“In every walk with nature one receives far more than he seeks.” – John Muir.

If you have been walking in John A. Roebling Memorial Park in Hamilton Township lately, you may have noticed “works in progress” on two of the trails. The Friends for the Abbott Marshlands stewardship volunteers, led by Stewardship Chair Deb Brockway, have been busy! The first project involved installing a short boardwalk on a section of the Island Trail (right beyond the bridge from the Spring Lake Trail) which was often flooded in wet weather. That project was completed in September.

A hardy and enthusiastic Friends stewardship crew also took on the complex (and mucky!) task of repairing and replacing the old “stump” bridge on the Abbott Brook Trail with a beautiful new boardwalk. This project took multiple sessions, a dedicated crew that didn’t mind getting more than their feet wet, and many hours of challenging work. The volunteers needed to first level and improve the existing supports, install new supports, and then secure fresh planks to create a boardwalk that needed to allow for “stepwise” changes in height as well accommodate the curves of the existing trail. All of this while mired in the wet, mucky ground! Completed just last week, the new boardwalk allows for a much safer passage for those hiking the trail, as well as improving year-round access by elevating the trail over the wettest places.

