Photo by Jay Young The idea behind the first (Not) Work Week began in 2014. This was when Gene Kistler created the equation, work + fun = not work, thus the creation of (Not) Work Week. This year, when Gene came up with the most complex project of them all, we felt like we’d been prepping for this one for the last nine years. We knew this project would require special materials and extra funds. Bryan Simon, NRAC board member, secured grant funding for the project through the Access Fund and American Alpine Club. Weeks before the event, Gene rallied local climbers for at least a week’s worth of prep work, including loading and unloading 50 timbers onto the barge to make their way to the project site at Whippoorwill. He lined up a specialty crew of volunteers with rock masonry, trail construction, and project management skills. The National Park Service offered up their tools and a trail crew member to help. This year’s (Not) Work Week started out muddy and rainy. When we say muddy, we mean folks were covered head to toe. Andrew Jordan demonstrated his willingness to get dirty immediately, setting the standard for the rest of the week. Photo by Augie Wagner Each day started with coffee from Ranger Finder Coffee and a pep talk from Gene, where he described the day’s objectives and told us not to get hurt. He said “bungle” at least once daily when describing the terrain. #IYKYK, and if you don’t know, that’s okay – it just means we were working with rocky terrain. Our progress was slow from the start. We thought our project might take longer than planned, and then BAM… A super strong crew of volunteers were picking up and sliding precast stairs weighing 465 lbs. down a makeshift slide made from a piece of culvert cut in half. It felt like we might even construct a pyramid. Volunteers were moving so quickly! Keith Marretta started busting out timber stairs like it was his job. But remember, it wasn’t because this is (Not) Work Week after all. By the end of the week, 44 timber stairs made their way into the ground, and 20 precast stairs led the way to the top of the Whippoorwill approach trail. Each day, our buddies Cote Womack and Darek Czarnecki with the Army Corps of Engineers delivered load after load of gravel on two barges to Whippoorwill so we could fill 64 gabions with tons of gravel. How many trail workdays have you heard of that included not one but TWO barges?! Props to those who spent time shoveling gravel into the gabions. This is truly back-breaking work! The entire week wasn’t just about working our butts off but also about making new friends and catching up with old ones. Some volunteers returned for their 5th year in a row! We made new friends from Ohio, Virginia, and North Carolina. We also had the chance to finally meet community members who recently bought homes or moved to the area! Photo by Iris Lee Each night we had dinner together, family style. Local restaurants provided food at Burnwood Campground, and community members hosted us in their homes on other nights. A big shout-out goes to the Kistlers, Crumms, Fussells, and Chabers for hosting! We wrapped up the week at Bridge Brew Works with a BIG F*@&ING PARTY, aka the BFP. Our buddies at Cast Iron Smokers made food while a local band, Kid Cherry and the Graduates, played music. It feels hard to explain why (Not) Work Week is so special and why this year felt more special than all the others. Moving dirt, shoveling gravel, smashing rocks, and building stairs seem simple, but when you combine that with a badass crew of volunteers and an enormous volunteer community effort, it feels like we’re making history. Thank you to everyone who made this year’s (Not) Work Week the best one yet! We can’t wait for next year!
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