While winter is technically a “slower” season, our volunteers showed no signs of slowing down. Since October, 164 volunteers donated 346 hours to remove ten piles of bittersweet, buckthorn, and multiflora rose and conduct trail maintenance over by the Medford end of the Cross Fells trail. They also removed two bags of trash from Straw Point.
We trained 18 new Trail Adopters to help us monitor the trails and keep them clear and safe for all to use. On December 13th, nine volunteers helped us close three rogue trails in the Whip Hill area of Greenwood Park. These pilot closures will help us learn how to best tackle future trail closure projects in the Fells. Trail Adopters will continue to monitor these closures to ensure they remain closed. Please help us by staying on marked trails only!
What are “rogue” trails and why are we closing them? Great question!
Rogue trails (also known as unauthorized or unofficial trails) are unmarked trails that are often user-created and not sanctioned by the DCR. They can lead to visitors getting lost, and they create additional erosion issues, fragment habitat, and decrease the size of undisturbed areas where wildlife can live.
We are closing these trails to reduce our impact on the Fells and to restore sensitive habitats for our plant and wildlife species. Learn more about rogue trails and our work here.
We’d like to thank the following groups who have joined us since October and have made a big impact in helping us remove invasive plants, pick up trash, and work on trails:
- Bevi
- Buckingham Browne & Nichols School
- Cambridge Running Club
- Gay for Good
Interested in assisting these efforts? Apply to volunteer here!
Want to volunteer with your group, company, school, or team? Learn more about our group volunteering opportunities here.
Reach out to friends@fells.org if you have any questions or if you’d like to get more involved in these efforts.