Above: Thanks to a Troop 92 Scout and the volunteers that supported him, residents of Pine Hill Road have access to explore area trails. (contributed photo)
Thanks to a Troop 92 Eagle Scout project, residents of Pine Hill Road can safely hike to some of the biggest area trails.
Trails Committee Chair Kathryn McKee asked me to share the news thanking Boy Scout Nick McEvoy and the volunteers that helped him.
McEvoy’s project involved building a .2 mile segment of trail, but opens up a whole lot more access for residents of Pine Hill Road and the surrounding area. The trail links up to the existing Bay Circuit/Boroughs Loop Connector Trail. McKee explains that:
The opening of this trail segment increases walkability and access to trails for residents . . . [who now] can walk down the road and hop on to the trail
It is also a key connection for greater future hiking in town.
The segment is positioned to line up with a future connection trail* to the Weston Aqueduct which will continue into Framingham. Since there is limited parking available at other spots along the Bay Circuit/Boroughs Loop trails, that also means other trail users will be able to eventually connect to the eastbound trail. (See posted map or image right.)
The work was completed by last winter, and McEvoy has graduated high school since. The public announcement was on hold while Trails awaited final permits and approvals. Now they have the greenlight to promote the trail for public use.
The project was a big task. McKee notes that Nick managed to get the project done despite the fact that he broke his hip playing Rugby in the fall. She called it “A great story about perseverance in the face of adversity.” Below are more details on the work involved:
Nick McEvoy is from Troop 92. He, and his many volunteers, spent many hours chopping shoulder high thorny weeds and removing roots to establish the trail. It also involved surveying the easement to mark the property boundaries and Nick coordinated with Glen Odone, Odone Surveying & Mapping, who donated his services to make this happen, estimated at $2K value. The property is owned by MWRA and the Trails Committee recently updated its 8(m) Public access permit with MWRA to include this segment. The permit has been fully executed, giving the public access, which is what we’ve been waiting on to be able to make this announcement.
It took a lot of Nick’s coordination, effort, and patience to get the trail built (even at .2 miles).
Below is a post shared on the Trails’ Facebook page with more photos:
Stay tuned for more news out of the Trails Committee soon. (If you’re interested in volunteering to help them on any of their many projects, click here.)
*The Southborough Trails Committee is working with Framingham Parks & Recreation to establish the future connection to the Weston Aqueduct Trail. They project the timeframe for completion as “roughly” 2024.
