Chainsaws were buzzing, brooms were swishing and the steady thump-thump of logs being stacked was the busy backdrop when volunteers were hard at work up at the 99 Mile Ski Trails during the 100 Mile Nordic Ski work bee on Oct. 22.
Club secretary Barb Matfin says it went “very well” with a “good group of well-seasoned” local Nordic members who turned out to attack the chores at hand over the approximately four-hour work bee under mostly sunny skies.
Trail clearing was done on both the ski trails and the snowshoe trails and the Lodge clean-up saw pictures rehung and the kitchen and rental equipment were also reorganized.
All the wood cut was transported over to fill up the main woodshed, with all the logs unloaded, sorted and stacked up to prepare them for splitting and adding to the firewood pile for the Lodge fireplace and cabin stoves.
“The Lodge is spic-and-span, the wood sheds are full, various other little projects were done, and we got some drift fence put up and some gates repaired – the big things, lots of firewood and just getting everything straightened out at the Lodge.”
The trails were cleared of standing dead trees (before they fall), willows and saplings, the “waxing cabin” was cleaned up, the marathon storage trailer is cleaned out of old items that were loaded and taken away, and it was all accomplished under fairly pleasant autumn weather, she adds.
“They’ve been brushing a lot the last couple of weeks, so that’s pretty much been done.
“What we do need, now, is the back 10 needs to be done – it’s the very, very back trail that, thankfully, the fires didn’t get to. We were very fortunate, because … the Williams Lake Cross-Country Ski Club, a lot of their trails were burnt in the fire.”
While the ski club had enough people to get the most urgent jobs done, Matfin says the society board would like to encourage more younger Nordic members to turn out and volunteer to help out with these trail and cabin chores.
“It would have been nice to see more younger club members come out … they can ask any executive member how they can help because there’s lots of help needed.”
Matfin says the women who contribute the home baking are terrific and add another great reason to turn out to work bees – to enjoy some of those tasty cookies and snacks.
