2024 Microburst Recap

 

Boehm Pond and Shelton Lakes were slammed!

It's been just over a month since the August 3 microburst cut a swath through the middle of Shelton, felling trees and knocking out power to almost half of our residents.  Here's a recap of all the chainsaw work that created. Committee members Mark Vollaro and Terry Gallagher are the only two with the bigger gas-powered chainsaws capable of cutting larger logs (some were enormous), and both have had repeated chainsaw safety training courtesy of the Connecticut Forest and Park Association. Mark often went out with a spotter/helper. Teresa Gallagher (staff) uses a smaller battery-powered chainsaw that was effective in cutting many of the tree crowns and branches that fell on the trails, and for delimbing the larger logs so hikers could step over them while waiting for the larger chainsaws. And then some anonymous freelancer cut up several big logs that were across Turkey Trot and Oak Valley Trails. 

August 4 - September 7 chainsawing hours: 

Mark Vollaro with Ray Hansen:  25 hrs (12.5 hrs each)
Mark Vollaro with Ellen Cramp: 15 hrs (7.5 hrs each)
Mark Vollaro with Luis Isaza: 16 hrs (8 hrs each) 
Mark Vollaro with Bill Dyer and Ray Hansen: 9 hrs (3 hrs each)
Mark Vollaro (solo): 8.5 hrs
Terry Gallagher (solo): 12 hrs
Mark Vollaro and Terry Gallagher: 8 hrs (4 hrs each)
Ray Hansen and Ellen Cramp: 8 hrs (4 hrs each)
Teresa Gallagher (staff - solo): 25.5 hrs
TOTAL CHAINSAWING HOURS = 127

Mark Vollaro and Ray Hansen on Nells Rock Trail

Note that these hours do not include all the work that went into pulling a zillion branches and sticks off the trail (many trail users helped with this), scouting out trail conditions, mapping all the blowdowns, or the anonymous chainsaw work that fell from the sky. Phew! 

All that is to say that some trails are a tad overgrown here and there, but we've been busy! 

Ellen Cramp assisting Mark Vollaro
(Paugussett Trail near Eklund Garden)

Luis Isaza often works with Mark Vollaro

Teresa Gallagher's little battery-saw was great at cutting
branches and small logs so the trail was passable until
Terry or Mark could cut the larger logs.

Mark Vollaro make a tremendous effort cutting up blowdowns

Terry Gallagher finished off a major blowdown across the
Rec Path near Lane Street that Mark and Ray had started. 

RecPath Blowdowns Cleared at Lane St

Following the Upper Wesley Crossing Val asked about we thought about the Lane St blowdown. We said we'd look at at it not knowing what she was talking about.  I took the dog for a walk on Sunday, saw a nice 4 point buck in the Land Trust Meadow; who didn't see a bit concerned about us.  My dog was very concerned about the deer however; he was vibrating and would've chased that deer to Oxford if he wasn't on a leash.  And this is one reason that dogs are required to be leashed on the trails.  

We moved on up the hill into the woods and Holy Crap what a mess it was.

The busted tree top that was hung up during the Microburst, had come crashing down during Tropical Storm Debby, and shattered across the RecPath.  A Large Oak top was shattered in the storm and dropped across the RecPath above Lane Street blocking all access to the RecPath. The oak took our a birch and made a mess of the place.

 There were sections of trunk, big limbs, and lots of acorn laden branches everywhere.

 

Mark and Ray were out there a week later and cleared a bunch of the blowdown, but it was an especially hot week and they couldn't finish the job.  Slackers.  They got the initial clearing done with a lot of work, and fixed it so you could get past the blowdown, but there were still logs and branches blocking part of the RecPath.

So, this morning, after cleaning up the damage at the Winterberry by the Trails Barn, a volunteer went to whittling at the blowdown. After a lot of time and dragging branches, and hauling logs, the area looked like a RecPath once again. 

