FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
218-348-0724
September 22, 2011
BWCA BRIDGE REBUILD AS THE PAGAMI CREEK FIRE BURNS TO THE SOUTH
Gunflint Trail - the Banadad Bridge remotely located in the BWCA, midway along the Banadad ski trail, was rebuilt over this past weekend. Organized by the Banadad Trail Association (BTA) in conjunction with several North Star Ski Touring Club (NSSTC) members, the bridge crew replaced a bridge much in need of repair. Grant funds from Arrowhead Electric Cooperative aided the project. The construction crew included Ted Young (Banadad Trail maintenance manager Gunflint Trail) and Steve Lenius (St Paul), both who had been involved when this bridge was last replaced in 1996. Also on the crew were Tom Rice (Shoreview), Lee Wenzel (Eden Prairie), Lowell Johnson (St Paul), Len Voit (Gunflint Trail), Pete Harris (Croftville) and Karla Miller (Duluth).
The crew was given special permission by the US Forest Service to enter the BWCA since the Pagami Creek Fire east of Ely had forced the closure of most of the BWCA entry points west of the Gunflint Trail including One Island Lake where the crew launched. While the fire had encompassed some 94,000 acres, recent cooler weather and slight moisture allowed for the crew to travel to the bridge site.
The group trucked their canoes and equipment two mile along the Moose Trail west of Poplar Lake, and then portaged into One Island Lake then into Rush Lake. They canoed to the far west end of Rush where the bridge is located. An overnight camp was set up on Rush.
The bridge is 36 foot long with a 24-foot center span and 6-foot approach sections on each end. While the cedar timbers supporting the two-approach section were found to be solid, the three old log stringers were rotten. The crew removed the 3”x 6”x 8' rough cut cedar decking, installed new bridge abutments then with the aid of a series of rollers, a pickaroons, a timber jack, a cant hook and manual lifting three new 26 foot stringers were put in place. The cedar decking which was still usable was reinstalled.
The project was completed by late afternoon on Saturday. This enabled the crew to spend several hours clearing down trees along about 3 kilometers of the ski trail near the bridge.
Returning from the Boundary Waters Sunday morning. Ted Young expressed relief in completion of the repair project noting, “The bridge previously installed in 1996 was solid until the last few years when the aging support beams rotted out and it became treacherous crossing, especially with the weight of the ski groomers.”
The BTA (banadad.org) is a non-profit organization formed to maintain and enhance the Banadad Ski Trail system, preserve the history of the forest and trail as well as promote appreciation and care of the BWCA. The Banadad trail is a 28.8 km linear ski trail of which 22 km is within the BWCA.
NSSTC (north-stars.org), founded in 1967, supports non-motorized outdoor recreation and social events with an emphasis on cross-country skiing and the maintenance of trails.