Ask a Trail Builder One Last Hike Why build stairs on a trail Cancer couldn’t stop Keith through the woods? Lyons from sharing a final It's all about sustainability. camping trip with his godson. READ MORE ON PAGE 7 READ MORE ON PAGE 9 Spring 2015 New York-New Jersey Trail Conference — Connecting People with Nature since 1920 www.nynjtc.org New York-New Jersey Trail Conference Opens New Headquarters at Darlington Schoolhouse By Jennifer Easterbrook and Alice Luddington-Cantor PEOPLE FOR TRAILS new chapter in the Trail Confer - ence’s 94-year history begins April 7, A when a ribbon-cutting ceremony completes the move into the new head - quarters at the Darlington Schoolhouse in Mahwah, New Jersey. The Trail Confer - ence has worked with many partners since 2004 to acquire, stabilize, restore, and repurpose the 124-year-old historical land - mark, which borders the Ramapo Valley County Reservation and now helps to serve Susan and Howard Reed the organization’s goal of protecting and Montague, NJ R A promoting access to the outdoors. “While G P A this day has been a long time coming, I Y If you’ve ever hiked up Stokes M E don’t regret taking care, every step of the R State Forest, odds are good E J way, to build a headquarters that represents Visit the Trail Conference’s new headquarters at the restored Darlington Schoolhouse you’ve hiked on a trail our values and enables us to better accom - at 600 Ramapo Valley Road in Mahwah, NJ. maintained by Susan and plish our mission of connecting people Howard Reed. with nature,” said Edward Goodell, Trail inal 4,400-square-foot schoolhouse and scheduled for Saturday, September 12 to Conference executive director. construction of a 3,700-square-foot, two- acknowledge the supporters, builders, and How they met: This dynamic With meticulous attention to detail, the story addition. In March, electricians, friends who made this remarkable restora - trail-maintaining duo first met schoolhouse was restored in two phases: plumbers, and painters put the finishing tion a reality. As the organization enters its back in 1995, when Susan Phase 1, completed in 2012, included touches on the headquarters building at 95th year, the new headquarters will be the decided to go hiking. In search structural stabilization, exterior renovation, 600 Ramapo Valley Road. In a concerted cornerstone from which the Trail Confer - of a new path, she got her hands climate control, and utilities, while Phase 2 effort by staff and volunteers, equipment ence builds its second century of serving on a copy of Trail Walker that involved the interior renovation of the orig - and files were officially moved in from the the region by making public lands more featured an organized hike rented office just up the road, where the accessible. For events related to the head - on the Paulinskill Valley Trail Find out how we made our new Trail Conference had maintained opera - quarters grand opening in September and in Stokes. While out on that headquarters accessible to all on tions since 2001. Everyone is invited to 95th anniversary in October, follow us on fateful hike, she met her future our blog: http://blog-dsh.nynjtc.org. stop by the new headquarters to purchase Facebook and Twitter and watch the Trail husband, Howard. Read about the Arts and Crafts maps, books, and memberships, sign up for Conference website and E-Walker, our Finding love… and a sense of inspiration behind the original volunteer opportunities and workshops, or electronic newsletter. Click “Get Our E- duty: After getting married in Darlington Schoolhouse on page 7. simply learn more about the organization. newsletter” button on the website if you are 1997, Susan and Howard decided A day-long grand opening ceremony is not already a subscriber. to give back to the trails that introduced them to each other; in 2003, they started maintaining trails in Stokes. At The Weekly Forced March one point, they were looking By Hank Osborn, East Hudson after one third of all the trails in Program Coordinator Stokes State Forest! They’ve Getting kids to disconnect since backed down a little bit, Almost every weekend, year-round, my wife but still maintain Cartwright and I enjoy a good hike with our adolescent from technology and Trail, Coursen Trail, Stoll Trail, children. We love our local trails, the exercise, reconnect with nature. Tibbs Trail, and Stony Lake Trail. and getting out into nature. The children do not share our views. They require encourage - Tools of the trade: You can often ment to join us every time. They actually ized and highly powerful in-your-face-tech - find this team hard at work on