Part 1 of 2, October 2022
Hello Friends,
You haven’t heard from us for a while, and we’d like to let you know what we’ve been up to in the last two years. By the way, did you know that midway through 2019, our web address changed to www.friendsofthepeak.org? We hope no one has been looking for us at the old address.
We didn’t have any volunteer work days in 2020 because of the Covid-19 pandemic. But erosion and weather didn’t take the year off. Weather, water, and foot traffic degraded the trails and the fences. In addition, many new trail users came out to try hiking and biking on area trails during the pandemic, increasing the wear and tear on the trails beyond what we normally see.
With the availability of Covid vaccines in early 2021, we were able to have a short 2021 work season, and here are some of the highlights:
In July 2021, we finally got the tools dirty, repairing damage to the post and rail fencing on Barr Trail. In the first picture, Brian is getting the tools organized to start work. We also did more fence work on Barr later in the season.
In August, we worked on the Elk Park Knoll trail. This trail was in pretty good shape. We started at the trailhead near timberline, and worked our way down through the pines into the aspens.
In September, we were back on the Barr trail a few times to do more fence repair and to lay the groundwork (literally) for our upcoming work day with some of our friends from the AdAmAn club. On our workday with AdAmAn, we finished a set of four rock steps at switchback 11, about one mile up from the trailhead. This was our last workday of 2021.
Here’s the crew, and the rock steps we finished.
It’s always satisfying to do an improvement like this where the finished look of the steps is natural and blends in with the surroundings as they’ve always been there. For those unfamiliar with rock steps, each of the four big rocks is like an iceberg—most of each rock is buried, for stability.
Another positive thing about this day was the parking situation. This was the first day we could arrange limited free reserved parking for volunteers in the Barr trailhead parking lot. While we’ve had some frustration with illegal parkers taking our reserved spots since then, it’s been a great improvement. The cooperation of the Manitou Springs parking department is greatly appreciated and it has continued throughout the 2022 work season.
It was a great finish to the 2021 season, and it set us up for an even better season in 2022. What we did in 2022 will be covered in part 2 of the newsletter, coming later this fall.
About Friends of the Peak
Friends of the Peak is an all-volunteer organization with no paid staff. We only work on public lands. Our work area is bounded on the north by US 24, on the west by CO 67, on the south by Gold Camp Road, and on the east by 31st Street.
Because we’re a grass-roots organization, we live here and hike, bike, and run on the trails here, and we see where problems develop throughout the year. We coordinate with land managers to work on the problems we think most need our attention.
We have many volunteers with a wealth of experience who’ve learned what works (and what doesn’t) on trails built on our soils in our climate. These experienced folks are happy to pass this knowledge on to newer volunteers. You might say we have “institutional memory.” We work side-by-side with new volunteers and are eager to teach them skills that help them become more capable workers and develop an interest in trail work. We believe this fosters a sense of stewardship of the trails.
Please Report Trail Problems
Please report trail problems to us if you see trail problems in our area. You can email us at
info@friendsofthepeak.org or you can report it on our website, or you can message us on our Facebook page or you can join our Facebook group
If your report concerns a trail maintained by another group, we will pass on reports as needed. Please note that any change takes time since we are volunteers, and we also need to get the approval from land managers for projects.
Donating: Why and How
Even though we don’t have paid staff, we still have expenses. For example, lumber for posts, rails, and steps; hardware, replacing tools. And watermelon. Yes, we have watermelon and other snacks for volunteers after the workday. And, of course, tee-shirts and other swag for volunteers that get our name out in front of the public.
You can help us by becoming a member and by donating through our website using PayPal, a credit card, or just sending a check.
Meet the Board
Friends of the Peak is excited to welcome the newest 2022 FOTP board members:
Russ Iverson, Creator of the Bigfoot Benefit Hike
Vickie Laughlin, Treasurer
Steve Driska, Assistant Tool Manager
They join our continuing members:
Steve Bremner, President
Rick Hessek, Secretary
Brian VanValkenburg, Vice President and Project Coordinator
Kevin Shaw, Membership Coordinator
Susan Jarvis-Weber, Outreach and Education
We will miss the presence of Shel and Don Little this year. After her husband, Don, passing in 2019, Shel continued to offer support as a valuable board member until this spring, when she resigned to follow new life paths. She has been greatly missed, but we wish her the best in her newest adventures.
If you are interested in becoming a board member, FOTP Board Meetings are open to the public. We meet on the 2nd Tuesday of the month, at 6:00 by Zoom or at locations to be announced. Don’t hesitate to get in touch with us for details at info@friendsofthepeak.org
How to Stay in Touch with Us
On the web: www.friendsofthepeak.org This is where we publish our calendar of work days. More importantly, this is the ONLY place you can register to join us on a workday.
On Facebook: https://Facebook.com/FriendsofthePeak
You can visit our Facebook page even if you don’t have a Facebook account. This is where we can quickly and easily post news, and announcements, show pictures of our trail work, and things like that. But remember, you can’t sign up for workdays there; you have to go to our webpage to sign up! https://friendsofthepeak.org/sign-up/
You can join our Friends of the Peak Volunteer page on Facebook, where you can post your own trail-related news and pictures, and see those your friends posted.
https://www.facebook.com/groups/fotpvolunteer
The next newsletter will be about our 2022 season. Be watching for it!
