Trails Club of Oregon Board Meeting Minutes
Date: July 8, 2025 Time: 7:00-9:00 PM Location: zoom
Attendees:
President: Bev Drottar
Vice President: Eric Zimmerman
Treasurer: Nicole Rogers
Secretary: Rebecca Knudeson
Publications: Joel Reitz
Membership: Lori Leach
Nesika Trustee: Pete Recksiek
Trips Trustee: Craig Gwydir
Outdoor Ed/Outreach Trustee: Vacant
Committee Chairs: Jeff Churchill (Social)
Absent:
Tyee Trustee: Paul Cutter
REGULAR BUSINESS
Minutes were approved on 6/15/25 by email prior to the Blazer publication.
Treasurer’s Report, Nicole
Beginning Balance, 6/30/25 : $20,020.38
Checks and Payment: 17,001.90
Deposits and Credits: 6,867.75
Cleared Balance: 9,886.23
Comprehensive reports for June financials can be found at: Monthly Treasurer's Reports -
Dropbox
The most current Fidelity statement value: $446,698.
Membership Report, Lori
Reinstatement: Merrill Hugo, Bob Walker
Provisional: Craig Keller, Catherine Romanaggi, Gregory Bishop, Kathy Ottesen, Howard
Davis, Rob Parker
First Reading: Christena Keller – Sponsored by Bill Yandon and Lori Leach
Ember Kauth sponsored by Beverly Drottar and Nina Rohr
Rob Parker sponsored by Pete Recksiek and Jeff Lawton
Second Readings unanimously approved:
Julia Williamson – Sponsored by Sheryl Wagner and Linda Conrad
Lou Lorber - Sponsored by Craig Gwydir and Kate Curry
Membership Summary 7/8/25
Total: 245
9 Golden, 2 Junior, 32 Life, 3 Life/Golden, 20 Provisional, 179 Regular
Publications Report, Joel
Nothing to report
Nesika Report, Pete
Bob Walker worked tirelessly on the tractor. He still needs another weekend to finalize repairs.
The tractor was pushed back into the garage to allow the trailer to be put into service and allowthe Kubota to be stored in the garage. The trailer will be stored outside near the woodshed under a tarp until the garage is cleaned and organized. Fluids and filters were changed on the generator and tractor. Roads and trails were cleared from Larch Mountain to the lodge, mostly by Craig. Nina did a great job cooking for 2 volunteer weekends. The Kubota was delivered on 6/26 and received by Pete Recksiek. The title and Bill of Sale were sent to the treasurer for safe keeping. Copies are kept in the Nesika Lodge. The Monster trail was widened to accommodate the new Kubota which has a slightly wider wheelbase than the tractor. Work and Recreational weekends on 6/20 and 7/4 generated $246 in donations and fees. Jeff Lawton is working on getting a log splitter for the lodge.
We discussed whether we need liability insurance for the Kubota and, if so, alternatives for
acquiring it. Eric will look into a separate insurance for the Kubota.
Tyee Report, Paul
The lodge was very active during the last week of June. Catlin Gabel School arrived on Sunday. Their first two days’ work consisted of meadow and stream survey at Camas Prairie in the Barlow District. Their third day was a hike to Twin Lakes. On Thursday they camped in the John Day River area on the Warm Springs reservation where they built beaver dams. It is a pleasure to host them as each evening has an activity: square dance, a black and white movie (Some like it Hot), charades, skits, and/or campfires. They allowed no cell phones. $1,990 lodge fees were collected.
On Monday, Bill Rude, Lori Leach and I re-laid the donated vinyl plank floor, replacing the
laminate I flooded in January. Embarrassing long story, enough said! The games room was
finally completed. Catlin teenagers filled the basement with wood. During the week, the furnace
was serviced, oil delivered, tanks were filled (344 gallons) and the septic system was pumped
after at least 40 years. Unsurprisingly, the tank pumping took longer than normal (3 hrs total)
due to the extra water that had to be added to dilute the very solid waste at the bottom. The 6”
suction pipe to the truck consistently kept blocking. Our tank is a 2500 gallon tank but we paid
an extra 300 gallons of water for dilution. The final bill for the septic pumping was $1800 due to
the extra water that had to be added. At the work party, the carpets were cleaned and a
storage for the sleds and tubes was built. Work started on the east side for flood control. This
project will be an ongoing all summer.
