Little Round Top Rehab October 2023 Update
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- čas přidán 27. 10. 2023
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Miss Little Round Top? Well, this video allows you to see it!
Want to know when it will re-open? Well, this video will also answer that question.
Want to be dazzled? Watch a video with special effects.
In what is, perhaps, his final public appearance as Superintendent of GNMP, Steve Sims takes Matt on a tour of Little Round Top to see what progress has been made since our last visit in April.
We'd like to thank Superintendent Sims for his willingness to work with Addressing Gettysburg and engage our audience. This is a very special place to millions of Americans and people from around the world and Steve has done a great job whipping it back into shape to ensure that generations to come will be able to enjoy it too. Thank you, Steve, for your time here and all the best to you in your future endeavors.
Want more of our unique perspective of the Battle of Gettysburg and the Gettysburg of today? Do yourself a favor and join our growing community over at www.patreon.com/addressinggettysburg Seriously. You’d be doing YOURSELF a favor. So much to learn over at Patreon.
Regarding the witness trees being taken down for the improvements, kudos to those who wrote in to point out that the witness trees should stay. They should not be taken down, except if they are dead and are creating a danger to visitors. When they are taken down the lumber should be used for something special, like say, making benches for the visitor center, with a plaque that states where the tree was felled and when. Generally, it seems that the project was well done and well thought out. I am impressed that some things were done and then removed when they realized it was not what was needed for the site.
I am too. It shows that our staff here actually cares about the integrity and heritage of the land and aren’t just punching a clock, so to speak.
Man it looks amazing up there. I gotta give kudos to the NPS for being responsive and listening to the folks who love that place regarding the asphalt and aggregate.
So do I. It feel like a rare thing for government to listen and adapt
Me and my wife live close to Gettysburg. Often over the years we sit on the rocks there in the morning sipping coffee. It will be nice to get back to Little Round Top. Thank you for all you're doing 😀
You’re welcome! Glad you enjoyed it. You’re right. It will be nice to get back up there. Neither my puppy nor my girlfriend have experienced it yet.
Steve Sims is obviously going to be very hard to replace. Fortunately, the NPS has a lot of incredible talent within their ranks. The level of knowledge, patience, planning response , affability and communication skills required by the Park Service, especially at the most senior levels of public interaction, is at least as demanding and perhaps more advanced than most private corporate entities in the country. Even visiting a very isolated national historic site such as Chaco Canyon in New Mexico, you will meet NPS personal who would make excellent corporate executives. The National Park Service is truly an American treasure. This is a remarkable video, Matt. Strong work. Thank you.
You’re welcome and thank you, too
Going to miss Steve Sims, he seemed to care and a calming presence. Great episode and thanks Matt!
Glad you enjoyed it. I totally agree. “Calming presence”. I was talking to him before the recording and he told me that he had worked in the private sector between the army and NPS. I’ll bet that helps him walk the line between the public and private sector people the job requires he deal with.
Thank you ! This was great. Thank you Steve for your stewardship of my favorite place in the world!
Glad you enjoyed it
Nicely done gentlemen. I appreciate the intelligent efforts to preserve the natural beauty of the landscape.
Glad you enjoyed it
Thank you for the video and for the Gettysburg park preservation.
Our pleasure!
Wow!!! Looks amazing! So fascinating to hear his perspective!
They really did a great job with it so far
It looks so beautiful up there!😍🍂🍁
Yes it is. I miss it
Water Bars not only help keep the trail in place by minimizing erosion, but they also aid as traction when hiking up that hill. As a teenage Boy Scout doing conservation projects for the next badge, I installed seemingly hundreds of Water Bars around Manassas NBP, mostly around The Deep Cut and Unfinished Confederate Railroad from Second Bull Run.
👍
Great job Matt, can’t wait to see it in person!
MCNAIR! Thank you
I love everything that I heard here, especially that the park is becoming more accessible as a wheelchair user myself.
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Thanks for the LRT tour! It's looking amazing. It made me happy to see it on my tv screen. It's not the same as being there, but I'm looking forward to getting back up there in '24! Unfortunately, it won't be on my springtime visit, but I can wait.
Glad you enjoyed it!
Based on devils den rehab this should be awesome. Was just there at Halloween
💯
Looks amazing
It is!
@@addressinggettysburg 😎
Wow! What amazing work they are doing! So glad they are doing this work so many many generations can come and visit. They just need to not plan the once in a life time vacation until 2025- 26. It will be well worth the wait.
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This is absolutely wonderful! Thank you so much for caring for the place and the visitors so well.
