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volunteers needed near Kennywood, Sat 3/8

Come out Sat 3/8 at 11am-12:30 and help clear brush blocking the view of the Braddock Lock? The location is about 1/4 mile upstream (SE) of Kennywood, along the GAP trail, where there's a sign and a bench (closest trailhead is in Duquesne). I'll bring two hand saws, loppers, and pruner. We'll be cutting back small trees and bushes. Wear boots & gloves. Join me? so far it's just me let me know if you're coming, or just show up -Paul, Steel Valley Trail Council
paulheckbert
2014-03-07 15:16:48
The turnout for the tree-felling and brush pruning was great yesterday, given that I gave only 24 hours advance notice. Helping out were Jon, Jake, Kelley, Marco, George, and Bob. Many hands make light work! The improvement to the view is dramatic and beyond my expectations. See below. OK, I admit that a view of railroad tracks, locks, and a steel mill might not win awards, but at least trail visitors who stop to read the sign about the Braddock Locks will now be able to see what the sign is talking about. Before pruning (Feb. 2014) After pruning (Mar. 2014) clockwise: Paul with implements of destruction. Jake & Kelley clearing bushes. Jon & Jake. from left to right, Marco, George, Jon, and Jake felling trees and pruning.
paulheckbert
2014-03-09 13:15:25
Is there any concern about the viability of the root system still present after the pruning, especially with the recent history of the hillside integrity in that area?
sierramister
2014-03-09 17:37:08
Here's a followup picture, three months after the pruning we did in March. It looks pretty good (view across the river is still unoccluded).
paulheckbert
2014-06-13 11:02:36
I don't suppose you could make alterations to this so that the picture becomes clickable and thus zoomable?
stuinmccandless
2014-06-13 11:27:20
An easy way to do both is to click the little "insert image" icon just above the compose window. Insert the URL, click Apply Image, and you get: The site's CSS sometimes crops it though.
steven
2014-06-13 12:53:36
Here's a followup. To maintain the view, today I did some quick pruning of the taller plants (Tree of Heaven) growing here. I probably could have waited until the winter (when the poison ivy is less juicy) to do the cutback here. It appears that pruning once or twice a year here will suffice to maintain the view. before: after: (There’s a nice pile of beer cans on that slope. Obviously people come to the bench, stop, drink, and toss their cans. Humans can be such slobs.)
paulheckbert
2014-08-09 17:33:31
Here's what it looked like on 1/27, after 7 inches of snowfall (click for zoomable picture). A nice destination for cross-country skiing.
paulheckbert
2015-02-02 22:24:30
I want to go to this. It's been a while since I've done any direct action.
mick
2015-02-02 23:12:34
@mick: note that this thread is one year old
paulheckbert
2015-02-03 09:17:59
So, Paul, you gonna make it a once-a-year thing or what?
mick
2015-02-03 12:06:49
> So, Paul, you gonna make it a once-a-year thing or what? Twice a year at this spot seems to suffice. March and August worked well. The pruning maintenance here appears to be just a one- or two-person job. Note: if you're ever there and feel like picking up the beer/soda cans that some thoughtless person has thrown down the hillside, be my guest. Note: poison ivy nearby. Thanks. If you're up for other maintenance tasks, I could put you in touch with Bob MacGregor, who leads the Steel Valley Trail maintenance effort.
paulheckbert
2015-02-03 13:24:06
Poison ivy gets started in April, though the branches also cause the rash. So any effort to clean trash should be done between the melting of the snow and the start of the growing season.
stuinmccandless
2015-02-03 13:57:40
Another followup to this thread from March 2014: I did some work here today. I could have called out others, but the work was pretty simple: two hours of pruning. I picked up the litter, also. Some idiot had tossed 15 cans of Miller High Life down the hillside. So the next time you see some low-life enjoying the High Life on the bench, check his throwing arm. Here's what the hillside looks like now:
paulheckbert
2015-04-19 22:40:47
I appreciate the irony of people drinking cans of Miller High Life on a slope overlooking train tracks
sgtjonson
2015-04-20 11:46:09
Probably some hipsters riding fixies.
mntbiker25
2015-04-20 12:47:02