Trips Report, Craig
There were 3 day trips during the month of June, which included a field trip to Camp Namanu,
headed by Lori Leach. Wednesday night conditioning hikes are posted on the TCO calendar at
https://trailsclub.org/activities/calendar/.
A CPR/AED/Wilderness First Aid custom certification class has been posted for Sept. 28, 2025,
at Tyee for Trails Club members. Adventure Medics Training will be teaching this class. Please
see the TCO Meetup site or contact Craig Gwydir at tripschair@trailsclub.org for more
information.
The TCO Stormy Trails Committee cleared brush from the Basin road and cleared the following
Nesika Lodge trails during the month of June: Elevator Shaft Trail, Franklin Connector Trail,
Ornament Trail, and Basin Cutoff Trail. Thank you to the volunteers of the committee for this
work.
Please email tripschair@trailsclub.org if you are interested in assisting with trail work, including
trail scouting, restoration and maintenance.
Call for help: If you are interested in learning about adventures on the Multnomah Plateau and
willing to help co-lead hikes and/or join a TCO trips planning committee, please join our "TCO
Hike Leaders Meeting" this month, or send questions to tripschair@trailsclub.org.
Outdoor Ed and Outreach, vacant
Board level trustee needed!! If you want to know more about this position, please contact
president@trailsclub.org
Leave No Trace Committee Report, Dolores via email
We focused on three of the Leave No Trace Principles on the Trails Club Facebook page related
to increased seasonal trail usage.
Principle #1: Plan Ahead and Prepare. Focused on the results of not being prepared.
Principle #5: Minimize Campfire Impact. 2-5 gallons of water are needed to fully extinguish a
fire.
Principle #6: Protect Wildlife. When backpacking in bear country, separate cooking, sleeping
and food storage areas by 200 feet each.
OLD BUSINESS
Policies & Practices document for TCO
We will discuss at length at August meeting. Please read through the doc and be ready to
discuss.
501c3 Status, Lori
Lori spoke with one of StartChurch’s supervisors. She asked Lori a few clarifying questions and
said she would resubmit our articles of incorporation to the state of Oregon. Lori checked in
with the State and determined that our document had been received. It may take 4 to 6 weeks
for the state to process it.
NEW BUSINESS
Solar at Nesika
Jeff Lawton proposed, “If the board approves, I would like to set up, at my own expense, a
small 100 watt solar array with an inverter outside the dorm at Nesika that could be used for
charging phones and electric power tools or possibly a few lights inside and outside the dorm.”
Joel stated, “I would include the propane stove/oven that requires electricity for the oven
thermostat. As long as power tools and heaters are not allowed, a battery can be quite small.
It's all about wattage.”
Eric said, “I too would like to see if Nesika could use solar/battery power more effectively. I
would actually like to see us put a plan in place for a larger solar array and batteries that could
keep the generator from running continuously. A few issues I see are the safety of lithium
batteries, battery costs/maintenance, visibility of panels and the aesthetics. Not sure how
much those things would affect experimentation and limited use in dorm, but are things the
board/chair should consider.”
Trisha added, “I have an off grid cabin with a generator that charges 8 golf cart batteries. The
batteries run through an inverter that provides 110 power to the cabin. The inverter also allows
for solar charging to the batteries. I don't have solar yet but it is in the works. I can use lights,
starlink satellite dish, computer, monitor and a TV for 24 hours. Bigger wattage items like a
toaster and microwave deplete the battery, so I avoid using those items unless I have the
generator on. If the lodge replaced light bulbs with LED lights and we all become more frugal
with electricity use, we could implement a similar setup at the lodge.
My system of batteries/inverter cost about $3,000, not counting the electrician to put it all
together.”
Moved and seconded to accept Jeff’s offer. While he’s doing that, we should look into a bigger
solar conversion and get a better plan in place. Unanimously approved.
Our generator is overkill for most of what we do at Nesika. We could run all the lights easily on
a small solar array. Putting panels across the roof of the dorm would more than cover our
needs at the lodge.
Social Chair, Jeff Churchill
Jeff discussed a mid August social, maybe at Rooster Rock, McGiver Park, Glenn Atto Park or
Camp Namanu.
Adjorned at 7:57
Next meeting, 8/12/25, zoom
Submitted by Rebecca Knudeson, Secretary
