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Trail debris includes an abandoned vehicle
When hiking on the Kingsbury Stinger trail, Roger Arnaud encountered something unusual - an old, abandoned vehicle. Instead of
stepping around it, Arnaud chose to do something. As a four-year volunteer trail coordinator and host for the Lake Tahoe Basin
Management Unit of the U.S. Forest Service, Arnaud started a cleanup project under the Forest Service's direction.
"We are guardians of the land," Arnaud said. "It's not up to them to do everything."
Arnaud also contacted the Pine Nut Trail Association, of which he also is a member, to get help for the project. On Nov. 3
they removed the vehicle from the area. Doug Holcomb, Gerald Hutchinson and Dennis Bargman helped Arnaud remove the vehicle.
Garrett Villanueva, a civil engineer with the LTBMU, said he's worked with Arnaud on and off for five years to maintain the
trail. The removal of the vehicle was helpful, because the Forest Service would not have been able to remove it before winter,
he said. By the time they acquired the funding and organized the removal, snow would have been covering the area. "The vehicle would
have sat all winter," Villanueva said.
Normally, Arnaud removes branches from the trail, and the vehicle removal was an isolated incident. The individuals using
the trail are usually great with keeping it clean, he said.
Brian Doyal, a member of the PNMTA, said the organization has removed 20 cars along with washers, dryers and mattresses in the
Pine Nut Mountain area, which includes South Lake Tahoe and the East Shore.
The Tahoe Rim Trail Association is another organization contributing to the upkeep of trails in the area. Erin Casey, associate
director of the TRTA, said the group continues to take care of 85 percent of maintenance of the 165-mile trail and also builds
onto the existing trail. Casey said the existence of the trails depends on volunteers. "Without volunteers, we would not be able
to maintain the trail," Casey said. "It wouldn't have been completed, either." Each year, the organization clears 200 to 300 trees
on the trail.
The Forest Service doesn't receive enough funding for trail maintenance. Because of this lack of funding for the agency and
recreation, organizations such as the TRTA and the PNMTA are helping, she said. "We have to step up and fill that hole," Casey
said. Villanueva said these organizations are essential to help out the Forest Service, and he appreciates the assistance.
People who benefit from the trails should also help maintain them, Arnaud said. By users giving their time and labor, the
value of the trails increase. Both the TRTA and the PNMTA don't have any more maintenance activities scheduled until the spring.
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