Last May, I built some singletrack in my back yard.
The trails were ridiculously short, shoddily built, and kind of pointless as viewed from
an outsider.
Nevertheless the trails had names, there was shreddy little berm at the bottom, and we
managed to have fun there.
I dubbed this mini trail system, Berm Creek.
A few months later I visited the Pacific Northwest, and came back craving wooden features.
Thus, the North Shore drop was added at the very top of Berm Creek.
We named it the Drama Drop, after Drama.
The North Shore drop quickly became a big part of the channel, as I used it any time
I tested a new bike or part.
But despite using the North Shore drop fairly often, the rest of Berm Creek has been somewhat
neglected.
Today, that’s gonna change.
For starters, I cleaned up the landing to the North Shore drop, making it a bit wider
and more consistent.
There were also a few drainage issues starting with this pipe that empties directly on to
Berm Creek.
To solve this problem I dug a trench across the trail, extended the pipe about 15 feet,
and buttoned it back up.
Later this spring, there should be some wildflowers in the spot I dug up.
My weed whacker has become one of my favorite trail grooming tools, as it cuts away vegetation
effortlessly and does a good job of marking sections of trail I want to cut.
I used it to mark this turn after the drainage pipe, making it wider and swoopier.
We’ll get back to that.
I had some other repairs to do like the widening of goodman ledge.
And some adjustments to this switchback.
Although it’s not technically a switchback.
As a result of all the adjustments and repairs I made, there was a fair bit of extra dirt
to work with.
So, I used it to make a new berm after the drainage pipe.
The berm that comes after the North Shore drop is small and shreddy, just how I like
it.
After that, you need to slam on your brakes.
This new berm would help to rectify that problem.
I started by roughly piling up the dirt along the section of trail I had marked.
I then used the shovel to cut into the ground, and the rake give it some shape.
Compact, rinse, repeat.
A berm was born.
Another thing I’ve been meaning to do is move the trailhead sign into the back yard.
It attracts too much attention in the front, as if a North Shore drop wasn’t bad enough.
Also at the new trailhead is a place to keep my tools organized.
Yes I leave this stuff outside, which is what a lot of trail builders do.
It’s gonna rust and I don’t mind.
With all of berm creek’s drainage issues solved and the addition of this berm, I could
focus less pressing issues, like the lack of any good place to hang out here.
I find myself sitting in the dirt, and putting my stuff on the ground here.
Berm Creek needed a picnic table.
I wanted to build something high up on Berm Creek so that it would overlook the rest of
the trail.
With a lack of any level surface to build on, I’d need to be creative.
So I began construction on the Sicknic table, the sickest picnic table ever built.
I started with two 4x4 posts that would support the higher side of the table.
Naturally, I dug them into the ground and used concrete mix to hold them in place.
I used lag bolts to fasten the cross supports, which would hold the bench and table top.
From there, I got to work leveling the supports on the other side, which would sit directly
on the ground with a 4x4 anchoring them in place.
I’m sure there’s a quick and easy way to do all of this, but my method was to keep
adjusting things little by little until they were all level.
Welcome to panda slopes picnic area, a picnic area on a 45% grade.
It’s a place to take a breather, where pups can walk directly on to the surface you eat
on.
The next morning I needed to get the shop and the trails in tip top shape, because company
was on the way.
The new and improved Berm Creek was about to get put to the test.
For a place called Berm Creek, the berms sure are small, but that’s how I like ‘em.
Small berms are more challenging.
They require precision to ride at speed.
With each change we make to this berm it can be ridden faster and faster, without making
it big, wide, and boring.
As for the rest of Berm Creek, it’s a work in progress too.
With limited space, steep slopes, and the fact that it has to sort of resemble a back
yard, my trails are constrained in many ways.
But that only results in more creative solutions like the sicknic table.
This has changed the entire feeling of berm creek, giving it a central location where
everyone hangs out and puts their stuff.
With the latest changes to berm creek, I’m more inspired than ever to put time into it,
but for the next month I’ll be working on a different project: Alexander’s Van.
We’re going to convert this into his full time living space, which means we’re gonna
be building a lot more stuff in the coming weeks.
Make sure you subscribe to the singletrack sampler to follow this build, and of course,
stay tuned on my channel for van build videos as well.
Thanks for riding with me today, and I’ll see you next time.