Shutdown slows restoration of local trails damaged in storms

Heavy floodwater damaged and washed out multiple of desert hiking trails in August, including parts of the popular Bump and Grind and Hopalong Cassidy trails in Palm Desert.

“It’s more than a mess. It’s uneven in a lot of the areas and it makes it hard to run on,” said hiker Ethan Simley, of Indio.

John Purcell, executive director of Friends of the Desert Mountains, said some trails now need to be trimmed and rechanneled. It’ll take a team effort by the Bureau of Land Management’s volunteers.

“Anytime you get 300 miles of trails with damage, it takes a tremendous amount of work,” said Purcell.

The City of Palm Desert partners with the BLM to work on the trails. and there have been meetings over the past month to work out a plan. However, government shutdown furloughs make it nearly impossible to get the job done.

“The trails are open. The problem, we can’t have BLM volunteers working in the national monument. They’re not covered by protections of BLM volunteers, we treat them as employees,” said Purcell.

The shutdown slows down volunteers for now, but Purcell said once it’s over, there’s work to be done.

“You can spend a tremendous amount of time on a trail or get it done in a morning. It depends on the damage and how steep. Everyone wants to be safe,” said Purcell.

For now, some hikers said they’ll still hit the trails but take precautions.

“It makes me more attentive, which is good for my old brain, a lot of eye and foot coordination,” said Phil Garcia, of Indio.

The City of Palm Desert plans to host its own community Trail Maintenance Day the weekend of Oct. 19. Volunteers are needed. If you’d like to help, contact the city at 760-346-0611.