Trail Building 101

2smoker

New member
Posting a topic that may be of interest and to generate some discussion.

I haven't been doing much riding yet this year since the ground is still pretty soft and muddy
out at my place, but I've been busy building trails on my property while self quarantining. :D

At any rate, I've been clearing some heavy Buckthorne and Hawthorne and all that nasty chit
that seems to flourish in areas where there isn't heavy tree or canopy cover. For the most part, I've
been using a chainsaw to clear the heavier stuff and a brush cutter to clear the smaller brush.

The problem is, I'm left with a mine field of stubs and stumps that I now have to clear with an axe
or something.

I hate driving over this stuff. Where possible, I 'shave' the stubs as close a possible to the ground
with the chainsaw, but that's hard on both the saw and chain... and I hate chain sharpening.
The brush cutter does a much better job with this on the smaller stubs.

At any rate, I'm wondering if it just might be easier to go at the heavier stuff with an axe, hitting the
base of the growth of course. That way I can eliminate an extra step and at the same time 'chew' up
the stump/stub enough to not be a bother driving over it. Not only that, I find stumps and stubs ravaged
with an axe rot quicker than something that is 'clean cut' with a saw.

Any thoughts? If anyone has any suggestions or experience otherwise, please chime in.
 

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Marilius

Member
Hey,

A bush blade on trimmer would work really well. There are many types so make sure you look them up to find out which one will work for you.

Also when u can try working the trail around stuff. A Trail for bikes only needs to be 36" wide, ATV 48", UTV needs a highway. But also keep the flow of the trial mind.

Best of luck. let us know how it works out.
 

Markf1251

New member
I'm lucky enough to have a tractor at my family property so that often does the stump pulling duties. If it's in a tight area where we can't get the tractor to I'll try to dig around the stump as much as possible with a shovel and have at it with an axe, this can take some time depending on the stump. Other things I've done is just bury them, but the tree will typically start to sprout small shoots if your traffic isn't high enough, but those are much easier to manage.
 
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