We had a small crew, but some great workers. We rode down Redbird Canyon and tied up our stock at the bottom of the fence line. Then we proceeded to hike almost clear to the top of the ridge to start removing the wire. This ridge is very steep and rocky and stupid Rod forgot to change boots, so he got to work in cowboy boots. I think it would have been easier to be barefoot.

After huffing and puffing our way to the top, we started removing the wire from the t-posts and pulling them out of the ground. The fence was 90% still standing which made it easier to roll up the wire. We were able to roll all four wires up together and the posts almost all pulled easily.

I estimated that we removed six hundred yards of fence line and about 150 t-posts. As we pulled the posted, we threw them as far down the hill as we could. Often they went over 100 feet at a time, due to the steep hillside. The wire spools we rolled to the bottom. This was our entertainment until one of them took a wild turn and headed towards the horses. Luckily for us, it got hung up in a tree and stopped before it spooked the horses.

The ground was so rocky that we actually bent several of the t-posts as we kept tossing them down the hill towards the trail in the bottom. We took a breather and lunch on the hillside and admired all the work we had accomplished in such a short amount of time. If there are any posts we missed on the hillside, none of us have plans to go back up after them.

We lost one roll of wire in the brush and spent over a half hour looking for it with no success. We sure hope a deer does not find it for us. We need to schedule one more trip to finish the project.

What a beautiful day for the ride! We had sunshine all day and just enough breeze to keep you from shedding clothes and getting sunburned. We had twenty one riders and about half a dozen non riders getting all the food prepared and waiting for our return.

This is the first year in several that we did not have a rider leave their animal unexpectedly and become a PIZZA Buyer. Oh well, many more rides to come, as it is early in the year. Brian Bishop, the land owner, joined us on the ride this year with a young colt. When we told him about the Pizza Rule he almost went back home, as he felt his odds were not good. His horse did fine until it passed his pasture mate and then did not want to go with the rest of us. We turned him into a pack animal and lead him for a while, until he got over his home sickness.

Most of the ride was on the flat bench with a great view of the surrounding mountains and a panoramic view of Lewiston. Rod just had to ride into the canyons checking on the deer herds and we were not disappointed as we saw a large group of deer.

This was the first time that the weather was so great that we set outside Kuther’s shop and enjoyed the sun and all the great food. Some years we have hugged the wood stove! Wow were there a lot of great desserts to go with the chili and corn bread. Thanks everyone for providing the great fixins.

Thanks to Brian Bishop and Bob & Laurel Kuther for letting us ride on their property and Kuthers for again hosting this ride. Our first Chili Ride was in 1992 and they have all been on the Flo Hansen Property, which is now farmed by Brian Bishop. How lucky we have been to have such great people that let us enjoy our stock on private property!!

We did have a few problems with mud, as you had to have 4-wheel drive to navigate the parking lot before the day was over.

With Bob Hough on the excavator we were able to totally change the look of the old Joseph Creek School House.

There were some additions to the schoolhouse that were real safety concerns. Both of the additions were removed, the school house was cleaned inside, and about a half acre of blackberry bushes were removed.

A hitch rail was also installed, not and easy task, as it was pretty rocky!

The original schoolhouse building is very solid and will make a nice place to have a picnic lunch, maybe camp overnight, or at least a roof over your head in case it rains again.

This project is ongoing, as we still need to level the parking lot, add a fire ring, repair the roof, and do a little fence repair. There was even some discussion of painting the schoolhouse.

School house project continued below...

The rest were the smart ones, who were the gophers and support from the ground. We only had one mishap when Rod lost his drill and it headed down the roof at breakneck speed. Luckily no one was below him at the time. This was the final project at the Green Gulch Trailhead.

There is talk of painting the school house and a sign, possible additions for the future. There now are a nice picnic shelter (school house), an enlarged and leveled parking area, stock hitchrail, fire ring, non-motorized access gate, and outhouse at this trailhead.

A Washington Dept of Wildlife Vehicle Use Permit is required to use this site. They are available online or anywhere hunting and fishing licenses are sold for $12.00. We need to schedule a fun ride so we can enjoy this improved facility. Thanks to Bob Dice and Dave Woodall from Washington Dept. of Fish and Wildlife for making it possible to make these improvements and all the members of TRBCH that helped out.

Dutch Oven Cook Off: Karen Parks and Cara Doherty put a lot of work and even more fun into the cook off. They had entertaining activities going on while the food was cooking. They sold tickets for samples of the food after the judging was over. There was a line of people waiting a half hour before the judging was to start, waiting to taste the various dishes.

Hands on Packing Classes: Jim White and crew did a great job with the eager participates that were serious about learning to pack. Some spent several hours at a time working with people. The focus of the event was recreational packing for enjoyment, but several people showed up with specific tasks in mind such as packing t-posts, and split cedar posts. Bob Henriksen put on an excellent demo on proper fitting of the pack saddle.

TRBCH Booth at the Outdoor Show: Bob Henriksen has members scheduled for the entire show at the BCHI/Twin River BCH booth. He brought some interesting props to attract people to the booth. One, a 4’X8’ bits display tried to wipe out Billie Havens the first night when it fell down. It took four people to stand it back up. It was secured to the wall after that and no more mishaps. We have five new memberships from the booth and got to talk to lots of people.

Thanks to all the members that stepped up and helped with all the activities TRBCH was involved in and those that helped setup and tear down.

It is amazing what good weather will bring. There were twenty eager workers with tools in hand ready to clear the Fordyce Trail.

With this big crew it was decided to cut our Cabin Gulch Trail also. We were well prepared with five chain saws and lots of loppers. We split into two groups with plans to meet in the middle.

Since we clear this trail annually it was much better than expected after the mild winter. Lucky we had backup saws, as we were down to only one working good on the Fordyce leg in no time.

We made it to the top and then we came to the monster tree. Working from both sides, we could see we had enough saw to make it through, the only problem being, we got the saw hung up. Digging out the malfunctioning backup saw and with persistence, we were able to finish the job and get the saw loose.

The ride back to the trailhead was full of discussion about the quality of work the other crew had done as both crews made the full loop in opposite directions. Thanks to all that helped!

As we all know by now, the weatherman cannot be trusted this year! It was supposed to be the nicest day of the week. There were moments that it looked fairly promising, but as the rain and then snow started falling as we were headed out to man our stations, we were wondering what the turnout might be.

After setting up our check stations, campfires seemed to be the top priority at each station. The riders started showing up and it just got better and better on the hill, little did we know that there was a downpour at the trailhead. We only had two trailers turn around and head home and this was only because they had no rain slickers.

We sold 110 hands and considering the weather, we were real happy with the turnout. The elk were not interested in moving around in the foul weather either and many of the riders saw elk as they made the scenic ride up Fordyce Canyon and down Sourdough Canyon.

Thanks to all that took time out of their schedules to make this a fun day for those involved. Many riders thanked us for providing this opportunity for them to enjoy their stock. Thanks also the Washington Dept. of Fish & Wildlife for letting us stage our Poker Ride on their property.

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Finally with loaded pack horses and mounted on good horses we set out for the 2 1/2 hour ride back to our pickups and trailer again at the top of the Moore Trail.