Public Safety Notes:  Most people were pretty good and appreciative of the work to clear the trails following wicked storms.  One mountain biker however rode right behind the sawyer while he was cutting, scaring the b'jeasus ooute of him, and could've caused a serious accident.  It only only have e taken a quick jerk of the chainsaw when startled to hack off the leg of a passing mountain biker or runner.  Please consider that there's no Undo button for that.  DO NOT RIDE OR RUN PAST SOMEONE WHEN THEY ARE CUTTING WITH A CHAINSAW ALONG THE TRAILS.  YOU COULD GET KILLED.  The volunteers can't always see or hear you coming while wearing ear muffs and a hard hat, steamed up safety glasses, with a loud chainsaw going and wood chips flying.  If you come across someone clearing storm damage on your ride or run on a trail STOP.  It is your responsibility to get off your bike, or stop running, and either get their attention to see if it's safe to pass, or bush whack off the trail and go well, well, well around the work area.  Do not go running or biking through the work zone as fast as you can like it doesn't matter, if you value your life and limb, or the volunteers. 

Also look up while out hiking or riding.  There's still a lot of storm damaged branches that volunteers can't get to that may come crashing down at any time.  That would hurt if you were underneath them at the time.  Walk briskly in those locations.  Have a nice walk but be aware of your surroundings.

I can't say much for the weather forecast accuracy, however we worked thru the rain to clear the big logs off of the RecPath. 

Helpful Trail Tips:   The cant hook/timberjack can be a friend to your back when it comes to rolling heavy logs.  Bring water to drink, always.  Don't believe the weather forecast.

Enjoy.

RecPath Clearing - at the Lower Wesley Drive Crossing

We had 13 people out on a beautiful Saturday morning to cut back the vegetation along the Shelton Lakes Recreation Path from the lower Wesley Drive crossing going North to the upper Weslesly Drive crossing.

Some people went toward Lane St. and some went north toward Wesley Dr.

Devin did well with the brushcutter after we got the correct poly cut blades to the worksite.

Bill Dyer was clearing out sightlines along the road to make the crossings safer.

The Shelton High School students did a good job clearing along the Path.

The volunteers cut back the briars along the RecPath

Val Gosset kept all the volunteers moving in a productive fashion. The trail bridge decking needs a bit of work and we are trying to organize that for this fall. It was a good work party and we thank everyone who came out. Thanks to Noiah, Hoelle, Aiden, Luis, Devin Val, Terry, Jeff, Anne, Sason, Tyrell, Betsey, and Bill.

Trail Status: Closures and Conditions

Heavy rainfall on August 18 lead to road regional
road closures, but mostly spared Shelton except
for the White Hills/Birchbank areas. 

We've had a microburst, some flooding, and stuff just keeps growing, so here's your trail status update:

*Most of Shelton was spared the worst of the flooding and we don't expect any major issues, except perhaps at Birchbank, which had more rain than the rest of town. We've heard that Indian Well Road going into the Birchbank neighborhood is closed due to the road being undermined. The Paugussett Trail in Monroe may be impassable at Cottage Street due to a road washout, not sure (see photo of rainfall totals)

*Boehm Pond Trails have just been cleared (8/21). There are still 8-10 logs to step over or around, but nothing too difficult.

*Shelton Lakes trails are mostly cleared, but there are still some step-over logs to be cut on Turkey Trot Trail and a big blowdown on the blue/white connector between the Dog Park and powerline.

*All other trails are clear of microburst damage as far as we know.

*Indian Well State Park: DEEP has reopened the falls parking area once again, although they still close it randomly, especially when the park is busy. DEEP staff has verified that the nearby off-season lot is in fact open for parking, even though someone posted a "private parking area" tow zone sign in front of it (at the entrance to the Maples).

*We're still trying to catch up with summer overgrowth, which happens during rainy years because everything keeps growing. The Rec Path near Wesley Drive was cut back last weekend. The section going down to Lane Street is pretty overgrown (although it did get mowed), as is the Bluff Walk and Riverview Park. Be prepared for other potential shaggy spots.

One Week of Microburst Clearing

The approximate core of the 8/3/2024 microburst

Right after the storm, in which 44% of Shelton residents lost power, we knew there would be lots of damage, but it took almost a week before we had a handle on how localized the damage was to an east-west swath cutting across town. Some trails at Shelton Lakes were impassable while some areas like Birchbank seem untouched. There weren't even any leaves or branches on the ground. Based on the trail damage pattern and what some of the streets looked like, the above map is a rough approximation of the core damage path. 

Most of the fallen trees are pointing to the east, the same direction that the storm was traveling. Some people were arguing that this was a tornado, but the damage was caused by straight-line winds. According to meteorologists, the storm cell possibly produced a funnel cloud in Trumbull (one photo is said to be inconclusive), but the dramatic video and photos taken from Shelton and widely shared on social media look like a shelf cloud associated with the downburst. 

