Arkansas Canoe Club Forums

I heard that! Watch out for those falling limbs. A big limb hit about 40 feet away from me the other day. And today, in the woods, you could hear a crash about every couple of minutes! Hardhats ain't a bad idea at all...

- Fish

Prairie Tater wrote:Where do we stand with the forest service? Do they welcome our help? I was just thinking that they might be concerned about liability issues in case of an accident....
Prater

Last weekend, I think the FS was more amused by our efforts than anything else. They had a dozer; we didn't, so I think they believed our efforts would be puny, futile and fruitless. I think they didn't fully realize how and determined we are when it comes to our desire to float Richland.

Yes, they wanted us to stay clear of their work area, for obvious liability reasons. But they did not attempt to restrict us from making our own decisions about what we did on other stretches of road they were not covering. If you think about it, this frequently happens in emergencies - everyone pitches in, and at first, any help is welcome. As things progress, liability concerns or fear of creating new victims creeps back in and often the professionals expect the private citizens to step aside.

If I were the head ranger, I would NOT want to give you "permission" to help with an effort like this because of the extreme danger. So if you asked for permission, I'd most likely say NO. That is not the same thing as saying I would waste my LE officer's time sending them out to STOP you from doing this. But I'd be upset if I had to send them to carry you to the hospital or morgue, too.

Taking all factors into account; I think the important thing is that I may not have to work tomorrow after all. Anybody care to take a wild guess as to what I'm going to do?

Prairie Tater wrote: Should we stack the brush in piles next to the road or try to scatter it out in the woods?
Prater

IF I were going to engage in such dangerous activities (which I most likely would not do), I would save my energy and just heave it over to the side. The FS dozer is just pushing stuff barely off the road; if there is more to be done, that will need to be done in the coming weeks and months. For now, every ounce of effort should be geared towards towards just getting the road open.

Fish wrote:Hardhats ain't a bad idea at all...

Weekend before last, I was wearing an old bike helmet while sawing away. Not probably as safe as a hardhat, and I felt a little bit short bus, but being able to hold onto the chain saw and not worry about the limbs bouncing off my head was nice.