The Lowell Sun reported Monday on $250,000 in grants that will be used to build a pedestrian bridge over the Concord River, which will serve hikers on the BCT. Read more.
Join BCT Reroute Team at Prospect Hill on Oct. 25
Please join Essex County Trails Association (ECTA) for a volunteer trail work day at Prospect Hill on Saturday, October 25th from 8:30 a.m. to mid-to-late afternoon (rain date is Sunday, Oct. 26). We will be relocating a portion of the Bay Circuit Trail that crosses over the hill on the Rowley-Ipswich town line. The existing trail is badly eroded and will also need to be closed off.
ECTA will have some tools for volunteers to use, but if you can, bring loppers and handsaws. We won’t need chainsaws for this project, but a weedwhacker or two could come in handy.
All ages welcome!
ECTA will provide water and snacks at the start, and lunch around 12:30.
Parking is limited. There is room for 4-5 cars off of Route 133 about .5 miles west of the 133/1A junction (if coming from 1A it is just past Bradford Tavern on the left). There is space for about 4-5 more cars at the end of Prospect Street (Prospect Street is the other little side street that comes into the 1A/133 intersection). Additional cars might need to park at the Pancake House and carpool over. We’ll have ECTA staff stationed at each of these parking areas. Please plan to be at one of the parking areas ready to hike into the site by 8:30 am. The hike is short, but long enough that you could get lost trying to find it on your own.
Blue Cross volunteers insure bright future for Bay Circuit gem
Hats off to Team Blue!
Thank you to all the hardworking Blue Crew members who volunteered on the Bay Circuit Trail on September 17th with the Appalachian Mountain Club for Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts’ “Service Day: One Community. One Blue.”! Their efforts resulted in the maintenance of an overgrown Bay Circuit segment through Easton conservation land, as well as the installation of a new roadside park and property cleanup at Stanley Iron Works Park in Bridgewater, a historic landmark and Bay Circuit gem. These projects improved public access and awareness of these beautiful, natural places so many more people can get outdoors and active.
Bay Circuit Trail Reviews on Trip Advisor
We are encouraging anyone who has been out on the Bay Circuit Trail recently to leave us feedback on our TripAdvisor page! Whether you explored the BCT in Newbury, Kingston or anywhere in between, let us know how your experience went. Post photos, ask questions, and compare experiences with other TripAdvisor users who have been out on the BCT! We want to do all that we can to make the Bay Circuit Trail experience a positive one. www.tripadvisor.com/
Hikes and free concerts along the Bay Circuit Trail starting June 17
The Bay Circuit Alliance has teamed up with the Massachusetts Walking Tour to present the 5th Annual Massachusetts Walking Tour. Beginning June 17, walkers will make their way from Newbury to Kingston, which covers 100 miles of the Bay Circuit Trail. At the end of each day’s hike there will be a FREE concert, courtesy of musicians Mark Mandeville, Raianne Richards, Amy Alvey, Mark Kilianski, and local performers in the area. There will be 13 different concerts along the tour, so be sure to find the closest one to you and join in the fun!
Media advisories for each location are available upon request. Email outreach@baycircuit.org
Press release: Massachusetts Walking Tour and Bay Circuit Alliance Team Up to Bring You the 5th Annual Massachusetts Walking Tour
Related websites:
Full tour schedule:
| Jun 17 – Spencer-Peirce-Little Farm 5 Little’s Lane – Newbury MA SHOW: 6pm | COST: free Local artists: Oen Kennedy and tba Jun 18 – Rowley Public Library Jun 19 – Marini Farm Jun 20 – Boxford Public Library / Pony Field Jun 21 – Lorraine Campground Jun 22 – Log Cabin @ Phillips Academy Jun 23 – House Concert – Andover MA Jun 24 – Lowell Historical State Park Jun 25 – New Nara Park Pavilion Jun 26 – Old Manse Jun 27 – Thoreau Institute @ Walden Woods Jun 28 – Wayland Town Building Jun 29 – Nobscot Reservation Jul 1 – Camp Kiwanee Jul 3 – Jones River Landing |
Volunteers celebrate National Trails Day in Concord
This past weekend in eastern Massachusetts, volunteers from near and far came together to celebrate National Trails Day on a sunny, summery day in the Bay Circuit Town of Concord. The group included an enthusiastic mix of individuals and families, ranging from avid hikers getting their first taste of trail work to experienced trail stewards.
Trail projects took place on several notable properties. One group installed bog bridges in the Hapgood-Wright Town Forest, a woodland that was once frequented by members of the famous Thoreau, Emerson, and Alcott families. This group also helped preserve the ecological and cultural integrity of the adjacent Brister’s Hill property by pulling invasive buckthorn shrubs from around an interpretive trail. The property was one of the places Henry David Thoreau’s studied ecological successional and was named for Brister Freeman, a freed slave and abolitionist who fought in the American Revolution and lived nearby.
Across town, another group improved the recently-conserved Domino-Nocella property by installing an informational kiosk, removing invasive Japanese knotweed, and cutting new sections of trail to make the area more inviting and accessible.
