Curtiss Brook Trail Completed

Trail Map (Click to enlarge) 

The Curtiss Brook Trail project has been completed and seems to be a success! As a recap, this new trail was first proposed after seeing so many high school students over the years squeezing along the edge of Shelton Ave, a state highway, on their way to and from the school. A retaining wall and guardrail leave no room for pedestrians. But the land down the embankment along Curtiss Brook is City-owned open space.  The Trails Committee and Conservation Department have no control over highways or sidewalks, but we can build trails through open space. So that's what we did. (Click HERE for an earlier post about that).

Before: No room for pedestrians above the retaining wall
(click photos to enlarge)

Before: Traffic coming to a stop because there is not enough
room to pass while a crew of teens gets as close to the guardrail
as they can. 

The new trail is surprisingly scenic and more than just an alternative to a sidewalk. It's a way to explore the previously hidden valley below the Pine Lake dam. During the wet season, the sound of the brook below echoes across the valley and drowns out the sounds of traffic. A small spur leads down to the edge of the brook where one can linger with a morning cup of coffee. 

After: Curtiss Brook Trail offers a safer and more scenic option

After: Students at dusk are able to get off the highway for a bit

This new trail was a real team effort, with scores of volunteers and multiple committees and departments involved: 

• Conservation staff (Teresa Gallagher) proposed the trail and marked a trail route.
• Mark Vollaro and Ray Hansen cut logs that were in the way. 
• An April work party was held jointly by the Trails Committee, Anti-Litter Committee, and Shelton Clean-Up Project to start digging the trail into the side of the hill and remove decades of litter. The Shelton Highways & Bridges Department removed the large pile that had been collected. Click HERE for an earlier post about that work party. 
• An October work party was held by the Trails Committee to continue digging the trail into the hillside and to clear a spur to the brook. Click HERE for an earlier blog post about the work party. 
• Mark Rowan cut several logs across the brook spur.
• Teresa Gallagher, Conservation Department, continued with extensive earthwork, removing another five large bags of litter in the process. The Highways & Bridge Department carted some of the bags away that were too heavy to carry. She then painted trail blazes, routered and installed trail signs, and created a trail map. 
• The Trails Committee held a mini-work party in November to build a bridge across a steep culvert swale. Terry Gallagher designed the bridge, built footings, and purchased hardware. Mark Rowen and Teresa Gallagher met at Home Depot to procure lumber, hauled in Mark's truck. The bridge was constructed the next day by Team Gallagher, Jeff Belair, and Bill Dyer.  Steps to the bridge were designed and constructed the next week by Teresa Gallagher, with lumber procured by Terry Gallagher. Click HERE for an earlier post about the bridge. 

And so now we have a new trail. Enjoy some more "befores" and "afters." And if you want to check out the new trail, just pull into the Pine Lake parking lot and the new trail is to the far right (with your back to the highway). Do NOT get on the Rec Path or cross the bridge over the dam. 

Before: Base of the retaining wall buried under decades
of dumped materials 1-3 feet deep

After: The base of the wall has been revealed and
leveled out for the trail

Before: The routing is raked off and flagged but not dug in yet

After: the treadway has been dug in and a bridge constructed

Before the bridge was built.
(some rocks had been place temporarily)

After the bridge was constructed