The Hotshot blog is back! We're moving at a pretty good clip on the Summit Lake trail and anticipate much progress this week. Our multi-tiered walls towards the far end of the trail are coming together nicely as we continue to adjust the grade of the steepest section.

One of the biggest reasons for our smooth work has been our ability to use some pretty fun machinery for moving and placing rock and fill material. The size and amount of rock that this project requires makes it practical for us to take advantage of power tools. For instance, we've relied heavily on a Bobcat Skid Steer to move to rocks and fill of all sizes to staging areas for construction. We also used straps and shackles to hook up the Bobcat to large rocks we needed removed from the trail.

Where the grade is too steep or narrow for the skid steer, we have an entertaining little machine called a Dingo. The Dingo is basically a souped up lawnmower with tracked treads and a hydraulic bucket on the front. We've used it to move material around tight spots, and even had the chance to get creative with it last week when we strapped our largest boulders to the bucket and dragged them into place.

Finally, we've got ourselves a mini excavator. This one armed wonder can grab and place our most massive rock, and is pretty awesome to watch!

For all you trail crew purists out there, don't worry. We're still lifting, rolling, carrying and heaving rock around, and enjoying all the cursing and muscle soreness that comes with it. With the help of our machines, we're just able to do it with a lot more rock!