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Trail Construction and Maintenance Notebook
Trail signs are made of a variety of materials; the most typical is a routed wood sign. Signs are usually mounted on posts or trees. Signs in rocky areas should be mounted on a post seated in an excavated hole or supported by a well-constructed cairn.
| The amount and type of signing and reassurance markers should be detailed in a sign plan for the area you are working in. Consistent with the plan, signing and marking should be esthetically appropriate, the minimum necessary, visible, in useful locations, and well maintained. |
Wooden posts may be obtained onsite or hauled in. Onsite (native) material is usually less expensive, but may have a shorter useful life. Native material usually looks less artificial; it is usually chosen in primitive settings. Purchased posts should usually be pressure treated. Their longer lifespan will offset the initial purchasing and transportation costs. Round posts appear less artificial than square posts and provide more options for custom alignment of signs at trail junctions. Posts should be at least 150 mm (6 inches) in diameter.
Well-placed signs are easily readable, yet far enough from the tread to provide clearance for normal traffic. In deep snow country, try to locate the post in relatively flat surroundings to reduce the effects of snow creep.
Spikes or lag screws can be used at the base of the post to improve anchoring (Figure 69). Seat the post in the hole and hold it vertical while you drop a few rocks into the hole to secure it. Tamp these rocks with a rockbar or tool handle to jam them into place. Continue to place rocks and dirt in the hole, tamping as you go. Top off the hole with mounded soil to accommodate settling and prevent puddling around the post.
![[diagram] Signpost installation](images/fig069.jpg)
Figure 69—The key to placing solid posts is to tamp
the rock and soil with a rockbar as you fill the hole.
In rocky areas or very soft soils (such as adjacent to a turnpike structure), sign posts can be supported by a cairn. Horizontally placed spikes or lag screws should be used at the base for anchors. Chinking with smaller rocks help tighten the post against the cairn stones.
Signs should have holes predrilled so they can be attached to the post. Level each sign and secure it to the post using plated lag screws. Plated hardware reduces rust stains on the sign. Plated washers should be used between the head of the screw and the sign face to reduce the potential for the sign to pull over the screw. In areas where sign theft is a problem, use specialty theft-prevention hardware. The bottom edge of signs should be set about 1.5 m (60 in) above tread level. The sign’s top edge should be 50 mm (2 in) below the top of the post. Where snow loads are a problem, the post can be notched and the signs seated full depth. Treated posts will be susceptible to rotting where they are notched, so they should be spot treated with preservative.
Use caution when mounting signs to trees. The sign should be obvious to travelers and legible from the tread. If mounting on trees doesn’t meet these conditions, use a post instead. Mount signs to trees with plated lag screws and plated washers, rather than spikes. This way, the sign can be periodically loosened to accommodate tree growth. Leave a gap between the sign and the tree to allow for the growth.
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