Legacy Trails Program Awardee

Sipsey Wilderness Trails Restoration

So much of this project’s trail work is deferred maintenance that is in dire need. The USFS does not have the capacity to maintain these trails and depends on Wild Alabama to be the primary boots on the ground to keep them safe for hikers and equestrians. If we do not get into the Wilderness and reroute some of these trails, not only will the banks of the Sipsey Fork continue to erode at a faster than normal rate, but there will be safety issues since the trails are sometimes 20 feet or so above the water level and can cause severe injury to someone falling off the bank.

Applicant: Wild Alabama
Project Location: Bankhead Ranger District, Bankhead National Forest, Alabama
Amount Awarded: $96,459.00

The project has three elements to it.

First, a professional trail contractor will come in to perform an assessment of approximately 20 miles of trails. These trails are along the wild and scenic river corridor and are most in need of repair. The contractor will assess, provide repair designs, and provide a quote for the cost of repair. This assessment will be the first step towards regaining a sustainable and durable trail system. Wild Alabama staff and volunteers will utilize the repair designs for low complexity segments. The high complexity areas will inform Forest Service staff how best to proceed and allow for both NEPA and/or MRA analysis to begin. Down the road as analyses are completed, these projects will be ready shelf stock for potential future grants or appropriated funds.

The second element of the proposal is professionalized trail maintenance training for both Wild Alabama and Forest Service staff taught by the trail contractor. Presently, these skills are largely lacking. Training will ensure trail repairs are able to be maintained for many years to come.

Lastly, the grant will provide funding for an immediate AOP and trail reroute project. A washed out culvert on hiking/equestrian trail 208 created a 10 foot wide by 15 feet deep hole in the middle of the trail. Funds will allow aquatic passage to be restored, bank stabilization to prevent further erosion, and the trail to be rerouted away from this dangerous hazard. This proposal meets immediate needs (AOP project) while also providing a long term strategy to address the many needed trail repairs along the Sipsey Fork (trail assessment and training).

These trails have experienced significant use, especially following the increased public interest in outdoor recreation resulting from the pandemic. The trails our work will focus on have experienced significant erosion due to their proximity to the banks of the Sipsey Fork of the Black Warrior River and are eroding greatly, depositing significant sediment into the streams below. When hurricanes and major storms impact the area, the Sipsey Fork overflows its banks and causes even more damage to these trails proximate to the banks. The erosion is causing sediment deposit that is greatly negatively impacting the Fork’s water quality upon which several endangered species depend. Our work will focus on moving trails back from the edge of the stream onto higher, more stable ground.

The Sipsey Fork of the Black Warrior River is Alabama’s only Wild and Scenic designated river. It is home to as many as twenty rare and imperiled aquatic species. These species either live within or rely upon the clear, clean headwaters of the Sipsey Fork. Trail erosion and increased sediment loads entering the watershed negatively impact these species by degrading their natural habitat.

Other work that Wild Alabama will complete includes decommissioning the many social trails that are created by the feet of frequent and numerous visitors. These cumulative social trails have become a convoluted twist of paths further eroding the banks and need to keep traffic directed on the actual NFST. Just beyond the AOP project, trail 208 has a 300-foot-long bog that has created unsafe travel conditions for both hikers and equestrian users. Decommissioning a social trail near the creek and rerouting the trail on the upslope side will prevent further erosion and restore safe passage for all users. The specialized trail training funded through this grant will ensure our work focuses on restoring safe and sustainable trails that will be maintained to standard for years to come.