MCC is a constant challenge. From an outsiders perspective, you only get to see the final product. In the case of the MCC this is most likely going to be a trail though some celestial landscapes. But Mother Earth is a strong woman and she doesn't let us explore her beautiful expanses without putting in some sweat and toil. Just getting to a work site is a challenge in itself sometimes. The Welcome Creek Wilderness provided us an opportunity to visit an area blessed with a bountiful beargrass bloom but hiking in all our food and gear for 9 days of work took every bit of strength we had. For the rest of the week we worked on some steep terrain through blackened burn areas accented by a sea of white bear grass blossoms. 40 water bars, massive retread and brushing climaxed at the end of the week when we built a bridge. Being in a wilderness area, we could not use any mechanized instruments so we used 2 man cross cut saws and double bit axes to fell trees for sills and stringers. The stringers were almost 20 feet long and a foot in diameter. Taking down a tree, stripping it, flattening out a side of it and notching it with the old school tools is a rewarding feeling and instills a respect for the days of yore inside you. Meanwhile some crew dug out on each side of the creek and leveled it off. Next we placed the sills and pounded in the stringers. After that we buried the sills and we had ourselves a bridge. When I joined MCC one thing I didn't know much but I knew I wanted to build a bridge.
Now I can cross that one off the list.
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