We have a Halloween Surprise brewing at the Lane St. entrance to the RecPath. After months of bids, contracts, hunting for road millings, obtaining material bids for crushed stone, purchase orders, Mayor's approval, Cons. Com. meetings, BOA referrals, LoCIP funding, and probably the sacrifice of a small chicken during a full moon, it looks like construction work is starting on improving the Huntington Center end of the Shelton Lakes Recreation Path. The goal is to create a handicapped accessible 8 foot wide crushed stone path that will join up with the boardwalk and the existing crushed stone RecPath on the Land Trust meadow. Once the entrance is improved it will make it much easier for people to enjoy this end of the RecPath.
It looks like Barry Mucci has moved his backhoe over to the Lane St. entrance of the RecPath and started grading out the 8 foot path bed & shoulders. There was no activity today (Thursday 10-15-09), but the weather was turning snotty & most work will probably be rained out until next week.
Here's another view of the start of the regrading. Barry is widening the work that was done last August by Randy Szkola of Hilltop Gardens. Randy kindly volunteered his time to rough-grade the Lane St. entrance to the RecPath.
I flagged out some limits of the 8 foot wide path, shoulders, and toe of slope. There were some paint marks on rocks, but it was tough to tell where people were going to be working. I also flagged a 12" Red Maple that needs to come down because it's sticking out into the RecPath. Three other trees were already marked to be removed. The City Tree Warden; Dean Cawthra, is handling the limited tree removals for the Conservation Commission.
I also set a series of flags showing the RecPath hugging the edge of the meadow going onto the boardwalk. I suggest that everybody on the Trails Committee take a look at them to see what you think. The goal is to shift the RecPath to the edge of the meadow where we removed the invasive species last Spring. This minimizes the visual impact of the RecPath for the neighbors and park users, and helps to create a buffer between the active agricultural meadow and the adjoining Means Brook floodplain.
Bill Dyer & Rich Skudlarek planted a dogwood tree next to the RecPath on the other side of the boardwalk this week. It was sleeting as I was walking out here with Biscuit. Later it started to SNOW when we were walking on the Turkey Trot Trail.
October 15th, 2009; First Day with Snow in Shelton, Conn. - sounds scary doesn't it.
After a winter of no snow - we're in luck! The hike was postponed from yesterday to Sunday at 1:00 to allow 9" of fluffy white stuff to be placed at Nicholdale for the first hike of 2012. The parking lot on Rt. 110 will be plowed and open courtesy of the Shelton Land Conservation Trust, so come out and explore winter with us today.
Last weekend a number of volunteers from the Trails Committee & the Land Trust were out clearing up blowdowns and vines in preparation of the hike. Here are Martin & Joe clearing out a new relocation around a wet spot leading to the Cattle Pass.
There will be a bonfire going at the Scout Camp, marshmallows & hot chocolate will be provided, or you can bring your own. So pack up the kids, load up the snowshoes and cross country skis, leash up the sled dogs and join us for an invigorating hike before heading indoors to watch football.
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