National Public Lands Day

Press release:

Local Preparations underway for participating in the nation’s largest single volunteer day.

Sturbridge: The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers at East Brimfield and Westville lakes along with the local trail committees of Brimfield, Sturbridge and Southbridge along with the Grand Trunk Trailblazers, are in final preparations for National Public Lands Day (NPLD) to be held on Saturday, September 26th from 8:30 am to noon.

NPLD is the nation’s largest one day event to encourage volunteerism to help support our public lands. Locally this year’s NPLD is the seventh consecutive event, organized by Park Ranger Tom Chamberland. This year’s effort is spread out over three towns, in Brimfield the trail committee along with the Corps of Engineers will be working on improving the Grand Trunk Trail portion of the Titanic Rail trail section off 5 Bridge Rd.

Work items include sign installation, and staining, brush cutting to improve safety for horseback riders, installation of fencing and spreading the fine gravel final trail surface. Registration will be held at the trail head parking lot on 5 bridge rd. starting at 8:30 am. A pizza lunch will be served at noon.

In Sturbridge, the trail committee will be focusing work on completing the 3 universally accessible trails on the Heins Farm Conservation lands. Volunteers are asked to meet at the trail head parking lot, 197a Leadmine Rd, about 1000’ after the Douty Rd intersection on the left. Work items include sign installation, rock and root removal from the cabin loop and pond loop trails, mowing of the Stafford Turnpike trail, trash and old fence removal from along Leadmine Rd, and spreading the fine gravel surface completing the pond loop trail. A pizza lunch will be provided at noon. The Sturbridge trail committee has a special need for small utility bucket type tractors to assist in the fine gravel work.

In Southbridge/Sturbridge volunteers are asked to meet in the Westville lake Park at shelter 2 joining the Grand Trunk trailblazers, Corp park rangers along with Southbridge trail committee members who will be working on trail tread improvements to sections of the West Street School trail and Heritage trail extension. Work on these trails also includes invasive plant removal and brush cutting. Work items in Westville Lake Park include trail tread improvements to the lake overlook trail, sign installation, invasive plant removal, stone wall rebuilding, and trash removal along the river and lake shore lines. A pizza lunch will be served in the park at noon

Pre registration is requested so appropriate plans can be made and pizza ordered. Walk in registration will be held at each area at 8:30 am. Volunteers are asked to bring work gloves, water bottle, and wear appropriate shoes and clothes for the work and weather. NPLD will be held rain or shine (except for extreme wet weather). For more information on NPLD visit their web site at http://www.publiclandsday.org/. Local registration for any of the above projects can be done by contacting Park Ranger Tom Chamberland at Thomas.a.chamberland@usace.army.mil or calling 508-347-3386, or contact Sturbridge Trail Committee chair Randy Redetzke at RRedet@charter.net or Tony Bys, Brimfield Trail committee vice chair at tbys9297@charter.net