My friend and I have come annually since 2012 . It is always hard to leave, AND we always find something new. Thank you thank you❤
You’re welcome. Yes, it’s very hard to leave. It’s why I finally decided to move here
As much as I'd love to go to Gettysburg in July I always go in the fall during the mid week. There are so few people and it's much more personal.
Yeah it really is a perfect time to come. Winter too, if you can handle it.
Thanks for the great video, it's obvious that great care has gone into the rehab, good to see the potential witness trees survived.
👍
This is cool I used to donate to the battlefield trust and they would send us a newsletter and that was great and now you have You Tube. Direct communication with the National Park service, I like this😊
Thanks! We’re trying to help the park get information out in a more approachable way. Keep your eyes peeled for more
It’s been more than 18 years since I’ve walked the ground at Gettysburg. I now live in Australia. Thank you for this video….
Quite a distance! Thanks for catching up with us from Down Under
Have they found any other artifacts on LRT other than the Dyer Shell? LRT is looking amazing! Awesome job NPS! Thanks for the update Matt!
Thanks! I believe so. Nothing that isn’t expected, from what I hear.
@@addressinggettysburg it's amazing how we are still finding stuff 160 years later. Can't wait to visit LRT again! Took my first trip right before it was closed. Devil's Den was closed at the time.
It’s so amazing to see how this project is coming along, and I just can’t wait to be up there next year. Great video, and I love the hat. I kept waiting for you to say “I love the smell of rehabilitation in the morning. Smells like…victory!”😂
Hahaha I should have!
I like what I saw, can’t wait to see the finished effort. I hope it’s opened by May when I plan to visit.
Never know. Could be, if the winter is good to us.
Really insightful video! Appreciate the look around LRT, it appears to be a great rehab. Thanks for doing this!!!!!
Our pleasure! Glad you enjoyed it. More to come!
It's going to be interesting to go back and see all that has been done. For the last 30 Little Round Top lives as it was in my mind.
I think you’ll be pleasantly surprised to find that it’s not much different than what you’re used to. If anything, it’s just a shored-up version of what we’re used to.
This was fantastic! Steve is a top notch talent it’s no wonder they moved him to Philly for the 250th. Matt was kinda ok too 😃
Lol uh, thanks? 😂😂
Outstanding video. I'm a big fan of this necessary project on Little Round Top. I hate to see Steve Sims leaving, but I get it. It would have been nice if he could have seen the LRT work through its conclusion. Steve is a class act and his transparency and personality are appreciated. I hope his replacement has the same qualities.
As do I.
Great video, Thank you!
Glad you liked it!
First video I've watched from this channel. Great info and camera work. Gave tour's of the battlefield to my students for 30 years several times a year. Love these improvements.
Welcome aboard!
Great info!
Glad it was helpful!
I bet they have a lot of Civil War Veterans smiling down at them as the project goes along. This going to be a amazing when it’s all finished.
Why would anyone want to visit in the summer when it’s as beautiful and less crowded? Love what the GNP is doing it’s just beautiful.
I’m glad they appreciate the Beaver for all the work they do to help maintain the park.😁👍
Yes it will be nice once it’s done. I think people will like it
This is awesome
Thanks, Tim!
Hi all (incl. Steve and Matt), from sunny UK!!
‘ello, guvnah!
great video and work done is fantastic
Thank you very much!
Wow, I am impressed with the work that they have done so far on LRT! It looks great and it's not even completed yet. I'm also relieved by watching this video, I was so afraid that they were going to ruin it with "improvements". The gathering spots look natural. and the trails fit in with the terrain. I'm also impressed that they made updates to the rehabilitation plan once they realized some of the things they had done weren't working well. Going to miss Steve Sims, best of luck to him at Independence. Hopefully, his successor will recognize what he has accomplished at GB, and just as importantly, how he went about it.
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Fantastic content!
Much appreciated!
This is so amazing, next week when we have our Camp SUVCW meeting, I'm going to talk about what I saw in today's video and also email blast a link to our membership. For over the past year or so, there's always talk about what's going on at Round Top. I like the idea of creating an optimistic attitude before another Rememberance Day without Round Top. So awesome, thanks Matt!
Thank you very much!! Especially for sharing the link!
Looks great. I hope to visit within the next year.
You should!
Thanks for doing this Matt, I've shared this over in our Gettysburg Pictures and More group again like the last update.
Thanks for that! It’s my pleasure to do it. Glad you appreciate it
Hope I get there soon
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Great job. Theres really no place like Gettysburg and i like that land conservation has come first! I like the feeling of going back in time and i think thats the main attraction
There’s a balancing act between providing us with that feeling of going back in time and meeting modern standards. I think they did a fine job here
Glad i found this channel, really useful history wise and to see whats going on today,
Ill get there one day 😂 many thanks.
