Just FYI for anyone gearing up for some trail work on the WB. In first half mile: a couple of trees down that a few cuts with a larger bow saw could probably take care of. A short rotten log across the trail looks difficult to remove, but WTA experts will surely find a way. We managed to dislodge a few smaller ones. A little farther up, a much bigger/longer deadfall straddles the trail obliquely and somewhat precariously. Easy to get around, but doesn't appear much is holding it in place. A couple of burly volunteers with rock bars (or wood poles) could probably roll it off the trail before it squishes someone. Four of us spent an hour or so "gardening" on the beauteous Bald Mt Trail above the upper lake, clipping away most of the veg overhanging the trail and heaving another deadfall off the trail, so it's now in generally great shape to the saddle (we did not go beyond the upper trail junction due to heavy fog and no views). Wish more folks would carry small hand pruners, it's such an easy way to help out. Carry them in your hand, not in your pack.
But boy, the rocky sections of the WB sure do need some major work! The DNR should get a contractor up there to do some of the tougher stuff, perhaps including short reroutes to avoid the worst of it--a bit much to ask of volunteers. Also, can someone tell the DNR that we can do without the unsightly portapotties in backcountry areas (btw, the one at lower Cutthroat is full). Wilderness-style bench toilets would be far superior in an area like this--say, two at the upper lake and one at the lower. The oversized info signs (e.g., Ashland Lakes) also seem out of place. Okay at the trailhead, but not in the backcountry. Hope we can reestablish the old Bald Mt. Trail to Ashland Lakes. It was a great hike 15 years ago.
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