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Restored River View |
Trail users can now enjoy this view while cycling north of Fosters at mile marker 36.8, thanks to Rick Forrester and Don Hahn. With Rick working on the sloped bank and Don working near the trail, the pair removed honeysuckle and dead trees to open up the view of the river. Rick's chainsaw trimmed trees to about 10 feet in height. Just north of the Miami Bluffs subdivision entrance to the trail, this part of the river has a riffle section that creates a pleasing rushing sound you can hear from the trail. After the leaves fall, look for a covered bridge that crosses a stream on the other side.
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The Tool Sharpener |
Article by Janet Slater; Photo by Don Mills
If anyone has ever told you you're not the sharpest tool in the shed, then it's time for you to meet Gil Russ.
About two years ago, Gil and his wife were riding the trail, as they do a couple of times a week, when they stopped to rest near some FLMSP volunteers clearing limbs and brush. The chainsaw attracted Gil, because he loves steel tools, and he asked the volunteers what they were doing.
Then Gil asked the life-changing question: "How do you guys get your tools sharpened?"
When the crew told him sharpening was a problem for FLMSP, Gil volunteered his services. Later that day the volunteers visited his home near the trail in Loveland to drop off their chainsaws and tour his wood shop. Ever since, Gil has been sharpening 6 to 10 saw chains every week, as well as repairing other tools when needed. . . Read More
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Crack & Bump Repair Project
Your help is needed to make use of a $13,000 grant we have been given to repair cracks and bumps on our trail. We must have enough volunteers to complete work this year or we LOSE the grant money and will have to spend thousands of dollars to hire a contractor.
- fill cracks with our hot melt machine
- grind down bumps using our scarifier
- loan use of a vehicle with an open bed and a 2" square towing bar
Training will be provided. If you can help, contact Don Hahn or reply to this newsletter.
Ongoing Volunteer Needs
- Help with regular maintenance on a trail section near you
- Tow the FLMSP blower to clear the trail of leaves and debris
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Help plant new trees, especially where there has been a high loss of ash trees due to the Emerald Ash Borer
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Help manage trail counters and their data files
To respond to these needs or learn about other needs, please visit our Volunteer webpage.
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A Permanent Solution: We need your help |
by George Stockham
Can you help us find this piece of equipment that can improve the surface of our trail?
We all enjoy the beautiful and shady green tunnel formed by the trees which border the trail for much of its length. However, this same beauty has an inescapable downside: the annoying upheavals in the asphalt surface caused by encroaching tree roots which buckle the paving as they grow.
Lacking any alternative, to date FLMSP has attempted to minimize this problem by using a machine called a "scarifier" to literally grind down the bumps until they are almost flush with the trail's surface. This is a tedious process which, at best, only temporarily alleviates the basic problem; the underlying roots continue to grow, inevitably continuing to buckle the trail surface - which eventually necessitates yet another grinding process - and the cycle repeats itself.
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Tom Creasman: Off the Fence
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Rich Easterly, Ray Jacobsen, Tom Creasman
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by Rich Easterly
Tom Creasman is giving up his "FLMSP Volunteer" safety vest, and I'm going to miss him. Tom and Ray Jacobsen introduced me to their brand of fence repair along the trail over two years ago. To start the "work" day, we would meet at The Branch Hill Coffee Shop around 7:30 for a half hour of good coffee and danish and a lively debate between the Left and the Right. . . . Read More
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Friends of the Little Miami State Park is a nonprofit organization devoted to the preservation and enhancement of the Little Miami State Park. We assist the Ohio Department of Natural Resources with development planning, capital improvements, and safety concerns, as well as providing most of the maintenance of the park.
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