Thank you to all the volunteers who spent their Saturday getting sweaty and dirty in service to local trails and conservation! There are more opportunities to get out and give back around the Bay Circuit Trail throughout the year. Check out our Saturday work party dates and sign up today for your chance to learn new skills, enjoy new outdoors places, and give back to community trails.
Special thanks to the Concord Trails Committee and the Walden Woods Project, as well as REI for their ongoing stewardship support and generous donation of volunteer t-shirts, Arcadia Charitable Trust, 1% for the Planet, and the American Hiking Society.
Next up is a Saturday work party on July 12, where we’ll have a project in the Boxford/Andover area. No experience necessary. We want to see you there, and bring a friend! Contact Beth at bgula@outdoors.org to register.
See you out on the BCT,
Beth Gula
Change in access to Cranberry Watershed Preserve
The access to the Cranberry Watershed Preserve parking lot off of Grove Street (Map 14, Kingston, Section M, Mile 3.3) is blocked to vehicular access, but open to pedestrians and bicyclists. The Town of Kingston does not own or have deeded rights to the access and it has been blocked by the property owner. The Town is working to resolve the issue. Alternative access to the property with parking is located behind the Silver Lake Middle School on Lake Street beside the playing fields.
Volunteer tackle priority trail needs in Marlborough, MA!
A volunteer clears a fallen tree as part of a recent National Trails Day outing on the BCT.
Taking part in the second Saturday work party of 2014, Appalachian Mountain Club volunteers spend a day improving a section of the BCT near the Sudbury Reservoir in Marlborough, MA. Twelve volunteers cleared large trees that had blown down across the trail, cut back dense, young white pine growth to define the trail corridor, picked up litter at a road crossing, and hardened a wet, muddy section. The group included first-time trail workers and experienced BCT volunteers, families, and individuals from neighboring and farther away towns.
Appalachian Mountain Club volunteers spend a day improving a section of the BCT near the Sudbury Reservoir in Marlborough, MA
Next up is National Trails Day on June 7, where we’ll have projects throughout the Bay Circuit Town of Concord. We want to see you there, and bring a friend! Contact Beth at bgula@outdoors.org to register.
All this was made possible by a great volunteer group, and the generous support of REI, Arcadia Charitable Trust and 1% for the Planet.
. Twelve volunteers cleared large trees that had blown down across the trail, cut back dense, young white pine growth to define the trail corridor, picked up litter at a road crossing, and hardened a wet, muddy section.
New BCT Saturday Work Parties announced
Get out, give back, get dirty…and get to know the Bay Circuit Trail!
When you join an AMC trail project you can expect to meet intriguing people, experience the beauty and wonders of nature, put in a hard day’s work, experience great leadership, and “do something for the greater good.” We invite you to take part in free work parties on the Bay Circuit, a 240+mile route that stretches from shore to shore around Boston and offers diverse opportunities to explore open space throughout the region.
Saturday work parties will take place monthly between April and November at various Massachusetts locations along the trail. Consider coming out for an event close to your home, or use this as a reason to get to know new locales.
Learn and Serve
Ever wonder what goes into maintaining a trail? Looking for a way to give something back to the local trails you already use? Perhaps you are looking for a way to enjoy the outdoors, learn new skills, and meet like-minded people? These one-day trail events offer the opportunity to learn the fundamentals of trail maintenance or building from skilled AMC Trail Crew Leaders.
A typical work party starts at 9am and runs until about 4pm. Participants need to bring their own lunch, water, snacks, long pants (no matter how hot it is!), sturdy hiking boots, and other clothing appropriate for the weather. The AMC Trail Crew Leaders will provide all personal protective equipment, trail tools, and instruction and supervision.
Workshops are suitable for individuals, small groups and families with children 12 years and older. Programs will run rain or shine.
2014 Dates
April 12 – Framingham/Sudbury
May 3 – Framingham/Marlborough
June 7 (National Trails Day) – Concord
July 12 – Boxford-North Andover
August TBD
September 27 (National Public Lands Day) – Easton
October 18 – Acton 8 a.m.-noon
November 1 – Bridgewater/West Bridgewater
Program fee
Free!
For More Information
Pre-registration required: contact Beth Gula, Bay Circuit Trail Volunteer Program Supervisor, at (617) 391-6586 or bgula@outdoors.org
Custom Crews: Already have a group of people and looking for a way to volunteer for the Bay Circuit Trail? We can help design a Custom Crew that will meet the needs and expectations of your group.
New Bay Circuit Trail and Greenway Inventory and Assessment Report released!
New Bay Circuit Trail and Greenway Inventory and Assessment Report released!
The Appalachian Mountain Club (AMC) recently completed an assessment of the entire Bay Circuit Trail. The assessment, conducted by AMC cartographer Larry Garland is based on field observations conducted in 2013 and documents baseline conditions on the 230+ mile trail to serve the planning needs for corridor protection, trail management, stewardship, and a positive user experience. The report contains 36 policy recommendations as well as a narrative of the challenges and opportunities that lie ahead in achieving the vision of the Bay Circuit. To request a copy of the report please send an email to: info@baycircuit.org