Rehabilitation work has begun on Walker Ridge Airstrip, which is located in the Snow Mountain National Monument in Northern California.
According to officials with the Recreational Aviation Foundation (RAF), RAF Liaison Doug Lumgair recently received approval from the Bureau of Land Management to begin rehabilitating the airstrip.
He put out a call for volunteers, which was “abundantly answered in spite of the challenges of driving to the site,” he said.
“Sometimes driving in is the only way to get a field ready for use,” he said.
Getting to the strip was every bit as difficult as Lumgair expected.
The road to the airstrip is a rutted and steep Jeep trail between the dirt Walker Ridge Road and the staging/camping area, challenging each four-wheel-drive vehicle, he said. The final mile from the staging area to the airstrip was so narrow that a crew had to walk ahead of the trucks, clearing it so vehicles could pass.
Volunteers brought two skid-steers, a dump trailer, and a Polaris Ranger, all vital to the success of the weekend project, especially cutting and removing the “mountains of brush,” he reported.
The work had to be done with hand tools and chainsaws, he said, adding the skid-steers were only used to haul brush to a BLM-approved area.
On Sunday morning, the crew removed the remaining brush and some of the tire-hazard rocks from the landing area. There are additional rock outcroppings that still need to be broken down and more brush work needs to be done for increasing wing tip clearance, according to Lumgair.
“I am deeply thankful and impressed by every volunteer who brought their equipment, expertise, enthusiasm and incredible work ethic,” Lumgair said. “The camaraderie throughout the weekend was a joy — we instantly formed a great team and worked together like old friends.”
The next work party is planned for Dec. 6-7, 2025, with a weather alternate date of Dec. 13-14.
A pilot briefing and more details about Walker Ridge will be added to the RAF’s Airfield Guide in the future, foundation officials noted.
For more information: TheRAF.org
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