The Rec Path near Lane Street

Terry and Mark removed a big Tulip Tree from the Rec Path

SUNDAY: At any rate, the storm was Saturday evening, and Sunday morning I headed out to start clearing what I could. Like a lot of other people in town, I had to keep turning around due to closed roads, and traffic lights were out in Huntington Center and all along Shelton Ave. I decided to start at Indian Well and Tahmore Preserve because these are popular trails on a Sunday, but the only real storm damage I found was at the very top of the hill at Tahmore Preserve. So I headed back to Shelton Lakes (hitting another closed road) and worked on the Rec Path between Wesley Drive and Lane Street. 

Oak tops were heavy with acorns.
This is the trail after one was cleared

Meanwhile, responding to our first trail report, Terry Gallagher took his chainsaw to cut a large tree across the Rec Path near Wesley Drive. He was eventually joined by Mark Vollaro, who ran into so many closed roads on his way to help that it took him close to an hour to drive across town. It was a big tree, but they cleared it. 

A lot of the downed branches and trees were oak tops full of acorns. I suspect the extra weight of the acorns is what brought them down. We also had some tulip tree poplars, which get really tall and break easily. But the oaks tops were really something. A lot of broken oak tops were still dangling overhead after the storm. 

Luis Isaza on the Rec Path Monday

MONDAY: On Monday, all hands were on deck to clear the Rec Path, our most popular trail.  Of the seven Trails Committee members, three were out of town and a fourth has health issues, leaving three members to deal with the storm damage, with the help of a few additional dedicated volunteers. Ellen Cramp and Ray Hansen worked behind Pine Lake, Mark Vollaro and Luis Isaza worked from Silent Waters to Oak Valley, and I worked my way up from Wesley Drive to Oak Valley.  (Where was Terry Gallagher? Working at his job!) By the end of the day, the Rec Path was clear! Later in the day I walked Birchbank Mountain and only had to remove storm damage from one spot. It was like nothing happened there. 

Paugussett Trail north of Constitution Blvd

TUESDAY: Everyone was pretty tired on Tuesday. Ellen Cramp conducted a detailed survey of storm damage on Oak Valley Trail. Lisa Adriani had sent in a report for the Paugussett Trail north of Constitution Blvd, with lots of messy stuff that would be hard to walk through, so I started focusing on the Paugussett Trail and was able to clear most of the damage from there to Meadow Street. I carry a battery chainsaw and loppers and can get 80 or 90 percent of most storm damage so that it's passable, leaving larger logs for Terry and Mark. I contacted CFPA, who runs the Blue-Trail system, to let them know their trail was a complete mess but we were working on it. 

Downed trees typically pointed east
(Paugussett Trail above Silent Waters)

WEDNESDAY:  Paugussett Trail clearing continued with the trail at Housatonic Woods (minor tree damage) and the Indy Link section (north of Independence Drive). Discovered a line of oak tree tops on the ground between Turkey Trot Trail and the Paugussett Trail and was glad most of them missed the trail. 

Boehm Pond is a disaster

THURSDAY: I swung by Boehm Pond, hoping the storm had missed the preserve. Nope. It's a disaster. The white trail was impassable and will need lots of work. Lisa Adrian also surveyed the trail at about the same time. Somehow we missed each other. 

FRIDAY: I checked Stockmal Trail as the winds of Tropical Storm Debby started ramping up, hoping the microburst had missed it, and it had. Lots of sticks on the trail, but that was all. Ellen walked Nicholdale and found only minor tree damage. So that was good news. But the winds from Debby were pretty strong and more trees were falling across town. Ack. 

Mark and Ellen tackled this mess behind Eklund Garden

Much better!

SATURDAY: Mark Vollaro and Ellen Cramp worked on a massive oak blowdown blocking the Paugussett Trail behind Eklund Garden. Meanwhile, Terry Gallagher cleared some logs from the Paugussett between Turkey Trot Trail and Independence, including a booby-trapped oak hung up so badly that people are just going to have to go under it. I took a long walk from Birchbank to Indian Well and discovered three new blowdowns at Birchbank but was able to verify that the Paugusset section we call "Birch-Well" was clear. 

Terry cleared a way for the Paugussett Trail under this oak. 
There's no safe way to completely remove the tree.

