The horse camp at Lundbom Lake recreation site got a big upgrade earlier this month, thanks to nearly 50 volunteers from across the province.

Members of the Back Country Horsemen of BC converged on the site east of Merritt on Highway 97C on the first weekend of October to replace 12 old wooden corrals in need of repair with 28 new paddocks enclosed by steel pipes.

The work took about 775 volunteer hours over four days.

The project was conceived in May of this year by Back Country Horsemen of BC members Kelly Allen, Rose Schroeder, Scott Walker and Ron Stolp, as well as Recreation Sites and Trails BC district officer Ed Ables and camp host Ann Jeffrey.

Recreation Sites and Trails BC, the branch of the provincial government that does trail and recreation site maintenance, footed the bill for most of the cost of the project.

Plenty of businesses, horse clubs and individuals also supported the cause via cash or in-kind donations as well.

On the first day, about a dozen volunteers tore down the dozen well-used wooden corrals, cutting the wood up for firewood.

The second day, it was time to bring in the machinery to level the ground for the new layout of the corrals and relocate the manure pit.

“We spent all day on tractors, Bobcats and excavators,” Allen said. “I ran the roller for the whole day.”

After everything was levelled, the excavator came to pound the new posts into the ground. Once the posts were in, volunteers bolted the pipes to them. They also put in a rock retaining wall so the new dirt footing wouldn’t spill out.

Allen said it was the largest-scale project of this type she has been part of.

“It was very rewarding to see the finished product and the quality of it,” she said.
Volunteers came from eight chapters all over the province, including the president of the organization who came from McBride.

Allen said she was amazed by how well all the volunteers worked together.

“I can’t believe what they did in just four short days,” Allen said. “It was really a group effort.”

Back Country Horsemen of BC is the province’s second largest equestrian group with over 700 members.

“The thing that Back Country Horsemen does is try to keep the trails open for everyone — not just for horsemen, but for all of us,” Allen said.

She said back country users of all stripes, from hikers to mountain bikers to cross-country skiers, use trails maintained and preserved by the Back Country Horsemen.

Allen, who’s been a member of the Back Country Horsemen of BC since 2003, is also spearheading a new local chapter of the organization.
On Saturday, she got the go-ahead from the organization’s executive to form a chapter in Merritt.
“Merritt is such a horsey area and has never had a Back Country Horsemen chapter. We have all these trails and everything here,” she said.

For more information about the local chapter, contact Allen by email at [email protected].