Welcome aboard! Glad you find it useful. Thank you.
Really really well done Thoughtful and it provides a new and different opporunity to appreciate the history and the battle. Thank you.👍👍
Our pleasure! Glad you enjoyed it
I spent time in Gettysburg every summer growing up from 5 years old to adulthood closing the park at sunset is BS i cant remember but im pretty sure you were allowed till 10 pm in the summer i loved having that time when not many people were in the park.
I know. It’s heartbreaking to not be allowed out there until 10. I’m glad I got experience and hope that someday they bring those hours back. It’s kinda magical.
Sunset on LRT can be a genuine spiritual experience.
Great episode! So glad I didn't see all those concrete circular gathering areas from the original plans come to fruition. Thank God the common sense reasoning won out and theyre actually flexible enough to know when to change course rather than be hard headed and just plow through a plan. Good to know that the parks crew LOVE the grounds rather than just be there doing a government job, get paid and go home. And...evict the beaver by any means necessary.
Team Mozart!! Yes, you can’t work here and not love it. Even if you didn’t come to the job with a love of the place, it won’t be long before you fall in love with it.
Well done Matt
Thank you!
@@addressinggettysburg welcome Matt
Within 1 year of re-opening, there will be a handrail around the 44th monument.
Lol
Maybe benches to sit on instead of the walls and some signage talking about the rehabilitation to encourage people to respect the landscape??
My guess is that the answer to that would be that benches weren’t here, the walls were. Retaining walls are structurally necessary so that the monuments that the veterans put up don’t fall down.
Great report and video on Little Round Top. All the changes were presented and the reasons for them given in very clear manner.
I am looking forward to returning and seeing the final result.
Are they restoring the breastworks in the area of the 155th PA?
Glad you enjoyed it! Not sure what their plan is for there. That’s a good question to explore on the next tour
Steve would be a great next door neighbor.
Meagher's bust (yes, another Irish Union officer) gets the same treatment as "Paddy" -- at Antietam's observation tower at the eastern end of the Bloody Lane.
Everybody wants the luck of the Irish
My God ! If the pond was not there during the Battle then it should be removed and along with the beavers.
Can’t say I disagree
I've been here three other times and this video strickes me as worthless to anyone who might want to gather a real perspective of the ground at Little Round Top.
lol ok. You do realize this isn’t a history video, but a video updating you on the work being done there. Right?
Excellent. I have never visited
But it's on my bucket list. Can't wait. Nice job. When will it reopen? Thanks
Not sure yet
I’m glad to hear about the steps… I was just at Devil’s Den and I’m not a huge fan of the new steps. A handrail would be helpful at Devil’s Den.
The thing is, future adults, who are kids today, will think whatever replaces these steps are ugly or weird or whatever. It’s all about perspective. I remember what the old steps were but can’t picture them anymore when I go there.
looks fantastic,but face facts gentlemen, if you curb the road there will be a whole lot less parking on side of road during the busy season , but plenty extra space for bus! Better rethink open and closing hours....
Yeah that thought crossed my mind when he pointed out the new curbing. I anticipate some unforeseen problems will arise from some of the new designs, as can be expected with anything, but overall I think it’s much improved.
Amazing episode, Matt!! I can't wait to get back up on Little Round Top. I wish I could have been your cameraman for this episode. The camera used to film this, is it your new camera?
Thanks! No it’s not my new one. It’s a Canon like the one I’m going to get but it’s double the price.
Ever thought of using goats to clear the underbrush?
Yep. They deemed it impractical, I believe.
Go Team Beaver
Lol booooo!!!!
Yeah, I'm on Team Beaver ..... all the way! Gotta know, though, were they one of partners or stakeholders (being volunteers) that were consulted? 😆
When will you be placing the monument and flank markers for the 101st PA. Beavers?
😂
🦫 in Pennsylvania? Oh wait, Pennsylvania has a governor named after them, plus a football stadium named after governor.
Are they going to add any orientation plaques or something? I've been interested in Gettysburg since seeing the movie in the mid nineties and have been there a number of times. I find it still hard to orient oneself to where major events happened etc
There was one up there before, so I imagine they would have one there when it reopens. I guess we will find out in our next video.
Great session! Loved seeing what is going on and can't wait to see it next September, do you think it will be packed then? (September 20-25)
Without a doubt, it’ll be packed
What about those who want to retrace a relatives footsteps, for instance walking up through devils den and onward to little round top "not on a designated trail?"
There’s nothing that says, nor will there be, as far as I know, that you cannot go off the trails. They prefer you don’t, but they’re not prohibiting it. It’s not the end of the world as we know it. You’ll still have access to whatever you’re used to having access to.
