Superstar volunteers Anne & Paul take a well-deserved rest while rehabbing our Woodland Walk.
Have you ever wondered who takes care of your favorite trails? Whether it’s park employees or volunteers, someone has worked hard to make sure your favorite trail stays functional and beautiful. This season we were lucky enough to gain new trail volunteers with lots of experience who decided to adopt the Woodland Walk trail and make it shine.
This half-mile trail breaks off from our boardwalk and meanders through quintessential New Hampshire woodlands. Large oaks, maples, and sassafras trees stretch across the canopy, while smaller birch and ironwood trees spread throughout the understory. The trail ends with a great view of the saltmarsh.
Once an overgrown path with soggy bog bridges, the Woodland Walk is now an easy to navigate trail with some fun things to offer for all ages and skill levels thanks to our volunteers. This spring, they worked hard to clear low hanging branches, trip hazards, and trash. They also replaced 12 broken bog bridges. It took a lot of lumber, a few early mornings, and a lot of Lindt chocolate truffle-fueled muscle power to haul out the old bridges and install new ones along the half-mile trail.
We are grateful to Lindt for holding their day of service at the Discovery Center last June. Their support was just what our volunteers needed to complete the bridge installation. It was a big task that everyone completed with a smile on their face (maybe it’s all that chocolate?); they didn’t even mind the rain!
So, next time you are exploring our boardwalk, make sure to take a side trip on the Woodland Walk. You’ll hear lots of songbirds, and an occasional train! You also might glimpse owls, porcupine, raccoons, deer, and other wildlife, and you’ll see one of New Hampshire’s “Big Trees,” a black oak with a circumference of 133 inches.
