Cuttin' Brush & Fixin' Fences

There was beautiful weather Saturday for the Oak Valley Trail/Silent Waters work party.  New crisp air blew in Friday and replaced the steamy heat wave that had pressed down on CT for the last two weeks.  And we got a lot of volunteers to come out!

13 of them in fact.  We were cutting back the jungle along the powerlines at Rt 108, and clearing out to Oak Valley Trail.  We split into multiple groups so some folks could replace broken fence rails along the RecPath by Silent Waters. 

Luis tried to run away when we told him how much work we had planned for him.  Actually, he's just dodging traffic.  He and a few other cleared out some of the overgrowth on the north side of Rt. 108 and the Turkey Trot Trail.

The mugwort and briars around the Oak Valley Trail kiosk were cleared out so you can see it now.  Need to add maps to the map box.

One group of volunteers cut brush along the access trail and Oak Valley Trail.  We can confirm that Graham, Susan & Brooklyn made it back in one piece.  Jeff just kept going doing the whole Oak Valley Loop.  Hopefully he made it home by nightfall.

Stan & Graham were using the hedgetrimmers to get at the grape vines and briars.  They did a good job too.

There were lots of woodland sunflowers and other wildflowers in bloom at the powerlines along the trails.  It was very scenic.  If you like wildflowers this is a good time to go for a walk out there.  

Hopefully, Eversource comes up with a really good restoration plan for their 2023 construction project so this area is restored properly.  They had been out doing soil borings the last couple of weeks in the area.

After the work party; can you find the trail now?  Stan and others should have no trouble riding or hiking the trails without getting scratched up by briars.  

Because we split up into multiple groups I didn't get any photos of the Fence Repair Squad, but they swapped out a number of broken posts by Silent Waters.  They had to cut and customize some rails over by the bridge at the dam.  Lots and lots of folks were out hiking, walking and biking the RecPath and trails this morning.

Afterwards, back at The Barn, we started recharging all the dead batteries while Mike and Bill tackled one of the most challenging problems of the day;  how to fit the drill, saw, and accessories back into the carrying case in the proper order so they could close the case.  I think they might have invented a new game for the next Trails party.

It was a fine morning to be outside.  Everything grows like wild in the summer and it's hard to keep up with it everywhere.  It's a big help when we get a good turnout of volunteers this time of the year.    Thanks to Susan, Stan, Derek, Brooklyn, Sam, Joe, Luis, Graham, Jeff, Mike, Bob, Terry and Bill.

Lots of stuff that needed work got done, these trails are clear, and everyone made it back OK, we think.  Get out and enjoy those late summer wildflowers.

The next work party is at Stockmal Trail in 2 weeks.  Check the events page for more info.

June Cutting at Lane Street

It's June, so it's time to do some cutting along the RecPath at Lane Street.  The stretch along the Land Trust Meadow is one of the most scenic areas of the RecPath, but it also grows like crazy in early summer.  We're also entering a early Hot & Sticky spell in the weather, so we've got that going for us.

Fortunately, we had a good turn out of volunteers, so we got everything done before it got silly hot.

Helpful Trail Tip: Bring lots of water to drink on these work parties, and don't leave your canteen in the car.  Bring it with you too.

The RecPath follows the edges of the meadows with the Means Brook floodplain on the other side.  It's a prime area for robust edge growth.  The hay and thorns starting to encroach on the RecPath were trimmed.  Some invasive species were removed, and sightlines improved going around some of the curves.

The raspberries and other plants were in full bloom.  One of the benefits of coming to this work party were the trailside snacks.

Mike & Terry also fixed holes in the decking on the boardwalk.  Some of the screws were reluctant to come out, but luckily Terry had his tool kit in his car.  

Mike let Terry try to fit all the parts back into the tool case.  Maybe we'll get him a Rubik's Cube for next time; it might be an easier puzzle to solve.  

The boardwalk looked good by the end.  There's some great viburnums and shrubs flowering along both sides, and unless you like wading deep into swamps this is one of the easiest places to see these plants.

 There was a nice patch of Mayapple at the end of the boardwalk.

The meadow hasn't been mowed this year and there is a mix of meadow grasses and wildflowers that are attracting a lot of butterflies and birds.  It doesn't show in the photos, but if you walk along the RecPath and stop to look from time to time you'll see a lot of activity in a very pretty meadow.

There were a lot of folks out enjoying the RecPath.  We'd like to thank the neighbor who offered to get us doughnuts at Royal Bakery.  We'll take you up on that next time.  Thanks to everyone who came out to help:  Matt, Terry, Bill, Luis, Graham, Mike, Terry & Mark.  It definitely helps to have a lot of hands on a job like this.

