"Roots, Rocks, Retread"

LIMESTONE CREW 2005
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Limestone 2005
(Left to Right)
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Kevin Booher, Ryan Smith, Blair Rynearson,
Erika Kaarre, Aaron Darnton, Eric Kroeger
Not Shown: (Anna Bengston)
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Crew Action Shots!

Tread Video

"So If you live in the country yer a savage...and if ya have hair on yer chin yer a barbarian?...Hell yeah! We're a
bunch of savage barbarians!...except maybe Erika...she's just a savage...yeah...cuz that'd be weird."
The Limestone Trail Project

Trail #143 in the lower Bob Marshall Wilderness flat out sucked. The trail was really steep and had millions of rocks
and roots in it. A hiker's and horseman's nightmare.
Then, along came Boffman with his orange flagging and painted stakes. He marked out the new plan for the 7 mile
trail with all intentions of making it as difficult as possible for the trail crew. (Well maybe not, but thats what we thought
while treading). Anyway, Boffman finished marking out the new switchbacks and reroutes.
Then came Limestone Crew 2005! A hardy crew of 6-7 traildogs was assigned to tackle the project.
The capital investment funded project was to be completed in two years. It was split up into many segments. On this
first year of the project, the crew tackled "Segment A" which was near 3 miles in length. It contained some of the
finest, most beautiful dirt and the most god-awful boulders a traildog could ever imagine. Did I mention the number of
stumps that were removed? We dug tread through open meadows and the craziest jungle-like forests.
Welcome to Limestone Creek Trail.
Powered by Beaver Juice

The water supply at the Limestone Camp had some issues goin on. When we first arrived, we noticed a small stream
next to our camp and we drank freely from it. All of us had sipped from many other streams in the Bob without
difficulties. But the tables were about to turn.
Two weeks had passed, when we finally decided to get up on high ground and get a lay out for the country. From
Danaher Mt. we could see down into Limestone Creek (our drinking stream). We noticed something awkward. None of
us wanted to admit it at first. But after a while it became obvious to all, and someone said it, "Oh my god, is that a
beaver pond?"
For sure, the beavers had decided to make a home in the waters we called our pure, mountain stream. First there
was denial. "No that can't be a beaver pond, its gotta be a little lake...or...something." Then there was panic, "Oh shit!
Literally!" Then there was anger, "Damn beavers!" Then there was bargaining "Well its been two weeks already and
no effects yet, maybe we'll be ok??" Then finally acceptance, "Aw hell, we're all in this together!"
As the summer wore on and there was less and less snow melt off, the water supply in Limestone Creek dwindled fast.
Then there came a point where we knew it was just the remains of the beaver pond draining out. The epidemic
spread slowly but surely. All members of the crew felt the affects of the beaver's rath, except me for some reason. But
anyway, the G-bug had infiltrated. Some of them even got named, such as Jerry the Giardia, and Perry the
Parasite. The Big G even seemed to be helping the crew out with work. Extra power to get up hills, and increased
thrust in swinging the pick. The Limestone Crew of 2005 was truly powered by Beaver Juice.
The Puppet

"I once saw this puppet at Tang's with a mullet and a popsicle." Thank you, Beck. This phrase made the summer all
the more enjoyable. We were going to leave a tribute to this phrase on top of a stump. But, the puppet never came
through.
Sixty Miles Past the Middle of Nowhere

Our district in the Bob Marshall is managed by Spotted Bear Ranger Station. The station is located at the mouth of
Spotted Bear River just a few files south of the end of Hungry Horse Reservoir. Reaching the station requires a 54
mile drive down a dusty, pot-hole infested, dirt road. If you are driving the speed limit it takes just under 2 hours to pull
into the parking lot in front of the main office. There are no gas stations, houses, or anything at all on that drive.
Spotted Bear is pretty damn remote by todays standards.
To get to Limestone Creek from Spotted Bear, we get a 13 mile drive further south to Meadow Creek Trail head. From
Meadow Creek, a 33-35 mile hike is required to reach the Big Prairie Work Station in the heart of the Bob Marshall.
This is where the trail crews for the South Fork of the Flathead are based out of. But we aren't done yet! The
Limestone crew had an additional 22 mile hike further south to reach the Construction Camp. It was great!
At our camp and jobsite, we rarely saw anybody. Everytime we would go up the trail to start digging, there would be
no fresh tracks WHATSOEVER.
We checked in by radio every other day to Big Prairie. But it seemed that if we didn't check in, we would be forgotten.
Nobody ever asked about us; hardly anyone came to see us. But that was alright. It made work feel less like work.
Even our Grocieries didn't come from Spotted Bear or Big Prairie. We were so far south that we had hooked up with a
Backcountry Horseman group from Seeley Valley to bring in our food in from Seeley Lake. It was high class. It was the
most free feeling I have ever experieinced. In the "return address" line on my outgoing mail envelopes, I made a habit
of writing "Eric Kroeger - the wilderness."
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