Building an AWESOME Hiking Trail (Part I)

In this video, John and Lucas tackle some trail building on private land for a local property owner. The path is to be made through a mature hemlock and hardwood forest in the least damaging way possible. In order to accomplish this task, quite a bit of surveying and hiking was required to map the land effectively. These trail builds will only dive deeper in the upcoming episodes. Cheers.

[@dsmith565]

Where’s part 2! Loved this video

[@VarmintHunters]

Hey friend! With the warm weather thats come, you can expect PART 2 in the next few weeks!! :) Things were on hold for a while since it was winter LOL. So glad you enjoyed this video :) - John

[@NickandRachel]

Awesome video man! Thanks for sharing

[@VarmintHunters]

I really appreciate the love brother! Tune in Friday evening for the latest video. Cheers

[@ShakespeareCafe]

First thing is to look for animal trails. They have already provided the best route through the forest and you just improve on that...

[@Sethed]

Can't wait to do this in my backyard!

[@VarmintHunters]

Such a good idea! You got a wood lot back there? Keep me updated as you do it! I’d love to hear more. 🙏🏼

[@ehedhshshejdjdjdudjheene5794]

I’m making a trail for my dog and me to walk on!

[@VarmintHunters]

What a great idea friend! Make sure to keep the brush down in the summer months to make sure they don't get any ticks. Thanks for watching :). - John

[@chuckster388]

this is great advice! ill be waiting for part 2

[@VarmintHunters]

I appreciate that more than you know brother! Looking forward for our paths to cross sometime soon. Part II coming soon :) Cheers.

[@Erica-ls7bp]

Great video, really interested in the next installment.

[@HectorTheMonkey]

Great job on part 1. I'm just starting to build my own trail and stumbled across your videos. I can't wait for part 2! In the mean time, any advice on keeping grasses and other plants from coming up on the bare trail? I also need to make a few stairs down a steep slope, so any advice along those lines would be great!

[@VarmintHunters]

Hey Richard, I appreciate your wonderful comment & your patience. But a good, organic cedar mulch is a great option for keeping weeds down. This could quickly become a pricey project though. A lot of times I choose to guide my trails through "easier terrain" in order to avoid any big issues with tall grasses. With that in mind, I like to pass through mature stands of trees (typically less-dense understory) rather that open, grassy areas. If both are not options, it helps to strip the trail down to mineral soil or clay. As far as the steep slopes... I like making natural stairs around trees (increased soil structure because of roots). It also helps to bury ordinary logs to level the steps for a multi-season solution. Hope this helps! John

[@WY666]

Excellent! Could you possibly share how this project was communicated to the land owner? For example, was this trail for a friend or a more formal trail service offering? It sure would be fun to create trails on the side while exercising with outdoor labor.

[@VarmintHunters]

This particular one was a project that I was doing for a friend at their property. I volunteered to do the job in an attempt to gain some experience. I would have had no idea what to charge for a project like this... going forward, I at least have a better idea of what work can be expected. I think its awesome that you'd love to give something like this a try! Your best bet in my opinion is to do one or two for cheap/free at your property or a friends. That'll help you learn & give you something tangible to take photos of for your "portfolio." From there, post an honest add on Kijiji or Face Book market place & you're off to the races. Cheers my friend. Maybe I'll post more on this topic. :) - John

[@WY666]

@@VarmintHunters Thanks for the reply! After some brief research, it seems common to charge per foot of trail but it would likely be case-by-case especially with private land owners based on their goals. I recently completed a circuit trail around a 10 acre slot through a North Carolina valley. It was incredibly rewarding and I'm craving more. It's been established for about a year and I look forward to maintaining it as well. Excellent idea to create a portfolio though! Excited to see more content on this when it comes.

[@squanchy474]

Will there be a part 2?

[@VarmintHunters]

Absolutely friend)

[@VarmintHunters]

I plan to head out and make some updates in the upcoming weeks. For know, I uploaded an aero some forest walk video yesterday! 🙏🏼🍁

[@Slippindisc]

Do you really need a trail there? My land looks like freakin jurrasic park compared to this lol

[@VarmintHunters]

You raise an interesting point my friend! Because this is a pretty mature section of forest, the ground brush is pretty minimal. However, this trail is being made for some older folks that would like a safe opportunity to hike around the woods. Believe me partner, I'd have no problem bushing through this easy terrain... but I'm still a young guy lol. What kind of landscape do you have in your area? Tall grass, or low lands with tall ferns? Just curious :)

[@Slippindisc]

@@VarmintHunters Being in the shadow of a large mountain in the cascades, and most of my property being second growth timber, there’s a lot of ground cover. Parts are old growth Doug Fir, with lots of dead falls, slash, ferns, and other ground cover. Another section of the property is choked with scotch broom and blackberry vines. Top it all off with all the glacial rocks and boulders. I really need to get some trails cut here too, but this all makes it a tough slog. I may buy a tractor here pretty soon, because I’ve been using a brush cutter, and it works, but it’s just not cutting it, so to speak. Especially when the rocks dull up the blades so fast.

[@VarmintHunters]

@@Slippindisc Wow, that certainly seems like worse terrain than I was dealing with! At least you have some mature trees on your property :). All that ground cover definitely makes for slow & tough work. My only tip for ya would be to do it in passes. Don't worry on making it a perfect walking trail all in one pass. Make minor improvements every time... after all, it's likely a passion project ;) so don't go breaking your back. Aside from that, do your best to avoid as many obstacles as possible. Keep me updated! Cheers friend :)

[@Slippindisc]

@@VarmintHunters thanks man, that’s good advice! It’s easy to get discouraged, especially with the potato to Boulder sized rocks that like to eat up my tools. But I’ll tame it before it beats me lol. Thanks for the kind words from the PNW!

[@VarmintHunters]

@@Slippindisc Glad to hear! Cheers :)