Now it's Sunday and the crews are back out there working. We have the Paugussett Trail fully open and Nells Rock Trail is getting cleared. Some new damage reports from Storm Debby are coming in on areas we previously cleared. Oh well! 

Microburst 8/3/2024 Status

Mark Vollaro and Terry Gallagher worked on this large
Tulip Tree across the Rec Path near Wesley Drive

We were finally starting to catch up with all the overgrowth and then yesterday a severe thunderstorm passed through and now parts of Shelton look like a hurricane hit. The Shelton Lakes area seems to be particularly hard hit. Plan your hikes accordingly! 

We're working on it! We "blowdown" map we maintain to track where a chainsaw is needed. The map is public, so if you come across a tree across the trail and are wondering if we know about it, take a look at the map. If it's not on there, we probably don't know about it. 

Part of our Google chainsaw map showing one log that needs to be 
cut and three green check marks for trails that have been cleared
after the 8/3/2024 storm

Here's the custom Google Map showing blowdowns. We also have a temporary layer for this storm with green check marks for when a trail section has been marked "clear."  

With 32 miles of hiking trails to maintain, we do rely on reports from out trail users. If you see something, say something! After a big storm, even just a notice that a particular trail is clear gives us useful information and saves us a walk to check it out. Reports can be emailed to sheltontrailscommittee@gmail.com, or post something on the Trail Facebook Group. Please be as specific and detailed as possible, or it doesn't really help. That said, when we have widespread damage on a trail, it's not necessary to document the details of ten or twenty spots where branches and logs are across the trail. In that case, what we need to know is generally how bad it is (e.g. "impassible!") and what tools are needed. Exact locations of large diameter logs (>6") requiring a big chainsaw are most needed. Screenshots of your location on a trails app are super helpful, as are photos of the tree damage. 

Map app screenshots
are really helpful

We also really appreciate trail users who are able to clear back some of the smaller trail blockages, often from tree crown branches. Many of these types of blockages can be partly or entirely cleared with loppers and handsaws. Many thanks!

Silent Waters Summer Weed Whacking

The mid-summer jungle had gotten out of control along the RecPath at Silent Waters.  A work party had been scheduled for 2 weeks ago, but was rained out by thunderstorms.  You may find this hard to believe, but the recent rainfall and sunny weather have caused even more growth.  Luckily, we had a wonderful group of volunteer show up to tackle the problem.

Most of the work focused on the southern dam and bridge area overlooking Silent Waters.  A variety of hand cutting, hedge trimming, and weed whacking was done on both sides of the Path.  Val, Ellen & Mike directed the team there.

Mark Vollaro mowed both sides of the Path with the Gator and DR Mower at the start, then he headed down toward Pine Lake to take care of some unruly mugwort trying to take over the Path there.

Terry took the brushcutter up to the northern dam and cleaned up both sides of the trail.  Teresa and Mike showed up with the electric hedge trimmers to tackle the higher stuff.  

The burning bush is out of control over here.  It's an invasive shrub that crowds out the native plants, and needs to be wiped out in this area - probably a Fall task.  

The RecPath cleaned up nicely though.  Now it looks like a properly maintained main section of the City's trail network.

While we cut invasive species along the trails.  We try to not cut everything mindlessly along the trails.  We try to encourage some native plants where they are slow growing, they can help us control the invasives, or we just want them.  This patch of Woodland Sunflowers is a summer treat along northern end of the southern dam.  Look for them when you're enjoying the RecPath.

The southern section by the bridge cleaned up nicely too. 

The view of Silent Waters from the bridge was good.  Teresa cleared out a view of the pond from the north.  We need to work more on cutting out views of the pond that have grown up.  Possibly a Fall project also.

We cleared along the RecPath from Shelton Ave down to Pine Lake.  Mark mowed a lot with the DR and by hand.

Thanks to everyone who came out to help: Anne, Aidan, Athena, Christine, Noelle, Noian, Val, Luis, Ellen, Teresa, Mike, Mark and Terry.  It turned into a warm morning with a lot of hot work by everyone.  The RecPath was pretty busy and a lot of users thanked us for our efforts.

The Shelton Trail System is largely built and maintained by local volunteers.  The trails did not build themselves, and they definitely don't maintain themselves.  If people enjoy using our trails it behooves them to help on a work party from time to time.  Today's turnout in July was great - thank you again.