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Trail maintenance is basically the most fun you can have with a bow saw. But in the past, finding tools light enough to pack in was a tall order. With more people hiking and biking to the work sites, new ultralight designs have finally made the job easier.
While the Forest Service has developed for large-scale trail building, if your goals are more modest, you can get the same work done with the newer, lightweight tools. One of our testers has recently built a one-mile trail through heavy brush and blowdowns with the help of neighbors and landowners. During regular trail runs, he straps a lightweight backpack on with a saw or lopper inside.
The key is finding lightweight tools that fit in the pack. After the jump, we present some new trail tools from a visionary machinist from Washington State, as well as some old standbys.
Silva Ranger CL
The Silva Ranger Cl
If you鈥檙e serious about trail design, it鈥檚 important to measure the steepness of a proposed route with a clinometer like the . According to one of the most knowledgeable trail building organizations, , you should route a trail so that it鈥檚 always less than half as steep as the hillside, and never more than a ten percent grade.
To build our local trail, we start by using offline topo maps on , paying attention to the spacing of contour lines to rough out the trail. Then we walked the area using a clinometer to nail down the route.
You use the Silva Ranger by holding the long side against the terrain you want to measure, and reading the black clinometer needle on the face. Grade appears on the inner dial as a percent.
Sound like fun? Build your own .
Weight: 2.4 ounces Price: $54
McLeod Head
McLeod Head
started in 2012 when machinist and avid mountain biker Bill Hasenjaeger wanted to improve trails in Bellingham, Washington, while on a ride. Finding no lightweight tools up to the job, he made his own.
The is a classic known to anyone who鈥檚 worked in trail restoration or fire fighting, and it was created over a century ago by Forest Service ranger Malcolm McLeod. The sharp, flat side cuts small branches, severs roots, and levels the treadway. The toothed side clears out sticks, leaves, and brush.
Hasenjaeger’s take on the tool is 48 inches long and breaks down into four structural fiberglass segments at just 12-inches long, and screws onto the hardened-steel McLeod head. All the pieces are hand-fabricated in Hasenjaeger鈥檚 warehouse.
Weight: 4.25 pounds Price: $245 ($25 shipping in the US)
Trail Blazer Sawvivor Saw
Trail Blazer Sawvivor Saw
In building our trail, we brought the along with us on runs. Each time we went out, we removed a blowdown or two from our new trail. It has all the power of a common bow saw, but collapses down to 3 by 15 inches in your pack. And at 9.5 ounces, it was never a burden to carry. We also liked the comfy foam handle and the fact that the blade was easy to replace with when it got dull.
Good from the California Parks Department: When using a bow saw, cut branches as close to a trunk as possible. Otherwise, they tend to wiggle throw the saw toward your hand.