The Ranger mentions "Traffic Problems" with cars. I vote for NPS buses to be employed to limit the amount of visitors. Buses could be timed and people can wait for their bus time. This method seems to be highly sucsessful at several othe parks (Shenandoah Old Rag, Harpers Ferry, Yosemite, Cadilac Mountain, etc.)
That would be disastrous here. The people would rise up lol
I dought that! People will adjust and they would probably like it better because there would be less crowding.
I would hate to be timed. I am disabled and love history.
Matt - do you feel wheel chairs will be ok on the glued aggerate walkways?
I was thinking that when we got to the end of the wheelchair path and went down to Warren. I’ve never used a wheelchair, nor helped someone who is in one, but my feeling was that the aggregate paths AS THEY ARE NOW could handle wheelchairs. Wheeler discretion is advised, though
Thanks@@addressinggettysburg
Ok but at 49:11 can we talk about the shadow or whatever it is. 😂
That’s called an ND Filter, or “neutral density filter”. It’s to stop the light colors from being blown out from sunlight.
Paint any paths or roads -BROWN. And color Crawford Avenue brown!
🤔
When is little round top going to reopen
He answers that early on in the video. It’s an answer that depends on some variables
Man, if this dude was in charge, it'd be no kids allowed & everything behind glass. That being said, thank God for fantastic Park Rangers who get it. Great work guys!
Lol but he was in charge and they didn’t do any of that
@@addressinggettysburg nah, not the park ranger, the other guy. Ranger was awesome
FYI the project is finished.
Yes. I was at the ribbon cutting this morning.
Can they use goats to control vegetation?
They can, but won’t
I’m curious to know what was going on that was not in line with the laws that he had to enforce?
Little things like people using the park for certain banned recreations, like roller blading, or picnicking in undesignated areas. Some internal things as I understand it. A good deal of previous superintendents slacking on some regulations that people and organizations had gotten used to. A bunch of stuff
@@addressinggettysburg interesting. I know at least one of the previous supers had some…computer problems🤣
I didn’t know Tom Segura was so in to Gettysburg!
Hahaha you’re like the 8th person to say that this month. I should probably look into who the hell he is. Also, it’s spelled “into” 🫡
Astroturfing hallowed ground, no sir, not in favor of....
So you won’t be visiting ever again?
I’m going on June 3th. Will little round top be open?
I don’t think so, but no one knows yet. No date has been announced
@@addressinggettysburg thank you. I went last year and it was also closed.
yeah you guys arent being honest at all. this is fun.......
Lol please share the truth
Oh we will find you. Pink balloons can be seen from far off.
Lol pink balloons?
Law and Oates attempted to take little round top a half dozen times, you guys only needed two “takes”
Lol
Law and Oates Greatest Hits album is still gold.
@@Grumpy_HuntI was thinking that as well😂😂😂
@@Grumpy_Hunthahahaha
Superintendent seems to be pretty full of himself. Get Matt on next time, please.
🤷🏻♂️
The leafage is all wrong.
Lol
Shut down one of the most popular areas of the battlefield, for what ... six years or so? How long can they drag this out? Got to be union workers. Experts at turning a six month project into a decade.
🤦🏻♂️ all the info has been and is still out there, many of it in this video, if you care to know. 6 years? Let’s correct you a bit, shall we? It was projected to take 18-24 months. It was approved by Congress over a decade ago. The funds for it became available over a year ago. As Superintendent Sims says, the park’s HOPE is that they will be able to reopen on the anniversary of 2024. Where did you get your information?
These so call improvements are wrong,first time people that have done their homework will show up and will be truly let down not being able to see it in the way it s in pictures ,i do understand but totally disappointed.
MCNAIRED! Pictures from which era? The battle? The memorialization period? The period when you could drive your car up onto the summit? The era with all the landscaping including trees that were planted to make it lol like a park and not a battlefield? The entire park has had many facelifts over the years. If people are going to let the changes made here ruin their experience, they have some deep-rooted psychological issues that need addressing. Besides, the vast majority of the visitors are not supernerds like us. They’re they average Joe who, h til their visit to Gettysburg, thought George Washington was at this battle and that it’s located in Virginia, not Pennsylvania. Everything will be fine.
It better be done by July. And who decided to do the restoration during the 160th anniversary? Lets freaking go
They had no choice over when it was done. The money for it was approved by Congress over a decade ago. It became available a couple of years ago and they had to use the money or lose it, basically. Hopefully we don’t get a lot of snow that interferes with whatever work they plan to do over the winter. I miss going up there