Black Hills National Forest

US Forest Service
Black Hills National Forest
1019 N. 5th Street
Custer, SD 57730
605-673-9200

Telephone for the
Hearing Impaired
605-673-9227

News Release

USDA Forest Service

Black Hills National Forest

Contact: Dave Pickford (605) 673 - 4853, or email us at r2 blackhills webinfo@fs.fed.us

PACK MULE STRING KEEPS TRADITIONAL WORK METHODS ALIVE

CUSTER, SD: SEPTEMBER 25, 2008

The Pack mule string team is part of Forest Service history and this history is being kept alive today.

The Rocky Mountain Specialty Pack String, based out of Shawnee, Colorado has been working in the Black Elk Wilderness area for the last two weeks. “The primary purpose of the team is to haul equipment to backcountry areas, to make the jobs more doable and easier for the National Forest,” said Dave Pickford, recreational specialist for the Hell Canyon Ranger District. The team travels throughout the Rocky Mountain Region and provides a wide variety of support including packing, teaching low impact techniques for backcountry use, and is also an educational outreach.

“I think it’s really unique that in this area where originally a lot of the work was done with traditional methods, these methods have come back and are still effective to get the job done,” Pickford said.

The wilderness area where they are working is closed to motorized vehicles. The pack string has been hauling gravel onto this trail system to help repair a portion of eroded trail that was caused by excessive water. Each mule is capable of hauling 160 lbs of gravel per trip.

Pickford said that with the help of the pack mule string, they are getting drainage established by adding native gravel resources and putting in water bars that also help divert the water off the trail.

Pickford expects to finish the last of their projects by the Grizzly Trailhead this Friday.

For more information contact the U.S. Forest Service or go to our website at www.fs.fed.us/r2/blackhills

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