Paugussett Reroute to "Meadow View"

2024 master plan for improving the Paugussett Trail
between Constitution Blvd and Meadow Street

After hardening 600 feet of muddy trail north of Constitution Blvd (see three work party posts here, here, and here), it was time to continue north and address the next problematic section of trail. This is where the trail runs downhill along the Maybeck stone wall for about 500 feet, with the Wiacek meadow off to the right (when headed northbound). This is labeled part "C" on the map above (Section A1 is where the trail was hardened with gravel in April). The existing trail was on old cow path that ran along the wall. Unfortunately, that old cow path also served as a stormwater gully. All the rainwater runoff from several acres was funneled down the trail, which had turned into a series of mudholes and gullies. The stone wall acted like a dam, and there was no way to get the water off the trail. 

The stone wall dammed up drainage and turned the trail
into a series of mudholes and gullies.

The solution was to shift the trail over to the southeast side of the stone wall. There's a mostly forested strip of land between the wall and the scenic meadow.  The north end is a bit sunny and therefore prone to overgrowth, but there are some good tree saplings that can be nurtured to provide future shade. A few spots on this side of the wall are also marginally soft, but water can be directed off of the trail and into the meadow, which is lower in elevation. So at least it won't turn into one long gully. And the meadow views are much better. 

The work was done quickly by staff before the vegetation had a chance to leaf out further and it would be time for annual trail clearing throughout town.

The new route, with meadow views

About half way down this section, there's an excellent view of the meadow and a small sitting rock. This makes a nice destination if someone desires a short, easy walk starting at Constitution Blvd near Summerfield Condos. A turkey put on quite a show in the middle of the meadow during much of the work. 

Here's a small rock chair

The section after this (heading north) is in really bad shape and requires a few hundred feet of bog walk and/or stepping stones. That will be a big job and was saved for last. 

Enjoying the views!

We've never quite known what to call this tract of open space, which consists of large parcels acquired from the Wiacek, Maybeck, and Krynitsky families, along with an open space set-aside from the creation of Summerfield Condos.  It's technically a part of the expansive Shelton Lakes Greenway, but off on its own. One idea is to call it the Meadow View Tract of the Shelton Lakes Greenway. 

Eagle Scout Project: French's Hill Kiosk and Bog Walks

Colin Edwards

French's Hill has a new kiosk and some bog walk sections thanks to Colin Edwards' Eagle Scout project. The trail was created just two years ago, but was closed all last year due to the Eversource Rebuild Project through Shelton.  The trail is open again for 2024, although there are some very muddy sections. These should dry out during the summer. 

Building the kiosk roof

Kiosks at trailheads are important because they allow us to post maps and signs at the entryway, rather than tacked to trees as you walk down the trail. Kiosks also give hikers a good sense that they are in the right place.  Scouts typically run fundraisers for their projects. Colin Edwards held a bottle drive, and donated a surplus of $144 to the Trails Committee. 

Team work (Troop 28)

In addition to the kiosk, Colin and crew installed several sections of bog walk along muddy parts of the trail.  This particular trail is very poorly drained and needs additional bog walks and/or stepping stones for spring "mud season." 

Bog walk

Great work and many thanks!

Eklund Garden Deer Fence Replacement

Rolling out the new fencing

Employees from MacDermid Alpha spent the day at Eklund Garden recently replacing half of the deer fencing and putting down woodchips in the garden aisles. Mark Vollaro from the Trails Committee also contributed, bringing a post pounder that helped tremendously.  Especially since it turned out there was a lot of ledge where we had planned for the fence to go. They kept trying different spots and kept hitting ledge. Frustrating! But that's Connecticut. Much of the fence was ultimately moved down the hill closer to the Eklund Bypass Trail. 

A well-earned break at Hope Lake

This time around, we wanted to attach the deer netting to posts rather than trees, because trees have a bad habit of swaying and falling down during storms, And the trees also start growing around the wire holding up the fence. We used twenty new black angle iron posts, along with a few trees where we couldn't get the posts in. Deer have been getting into the garden frequently the past few years, and the plants have had to be sprayed with deer repellent. There were so many bad spots in the fencing that it was impossible to guess which bad spot was where the deer were getting in. But with half of the fence brand new, it should be easier. 

A highlight of the day was watching an Osprey catch a fish right in front of everyone during a lunch break along the shore of nearby Hope Lake, After catching the fish, the osprey circled back around and seemed to show off his lunch to everyone below. 

Newly woodchipped aisles

Another aspect of the day at Eklund was putting down woodchips on the aisles, with paper underneath to help block perennial weeds. More chips were spread in front of the garden and down the main trail to the front gate. It looks great! And will be easier to weed. 

Some of the crew after the work was done

The new fence blends in nicely

Many thanks to everyone involved: Mark Vollaro and the employees of MacDermid Alpha for their volunteer work, as well as the Shelton Parks Department for dropping of woodchips and Specialty Agricultural Products in Orange for delivering the fencing materials.