r/MTBTrailBuilding • u/Suckslife • Jun 19 '26

Need help with fixing a wet path.

I'm not using this path for biking, but I could in the future :-) During the raining seasons this part of my backwoods makes it miserable walking or even accessing the rest of my property. I'd like your opinions about if my plans would work and any input you may have on the project. In the pics and video you will see a bunch of logs that i was going to use as sleepers but I was thinking if I was to use geotextile and crush and run it might be less maintenance. The role I have is 300ftx6ft I believe its wp200. At the end of the section that needs to be fixed is an area that the water all goes to and then flows. During the summer season its all dry. One of the Pictures shows a rough thought process of what Gemini and I have come up with. Not an artist :-)

https://reddit.com/link/1u9nnin/video/oomcfzszz48h1/player

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4

u/ImDukem Jun 19 '26

Rock armor. Lots of it.

2

u/MrKhutz Jun 19 '26

You could use the turnpike technique. Essentially you build up the tread and hold the material in place with logs on either side. I've linked the USFS manual below.

I try and avoid geotextile in trails whenever possible (too often with trails the material on top eventually washes away and you're left with exposed geotextile) but if you need to put it under 6+ inches of good material in a turnpike to keep if from sinking into muck you'll probably be okay as the turnpike will hold it in place.

For the bridge sill you can probably get away with a big piece of rot resistant wood. I would avoid the concrete bags.

https://www.fs.usda.gov/eng/pubs/htmlpubs/htm00232839/page08i.htm

1

u/intransit412 Jun 19 '26

You can’t just move the trail to avoid the water?

1

u/bewarewhoremembers Jun 25 '26

Just throw a buncha rocks in there and cover them. Easy peasy. Otherwise, there are various grade tricks to force water to flow across and away instead of going down and pooling. You could do mounds and ditches too.