DNR clearing hazard trees at Camp Sekani; trails still closed

The work to get mountain bikers back on the trails at Camp Sekani is underway, but it’s too soon to say exactly when the park might be ready for two-wheeled traffic.

Crews from the Washington Department of Natural Resources have been felling hazard trees left behind after the Upriver fire, a fast-moving blaze that tore through the park and the surrounding neighborhood last month. The trails have been closed since the fire.

Garrett Jones, director of parks and recreation at the city of Spokane, said Wednesday that DNR had identified more than two dozen hazard trees along the trails, and that clearing those was the top priority for now.

As for damage to the trails themselves, Jones said some signage and wood ramps burned, but that things could be worse.

“The trails don’t seem to be in really bad shape,” he said.

They will need work, though. A bulldozer was used to create a fire line on the upper part of the mountain. Work on that can begin after the hazard trees are cleared.

A hand line was also dug on the property. Jones said that line has to remain in place for the foreseeable future, meaning trail work can’t happen there.

Weather is also a factor. Moisture is needed to soften the dirt for trail work, and there’s been no significant rain since the fire.

Before the fire, the city already had big construction plans at Camp Sekani. In August, crews will begin work on a major parking lot upgrade there, including paving the lot and adding more space.

Jones didn’t know how long that would take, but he said he expects the trails on Sekani will open before that project is finished.

Melinda Dupree, president of Evergreen East, a mountain bike club that helps coordinate the trail system at Sekani, said her group is ready to help get the trails back open.

“I’m 100 percent confident that the community will rally and bring the trails back to where they were or make them even better,” Dupree said.

The good news for mountain bikers in the meantime is that all the trails to the west of Sekani are open. In all, there are 49 miles of trail at Beacon Hill and Camp Sekani, Dupree said, and just 9 or 10 miles were impacted by the fire.

Riders also have a bounty of options in the region, such as Mica Peak, Saltese Uplands, Antoine Peak, Riverside State Park and Mount Spokane State Park.