STURBRIDGE / SOUTHBRIDGE Friends: We need help in the woods. Area Organizations Announce National Public Lands Day Events Volunteers needed for trail building projects. Special evening Night Hike to be hosted in Sturbridge Sturbridge: The Regional Grand Trunk Trail Committee in partnership with the Grand Trunk Trail Blazers along with the trail committees of Southbridge, Sturbridge, Holland and Brimfield, the Friends of Sturbridge Trails and the Brimfield Trail Association have announced area National Public Lands Day (NPLD) work projects to be held on Saturday, Sept 28th from 8:30 am to noon. Trail Work projects include various types of trail building from spreading fine gravel, brush cutting to building single track trail. The specific project areas and registration information are: East Brimfield Lake/Brimfield: Meet at the Five Bridge Rd trail head parking lot, 207 Five Bridge Rd., at 8:30 for registration. Crews will be dispatched from that location to spread gravel, install a drain pipe; other various trail maintenance work along with trash bags to clear the trail debris and trash. Volunteers are asked to wear sturdy shoes, bring work gloves and a water bottle. A Pizza Lunch will be provided by the Corps of Engineers to all volunteers at noon. For further information contact Park Ranger Tom Chamberland at [email protected] Sturbridge: Three projects are being set up by the town’s Trail committee; work on spreading the fine gravel surface on the Arbutus Park and Old Growth trails, and continuing to build the gateway single track on the Leadmine Mt Property. For the Arbutus Park trail work small tractors, and wheel barrows are needed, as well as volunteers to clean up the trails of small tree debris, Registration for these projects will take place at the Shattuck Rd trail head, 10 Shattuck Rd parking lot, at 8:30 AM, bring work gloves and a water bottle, a pizza lunch will be served at noon, provided by FrOST. Pre-registration is requested by calling 508-347-6340 or email Randy Redetzke at [email protected] Southbridge: Work project is to complete installation of the rip rap swale on the newly built Heritage Trail. Meet at 200 Marjorie Lane (Westville Dam Office) at 8:30 AM for registration; bring work gloves and a water bottle. All other hand tools will be provided. A Pizza Lunch will be provided By the Grand Trunk Trail Blazers to all volunteers at noon. Pre-registration is requested by emailing Scott Benoit at earthhouse@hotmail Holland: Appling fine gravel, brush cutting and general trail spruce up to a section of the Lake Siog Pass trail and along sections of old Morse Rd. Meet at the trail head parking lot, 20 Pond Bridge Rd at 8:30 am for registration. Bring work gloves, a water bottle and steel rakes. Volunteers are also needed who can supply a dump truck and/or tractor to haul gravel. A Pizza Lunch will be provided by the Brimfield Trail Association to all volunteers at noon. For more information and to preregister contact Dick Haller at 508-284-1903, or email Dick at: [email protected] Westville Lake: Installing safety rails along a section of the Grand Trunk Trail out to the Ed Calcutt Bridge, and maintaining drainage ditches, and general trash and litter patrol are the projects scheduled. Meet in the Park, 125 Wallace Rd for 8:30 am registration. Bring work gloves and a water bottle, all other tools will be provided. Pizza lunch will be served at noon provided by the Corps of Engineers. Pre registrations is requested, contact Park Ranger Tom Chamberland at 508-347-3705 or email: [email protected] Night Hike: In addition to these work day projects, the newly formed “Friends of Sturbridge Trails” (FrOST) will be host special “night hike” on Saturday evening. The hike will be lead by local trail advocates Tom Chamberland and Gary Staab, both associate members of the Sturbridge Trail Comm. The night hike will start at 7:45 PM at the Heins Farm Conservation lands parking lot, 197 Leadmine Rd. The focus of the hike will be to observe the night sky, stars and constellations and to experience an evening in the woods, especially how our eyes lose the ability to see colors, but in shades of black and white. The hike will end at approx 9:30 PM Proper clothing, bug spray, and a water bottle are encouraged, flashlights optional, their use will be discouraged for most of the hike, Kids welcome but remember the time and the hike distance will be about 1 mile. No pets please. Members of FrOST will be on hand with information and membership applications. If overcast/rain the hike will be rescheduled for Saturday, October 5th. For more information on the night hike contact Tom Chamberland at 508-347-3705 or email: [email protected]. For more information on Frost visit their Face book page: https://facebook/pages/Friends-of-Sturbridge-Trails/ This year’s NPLD program is dedicated in the memory of Ed Calcutt, founder of the Grand Trunk Trail Blazers, and a long time advocate of the regional Grand Trunk rail trail which has now grown into a 66 mile, 13 towns, 2 state rail trail now known as the Titanic Rail trail. National Public Lands Day, now in its 20th year has been celebrated locally for over 12 years and draws some 60 - 80 local volunteers annually. It is supported by the Corps of Engineers and the local trail organizations. Last year local volunteers help build and maintain some 2000 feet of trail and continued a process of cleanup following the devastating storms of 2011. If all projects are successfully completed this year another 3000+ feet of trails will be improved and maintained including rail trails, handicapped accessible trails and single track trail. Residents, scout & youth groups, everyone, is welcome to join in a morning of service back to their public lands. NPLD is celebrated nationwide, this year some 1600 work sites are registered on their web site: publiclandsday.org/ log to find out more about NPLD or to use their links to pre register at a site.
Posted on: Sun, 08 Sep 2013 13:19:28 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015