Mountain Extension - Official Work Thread

[Alex Harvilchuck]

On the way North to do some layout at the pinch point, we noticed one of the barrier logs I placed at the access road was out of place. Kind of skewed at an angle. Investigating, I found where it had been hit by a vehicle. So we straightened it back out, and I drove some stakes in the ground and put some orange flagging tape on them.

Sound like a need for a pair of trail cameras.....and a "this area is under video surveillance" sign.

[Mike Fox]

No, I am sure it was just a local bird hunter or something. May have been someone scouting where to hunt this weekend.

I do not like signs, as it is not our property. The same with a camera. One vehicle should not result in anything other than what was done. I am just thankful I placed the logs there. Had the vehicle made it onto the ROW, they could have been seriously hurt.

[Fred L. Kuhns]

 Mike,  In the times pasted, the timber clearing crews worked in the winter months to clear right of way or other necessary fields for the museum.  Is it possible to still do such while working under permits?

[Mike Fox]

Hi Fred.
I think we can plan to do some tree cutting this winter. But no trees will be cut in the permit zones without the permits. Outside of the permit zones we plan to only cut what is necessary. Also, before snow cover, I want to clean up the fallen trees, and get them to spots we can get them easily to burn this winter.

[Bill Reidy]

I'd like to get out with a blade trimmer and go after some of the saplings along the railway before they get too big.  Won't be able to do it the next two weekends, unfortunately.

[Mike Fox]

After our big rain and wind storm we had this week, remnants of Tropical Storm Philippe, I did and inspection of the work we did this summer this afternoon.

I found water flowing through the big culvert, no erosion but I do need to put some stone on the inlet side.

Second culvert had quite a bit flowing through at one time. The flow cleaned leaves up and sent them through the pipe.

The third pipe saw very little use, as far as I could tell. It will not get much flow, as it just collects ditch water and sends it to the other side. Perhaps once the ditching is done, it will catch more.

Trees Down... As I drove in the access road, clearing my way, this is what I found..







And finally, at the pinch point.. The tree at the 30 degree angle is the only new one..

[Ed Lecuyer]

At long last, here is a (fairly) clear map of each section and location needing work on the WW&F Mountain Extension




To clarify:
The Mountain Extension is broken up into seven "Sections." These sections match zones that require specific permitting. Some Sections require no permits, others (such as Sections 3 and 6) are more complex and require the cooperation and approval of several agencies.

There are 17 specific "Locations" that require work. Some Sections contain several Locations, others Sections consist of only one Location. As of October 2017, all ROW work at Section 1 (Locations 1, 2, & 3) is complete; the end of track is Location 1.

Major contour lines are at 10' intervals, minor ones (dotted) are at 2'. This really makes the flat land at Top of the Mountain for our future mills really stand out. (Contour lines are omitted outside of the work zone.) The "Top of the Mountain" dot indicates the location of the former cart road crossing.

A printed version of this map will be posted in the Percival House for further inspection.

[Mike Fox]

Ed, thank you for posting this.

This is the result of several trips down the mountain, looking at maps, measuring, figuring, asking, talking...

If anyone has any questions at all about any of the work that needs to be done, please ask. Either privately or on here. Jason and I can answer just about everything, or we can make something up that sounds good..

[Philip Marshall]

That is a truly beautiful map, Ed!

[Joe Fox]

Hey Ed and or other officials, may I share this map on the NG discussion forum and in a few other places to help give a visualization to the bridge project and or track extension updates? As noted by a few others I have been really pushing the bridge Fundrazr page and trying every approach possible to help keep things moving forward.

[Ed Lecuyer]

I do not have an issue sharing the map with a wider audience. In fact, it will be part of today's "Bridge Story" Episode.

[Jeff Schumaker]

I see that the next section to be addressed is the slide. This brings a number of questions to mind.

Do we have the necessary permit(s) to proceed? If not, what permit(s) are needed?

The map key mentions 200 yards of fill. Will other work be needed to be done to keep the fill in place?

Will the museum need to work with other organizations to, such as the conservancy, to complete this work?

Jeff S.

[Jason M Lamontagne]

Hi Jeff,

We’re keeping our permitting requirements off-line for now, as we work diligently to secure the necessary permissions one section at a time.  As a direct answer for your question, we have gotten the clearance to proceed on our section 2 work (in this case, we are more than 75’ from the brook, there is no active waterway or wetland).

The fill will be placed at a self-stable slope, clothed and rip rapped.

The problem can be corrected entirely within the width of the right of way we own. 

Thanks,
Jason

[Jeff Schumaker]

Thanks, Jason. Will work on section 2 start next summer?

Jeff S.

[Mike Fox]

We are hopeful. We will use our contractor to do the work. It will be he who fills and slopes it to our specifications. It will be the easiest way to accomplish that. We will be focused on other projects at the same time, and lifting the burden of us trying to do it will help immensely.