A dedicated half-dozen volunteers gathered last Saturday to clear a trail in the Manuel F. Correllus State Forest, as part of the Island’s first participation in Massachusetts’ Park Serve program.
Sweating from the exertion of running a chain saw through dozens of fallen trees, state forest supervisor John Varkonda looked up and said, “The last time we cleared this trail was after Hurricane Bob, in 1991.”
While the weather was overcast and workers few, the effort and vitality of the group resulted in clearing a half-mile of trail parallel to Edgartown-West Tisbury Road in the state forest, the 5,100-acre centerpiece of the Vineyard. This segment is now open for traffic from hikers, bikers and horseback-riders.
Mr. Varkonda pronounced this to be the most overgrown trail in the forest, so he was glad to have it opened up. His next project is to run a five-foot wide brush-hog along the trail to cut low-growth.
This first trail day in the state forest originated when Mr. Varkonda and Bill Veno, of the Martha’s Vineyard Commission, met to coordinate the trail-trimming. Don Hoffses, Appalachian Mountain Club (AMC) trails challenge coordinator, intended to invite Vineyard members of the AMC to join the effort, but word did not get too far. John Best and his wife Margaret Curtin were the only two AMC members who helped out.
Mr. Hoffses shared his expertise.
“Cut the tree low to the ground, or the branch flush to the tree, so hikers won’t get caught on the stub,” he cautioned. “It’s not brain surgery.”
His guidelines use an imaginary door-frame, eight feet high by four feet wide, to determine what should be trimmed. He was pleased by the turnout. T-shirts were awarded to participants.
The trail-trimming event occurred in conjunction with Park Serve Day, an annual statewide volunteer event for three years now. Department of Conservation and Recreation commissioner Rick Sullivan said his staff work to develop worthwhile projects that will prepare the parks for their busiest season.
“This year, with the ice storm damage and a potential shortfall in seasonal staff, your help is needed more than ever,” he said in an e-mail to volunteers, adding that this was a great opportunity to see a park residents didn’t normally visit. “It’s a lot of fun!” he wrote.
Park Serve was designed to coincide with Earth Day. In 2008, according to state figures, more than 1,500 volunteers planted a total of 580 trees and flowers, removed 48.6 tons of trash, and provided invaluable assistance on building maintenance and trail projects across 55 state parks on Park Serve Day.
On the Vineyard, the need to clear trails and pick up trash is real and continuous.
An adopt-a-trail program was suggested by Mr. Veno, who leads the Land Bank’s annual cross-Island hike in June. In Edgartown and West Tisbury, it is possible to have small groups patrol a trail in the spring to maintain its viability. Mr. Varkonda said, “All the trails need work. Multiple-use trails are important to keep open.”
Mr. Varkonda was not discouraged by the limited turnout. Indeed, he was elated by the exercise. He felt working with a small group brought greater success, with less likelihood of trimming the wrong trail. He hopes to make this an annual event, and encourages volunteers to join trail-trimming when the next effort is announced.
Fire lanes crisscross the forest. Hiking trails link different parts of the woods into casual, comfortable walks. While this trail-trimming program was not designed to curtail fire danger, it did open up the trails for better access across one segment of the state forest.
“It was a worthwhile effort,” participant Joyce Dresser remarked after more than two hours of trimming trees along the trails. “It may be fun, but it’s also a lot of work.”
For more information, or to register for next year, see online parkserv.env.state.ma.us.
Comments
Comment policy »