Wilderness Trails Program

Protect · Restore · Educate

Wilderness Trails Program

NFC has a long history of conducting trail maintenance on public land in Mt Hood National Forest. Volunteers must attend training sessions on safety, trail construction techniques, and proper tool usage including chainsaws and crosscut saws for use in wilderness areas.

Bagby Trail #544 Maintenance Project

Working with the Mt Hood National Forest, NFC will be adopting the Bagby Trail #544 from the trailhead to Bagby Hot Springs. Work includes drainage to limit erosion, maintaining a solid base, removing fallen debris and logs, limiting fuel hazards along the trail, and improving sections of trail as needed. This trail can see up to 60,000 hikers per year.

Protect

Watershed Protection Program

NFC’s longest running program, the Watershed Protection Program, focuses on protecting, enhancing, and cleaning the Upper Clackamas watershed and educating the public about responsible use. Since 2001, NFC has held bi-annual cleanups of the Clackamas River and Austin Hot Springs in cooperation with the USDA Forest Service and SOLV. Now twice a year volunteers pick up trash, plant trees, enhance fish habitat, and learn about the area from Austin Hot Springs to Bagby Hot Springs. This event helped NFC receive the Volunteer Group of the Year award from the Clackamas River Ranger District of Mt Hood Nation Forest in October of 2008. The largest single event had a peak of 51 volunteers participate and 4500 pounds of trash collected. The success of this event has lead to a steep decline in trash in the area. The events in 2008 collected only 1500 pounds from each event!

The public education presented during NFC’s monthly events in the area are a unique opportunity to provide long term change to forest users and their children. Also, NFC partnered with the USDA Forest Service to join the Respect the River Program that includes posting pubic educational and interpretive signs along the Clackamas River and dispersed recreation sites.

Snow Adventure

Forest Management Program

NFC’s Forest Management Program focuses on sustainable recreation and forest use and management. NFC has three projects, Bagby Hot Springs Management, Austin Hot Springs Management, and participation in the Nationally recognized, award winning, collaborative group, Clackamas Stewardship Partners. NFC is committed to the responsible use of the forest by the public and land managers that allows recreation and sustainable forest practices. Bagby Hot Springs is estimated to receive over 100,000 visitors a year. NFC’s projects underway on-site have already improved the services on-site, provided education, preserved buildings and history, reduced impact, and reduced crime. Clackamas County Sheriffs Dept. had 35-45 crimes per year reported at Bagby Hot Springs before NFC started its projects. In 2008, only 2 crimes were reported through August. The good changes and increase in family use has lead to a series of good media stories about Bagby and NFC in The Oregonian (4/07) and an episode on OPB’s Oregon Field Guide (10/08).