Great Views at Great Ledge

On a drizzly Saturday morning 11 volunteers cut and trimmed brush along the RecPath at Great Ledge, while enjoying some great scenery.

The section known as Great Ledge is south of Oak Valley Road and crosses some of the powerlines along Spooner's Swamp.  The combination of wetlands and open sunlight make for some rapid growth out into the RecPath and this is always a section that needs attention.

On the plus side it's really scenic working along all the flowering shrubs.  There's various viburnums, Highbush blueberry, Mountain Laurel, Sweet pepperbush, and others.

Even the Green briar looked good.  

There were a lot of trail users out enjoying the open spaces.

Some of the Highbush blueberry along the RecPath.

We strung out along the trails so that there was adequate room for power tool users and hand tool users to work safely.

Bob & Graham were cleaning up a blowdown with Ralph & Ralph.

Mike and Bill were clearing the edges going south toward Huntington Woods.

Some of Basil Brook Bypass were cleared, especially at the entry points along the powerlines.

Sections of Nells Loop Trail were also cut back and cleared.

The cool, overcast weather made it much easier to work in than last weekend's hot spell.  There are some really scenic areas along Great Ledge.

We got a lot done with a good sized crew.  Thanks to Matt, Bill, Ellen, Ralph, Ralph, Luis, Graham, Bob, Mike, Terry & Mark.  Now, everybody go enjoy the scenery while everything is blooming.

It's Mountain Laurel Time

 The Mountain Laurel are really blooming in Shelton this year.

A combination of rain and early hot weather have produced a bumper crop of Mountain Laurel flowers a little earlier than normal.  The Mountain Laurel is a 15' high shrub and is the Connecticut State Flower.  It's said to like rocky woodlands, which we have a little of in Shelton.

The shrubs out in the open have the most spectacular flowers.

One of the best locations to enjoy the display is along the Shelton Lakes Recreation Path south of Rt. 108.  The RecPath passes thru sort of a tunnel of Mountain Laurel before emerging out into the open areas along the powerlines.  The utility companies trim the trees along the powerlines, but leave the shrubs, which makes for an interesting display.

Other trails to see the Mountain Laurel include Nells Loop Trail, Turkey Trot Trail, and the Paugussett Trail.  Don't wait too long though, it's a short window for this show.

Local Residents on the Nichols Trail & Pearmain Path

Ran into a number of locals while walking along the Nichols Trail and Pearmain Path at Nicholdale on a recent morning.  I started at the Rt. 110 parking lot and followed the fresh blue blazes on Nichols Trail.

This little rabbit was enjoying breakfast along one of the grassy trails near the Tamarack trees, until I came tromping through.

Tamarack's; an evergreen tree that drops it's needles every year.  There's a line of them along Nichols Trail as it bends toward Nicholdale Brook.

A recent blow down across the bog walk had just been cleared by Joe Welsh before I got there.  It made it a lot easier to use the bog walk.

Ran into a number of chipmunks using the stonewall highways along the trail.  I wonder where chipmunks lived before colonial farmers built all the stone walls?

The Nichols Trail; blazed blue, was in very good shape and had received a lot of recent clearing.

The Pearmain Path was also in good shape with new signs, and the trail was getting a lot of use.

Encountered another local resident who was kinda shy.  This box turtle was taking Covid social distancing seriously.

There's also some new trails maps up showing residents and visitors (those residents who are taller than a box turtle), how the trails link up around Nicholdale.

Bill's Bridge out to Pearmain Road was being guarded by another local resident.

At least he didn't ask me to answer three questions before letting me pass.

This end of Pearmain Road is a quiet, gravel road that provides good neighborhood access to the trail network.

Another new sign marks the entrance to Pearmain Path from the road.

Going back up the Pearmain Path the trail is well worn and blazed yellow and reconnects with Nichols Trail (blue blazes) near the scout campground.

The Nichols Trail was very easy to follow around the perimeter of Nicholdale.

The wildflowers were growing within the meadows and provided a lot of habitat for butterflies, bees, and birds.

New arrows and fresh blazes mark turns around the meadow sections to aid hikers.  Particularly hikers who may be new to the mown paths that dot the property.

Hazelnuts were forming along Nichols Trail.  They are a source of food for many of the wildlife living around the preserve.

Nicholdale Brook was flowing low but was a cool respite from some of the open fields on this July day.  A number of bridges cross and recross the brook.

 The old stone bridge was dry today, but it had been cleared and was fun to walk across.

The path back toward Rt. 110 and the parking lot had been mowed and had a new marker post that was visible above the meadow wildflowers.  This apple tree was producing many green apples for the fall.

The Nichols Trail was in good condition all the way back to the parking lot.  The recent trail clearing, mowing, signs, blazes, maps, etc. make it a very easy walk.  It's a great place to explore on a summer hike.