sand roads are open to motorized traffic. About a half dozen of those crossings are across sand roads that see a surprising amount of traffic (for a WSF sand road).
Please use some caution and look both ways before crossing the sand roads.
Thanks!
2016's first safe riding tip for WSF, at the instigation of some WSF regulars and the WSF staff.
The PBT crosses sand roads about two dozen times. All of those sand roads are open to motorized traffic. About a half dozen of those crossings are across sand roads that see a surprising amount of traffic (for a WSF sand road).
Please use some caution and look both ways before crossing the sand roads.
Thanks!
Current conditions is melting snow, slush and soft mushy trail tread.
Give it another week.
When the freeze/thaw becomes thaw this winter and the trail tread is soft from the thaw, please stay off of the Batsto MTB Trails.
Instead, please ride and explore Wharton Forest’s sand roads and unmarked multi-use trails. If you do that one small favor, it helps to keep the Batsto MTB Trails firm and in good shape for many more years to come.
Most of those aforementioned Wharton Forest’s sand roads and unmarked multi-use trails can include scenic views, historic sites and/or *old school pinelands challenges*. Riding a brisk pace down any Wharton Forest secondary sand road is always good training. Visiting the Devious Mount trails is definitely old school fun. And everyone needs to visit the Apple Pie Hill overlook at least once. If after looking at a map of Wharton Forest, or reading about pinelands ghost towns, you have questions about alternate routes, PM or post, and we'll give you an answer.
Please be adequately prepared before exploring Wharton Forest.
Please look both ways before crossing the sand roads.
Please do not ride on the hiking-only trails. Please do not ride thru Batsto Village.
Give it another week.
When the freeze/thaw becomes thaw this winter and the trail tread is soft from the thaw, please stay off of the Batsto MTB Trails.
Instead, please ride and explore Wharton Forest’s sand roads and unmarked multi-use trails. If you do that one small favor, it helps to keep the Batsto MTB Trails firm and in good shape for many more years to come.
Most of those aforementioned Wharton Forest’s sand roads and unmarked multi-use trails can include scenic views, historic sites and/or *old school pinelands challenges*. Riding a brisk pace down any Wharton Forest secondary sand road is always good training. Visiting the Devious Mount trails is definitely old school fun. And everyone needs to visit the Apple Pie Hill overlook at least once. If after looking at a map of Wharton Forest, or reading about pinelands ghost towns, you have questions about alternate routes, PM or post, and we'll give you an answer.
Please be adequately prepared before exploring Wharton Forest.
Please look both ways before crossing the sand roads.
Please do not ride on the hiking-only trails. Please do not ride thru Batsto Village.
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moray42
Merman
Just finished adding an overall Wharton map to Maprika. Bit low res, but in conjunction with a standard map or phone map app, it should assist in navigating some of the more remote fire roads.