enjoy each hike, every weekend, but then nology. The children would rather sit their trails—Howard with his they seem to forget by the following Saturday around on the couch and zone out on their repurposed pack full of tools, or Sunday that they had fun in the woods. iDevices then walk through the woods—or and Susan with her electrician’s There seems to be a powerful force affecting do anything at all. belt for blazing. (Susan’s secret: N The belt’s magnetic pockets help their memory and motivation. It takes cajoling. We have to repeat our - R O B We have to work to get the children out selves and be firm and not give in to their S keep the metal nails safe until O K of the house. They resist us. “Do we have desperate offers to negotiate. “I’ll go on the N needed.) Howard’s “new” A to go? Can I stay here? I went last week - hike if I don’t have to do the dishes tonight. H favorite tool is the Silky Saw, Without iPhones, Lila and Callie take a which was introduced to this pair end.” To which we respond, “Yes, you went I’ll walk the dog if you let me skip the hike. break during a hike they thoroughly by their trail chair, Howie last weekend and you loved it; and no, you I can’t hike now, I just took a shower, can enjoyed on Fishkill Ridge. cannot stay home; and yes, you have to we do it later?” To which we respond: Liebmann. come on the hike today.” “Nope. No, and no—get in the car now.” screens in the car.” There is often surpris - Keep an eye out: Howard and I think our children are representative of We drive to the local trailhead, unload ingly little fuss at this request—except for Susan say they haven’t spotted many kids in this modern age of miniatur - ourselves, and announce, “leave your the consistent rebuttal of, “but we need our as many bears as they once saw phones to take pictures.” To which we VOLUME XLII, N UMBER 2 ISSN 0749-1352 in Stokes State Forest. They’re respond: “Sorry. Let’s go.” happy to point out the signs of The next hurdle is the hiking-through- the porcupine on the trail, the-woods part—and guess what? The however. Another likely sighting: children love it! They laugh and run and the Reeds hard at work on their smile and joke and play and absolutely trails. enjoy themselves. See the accompanying photos as proof. Sometimes we hike a loop, other times continued on page 4 Page 2 Spring 2015 Preserved Greenspace in Chester Creates a Safer Highlands Trail VOLUME XLII, NO.2 SPRING 2015 AMBER RAY EDITOR By Sona Mason, West Hudson LOU LEONARDIS GRAPHIC DESIGNER the Highlands Trail (HT) in Chester to be Program Coordinator rerouted from an unsettling road walk onto TRAIL WALKER (USPS Permit #970-100) Another wonderful victory for land conser - a preserved area. (ISSN 0749-1352) is published quarterly by the New York-New Jersey Trail Conference as a vation is unfolding this year: A 400-acre For years, the land at Laroe and Bull Mill benefit of membership. Subscriptions are parcel that abuts the southern portion of roads was slated to be the 222-unit residen - available to libraries only at $15.00 a year. Goose Pond Mountain will forever remain tial development Chester Golf, which Periodical postage paid at Mahwah, N.J., and additional offices. Postmaster: Send address undeveloped, thanks to the work of the would have marred the viewshed of this Open Space Institute (OSI), the New York- rural community and intensified traffic N changes to the address below. Opinions O S expressed by authors do not necessarily represent A New Jersey Trail Conference, New York along an already precarious road walk for M the policy or position of the Conference. A State Parks, the town planning board of the Highlands Trail. Area residents, led by N O Contributions of typed manuscripts, photos, S and drawings are welcome. Manuscripts may be Chester, NY, and concerned citizens in the Preservation Collective’s Tracy Schuh edited for style and length. Send SASE for Chester. This acquisition is an important and supported by the Trail Conference, help close the gaps along the HT, which writers’ guidelines. Submission deadlines for the step in creating an uninterrupted greenway objected and petitioned the town planning runs for over 150 miles from the Delaware TRAIL WALKER are February 2 (Spring issue), connection between Goose Pond Moun - board to reconsider. After many months of Water Gap in New Jersey, across the Hud - May 4 (Summer issue), August 3 (Fall issue), November 2 (Winter issue). Unsolicited tain State Park and Sterling Forest State negotiations, OSI bought the parcel on son River in New York, and on through to contributions cannot be acknowledged unless Park.