| Santa Cruz CountyHorsemen's Association |
Mounted Patrol Foundation
4/18/19 Update for
Replacement of the Bridge over Towne Creek in
Pescadero Creek County Park
Progress is going well. The beams and lumber have been delivered and paid for. The hardware should be arriving this week. We are waiting for the creek to recede a bit, so the access road can be repaired. We hope to start on the footings next week. Then the construction will begin. The goal is still to be done June 1, but we shall see.
Much of the construction will be done by volunteers, so anyone who can spend a day helping with that would be most appreciated. Please email Mike Bushue, shurfoot@gmail.com to let him know your interest and availability.
From a fundraising standpoint, we are doing well, and are 94% of the way to a budget of $23,500, with only $1,372 remaining. We want to thank you for the very generous contributions from WHOA, The Don and Carol Tankledge Foundation, Bay Area Barns and Trails, San Mateo County Parks Foundation, Los Viajeros, and many individuals We could use your help with the final push for contributions. Please check our website for donation information. You can also signup for email notifications. We now can accept credit cards by PayPal. Thank you for your generosity.
Mounted Patrol Foundation requests your support
For
Replacement of the Bridge over Towne Creek in
Pescadero Creek County Park
Environmental and building approvals are finally done. Now we need to raise the funds and buy the materials.
The West Brook Trail has been a favorite of hikers and equestrians for many years. It goes down the beautiful Towne Creek canyon among towering redwoods and crosses Towne Creek near the bottom, on a bridge that was built many years ago.
The old bridge is 20 feet long, and built with abutments at the edges of the creek. Over the years, the creek has eroded the western abutment, requiring the bridge and trail to be closed.
The team from ETRAC: Mike Bushue and Walter Gloskowski have designed a new bridge that is 30 feet long, which will allow the new abutments to be set back 5 feet from the creek edges. The beams will be new Alaskan Yellow Cedar glue lams, stronger than the supports of the existing bridge. The new bridge will also be one foot wider, to allow County staff to drive small equipment over the bridge in the case of an emergency or a fire. The new bridge will be in the same location as the existing bridge, which would be removed.
The placement of the new bridge is shown in the photo below. The pink tapes show the new bridge. The orange tapes show the outline of the top of the new footing/abutment
View looking South at the bridge location:
The goal is to have the new bridge done by June 1, 2019, so we can have a great summer riding in Jack Brook. Construction will begin shortly after April 15, if the weather cooperates. There is a two-month lead time for ordering the beams, so we need to have the funds in the bank by February 15. The Mounted Patrol Foundation is a 501(c)(3) charitable entity, so contributions made in the last weeks of 2018 might be deductible on your 2018 tax returns, so please send in your donations soon.
The budget estimate is $25,000 total:. $15,000 for materials, $10,000 for labor. Any excess contributions will be used for other trail repairs. Please send contributions to:
Mounted Patrol Foundation
ATTN: Towne Creek Bridge
521 Kings Mountain Road
Woodside, CA 94062-4209
Make a notation on your check “Towne Creek Bridge”. Thanks for your support, and happy 2019!
Don Pugh
Chairman@MountedPatrolFoundation.org
650-851-8343