October Trail Day 2026| Advocates for Nisene Marks State Park

October 2026 Trail Day Report
10/18/26

At October Trail Day, 37 generous and grateful volunteers enjoyed a beautiful morning in the forest. Why generous and grateful, you ask? Generous because they put aside precious weekend time to make Nisene Marks State Park a better place to visit. And grateful because this local park is a genuine jewel in the State Park system and inspires appreciation in all its visitors. Speaking of grateful, Advocates is SO grateful to our returning and new volunteers. These Trail Days cannot exist and be successful without your personal support. That said, let's get into the fun we had at October Trail Day!

Let's Get Started!

After signing-in, choosing a project from the Project Board and enjoying coffee from Pacific Coffee Roasters, pastries from Companion Bake Shop and fruit from New Leaf, volunteers turned their attention to the day's Trail Captain Gary who, standing tall upon a bucket, provided a warm welcome and introduction. Afterwards, the group gathered for a photo, Leaders outlined project details to their teams and carpooled into the park.

Head Out To The Trails!

Here is how we improved the forest and made a difference with our efforts.

Our projects this month included:

1. October is Bridge Takeout month! Each Fall we remove the two seasonal bridges to protect them from Winter's vigorous rain storms. With El Niño expected to arrive this winter, this task is of even more paramount importance. A big thank you to the 2 crews below!
>Mikhail and Brett led a crew to the Upper Bridge where Adam provided expert jack operation, Kristy, Ericka and Martin did most of bolt wrenching, Mark and Lukas formed an on-shore crew to transport the bridge sections to their storage area and Brett and Mikhail gave invaluable managerial direction.
> Andrea and Jim led a crew to the Lower Bridge to jack, dismantle and store all bridge components in a safe spot uphill from the creek. Thanks to our determined dismantlers Alicia, Nau, Mike, Ty, Vincent and Phil. And special thanks as usual to Andrea who provided expert guidance through the entire process.
2. Chris A. and Chris W. led a couple successful projects on the lower Old Growth Loop. Thanks all!
> Chris W. repaired the Old Growth Loop foot bridge, replacing a brace and screwing down a plank supporting a railing post.
> Chris A., on the narrow Old Growth Loop Trail approaching the foot bridge, Chris A. Enrique, Sandra and Jordan cleared ivy on the upslope of the trail down from the bridge to the first turn. This activity was critical to clear the way for next month's re-shaping the tread to widen the trail.
3. Our 11 Native Forest Restoration volunteers, led by John, Ellen, and Susan, spent a beautiful October Sunday removing massive amounts of invasive ivy from the Wagoner Redwood Grove. This spectacular grove is a great example of what a healthy grove should mostly look like. However, the grove was in the early stages of ivy colonization with established ivy patches numerous scattered ivy and ivy starting to cover stumps and climbing trees and even included several English Holly seedlings! Our energetic team cleared ivy from 63,895 sq ft of the grove and removed mature tree ivy from 13 redwoods helping to protect the groves health and continued recovery. Awesome work!!!
4. Lastly but not least, Joe, Gary and Gilbert completed the Margaret's Bridge project which began in September 2025 and included work during at least 5 events. The final step was removing the original raised tracks, then the, cleaning beneath them and resetting them with screws. The bridge is for once safe to bike and run on, thanks guys!