Loyalhanna Conservation Corps expands Laurel Ridge trail for hikers, rescue crews

An important part of the Beam Rocks work was shifting sections of the trail to avoid areas covered with large boulders while extending the edges of the path and cutting down a maple tree to increase the passable width to 5 feet — which is wide enough to accommodate a side-by-side all-terrain vehicle. That would allow responding emergency crews to drive close to the scene if someone is injured in a fall from the rocks, Repko explained.

“We’ve been up there several times for people falling off the rocks,” Sipesville fire Chief Scott Kovach said. “It’s usually of a serious nature, if not a fatality.”

In such rescues, Kovach said, “we would only be able to haul our equipment on an ATV or (utility task vehicle) part way, and then have to walk the rest of the way down. With this improvement, it’s going to decrease the time for extrication of the patient out of the woods.”

On March 29, 2008, Christopher Cardy, 25, of Ligonier and Sara Baum, 24, of Greensburg were killed when they fell from the rocks. State police said Baum fell nearly 17 feet, fracturing her skull, and Cardy fell 39 feet, breaking his neck, when he attempted to climb down a narrow path to assist Baum.

Investigators determined both had consumed large amounts of the drug chlorpheniramine, a potent ingredient in cough medicines.

Michael Vomish, 19, of Mt. Pleasant was climbing the rocks with friends July 30, 2007, when he slipped and fell 75 feet to his death. More recently, on Sept. 20, 2015, Dakotah Rhodes, 25, of Derry died after falling from a ledge on the Beam Rocks Trail.

Because of such incidents, the state Bureau of Forestry has placed warning signs at the trail head and limits use of the trail to daylight hours and prohibits alcoholic beverages there.

With this summer’s trail improvements, district forester Ed Callahan said, “We will be able to get people who may have fallen off the rocks out faster and possibly save lives.”

Callahan said the Loyalhanna Watershed’s summer interns, along with other volunteers, play a vital role in keeping Forbes State Forest an inviting area for outdoor recreation.

According to Callahan, Pennsylvania has managed the area, which spans sections of Westmoreland, Somerset and Fayette counties, for 110 years. But, he said, “With 60,000 acres of state forest, our maintenance crew is not large enough to handle it, especially all the trails.”

The state forest contains more than 300 miles of trails. The watershed conservation crew wrapped up its work Friday by trimming back vegetation to maintain the 6 foot width of Fish Run Trail, which runs between Laurel Ridge and Linn Run state parks.

The crew members helped with annual maintenance of three man-made ponds, trimming back surrounding growth to keep trees from taking root and damaging the breast of the dam.

Each intern receives a $2,500 stipend toward educational expenses as part of the program, which gets funding support from the Katherine Mabis McKenna Foundation.

The interns are provided educational experiences related to the environment. This year’s crew took a break from their work to go camping and caving.

Olivia Knepp, 20, of Hempfield, who is studying environmental and energy issues at Westmoreland County Community College, enjoyed spotting a porcupine and other wildlife during the internship, as well as observing snakes up-close and learning about their behavior.

“Seeing animals I had never seen before in the wild was a mind-blowing experience,” she said. “I’ve always loved snakes, and this internship made me appreciate them even more.

“We definitely learned something new every day.”

Repko said this year’s crew members were “raring to go. We got a lot of work done, they learned a lot, and they had fun.”