Summer Trails Crew is in the field, blazing away on this year’s signature project: a new trail along the island’s farmland district.
The trail will connect Day Road East with Lovgreen Road, skirting the west edge of the public farms’ rolling fields of grapes and berries and everyone’s favorite fall pumpkin patch.
“Dusty work, but satisfying,” said crew member Will Gleason, back for his second year with the program. “It’s a good way to be outside, working on good projects that you can see develop before your eyes. It’s a good way to spend the summer.”
Several years in the planning, the farmland trail’s half-mile route follows unopened rights of way and easements. At its midpoint, it will connect up with wooded trails through the old M&E tree farm property, 13 acres of open space south of the farmland. Another connecting trail runs along the east side of the farm district, ending at a new overlook with views west toward the Olympics.
Those trails are now open, while the new farmland trail to the west should be dedicated sometime this fall.
“These are trails that not a lot of people know about, but we expect that to change once the newest trail is finished and open,” said Barb Trafton, Parks & Trails Foundation Projects Manager. “Trail users will have a new connection with and appreciation of the Day Road farmlands, and how much these pastoral, working farmlands mean to the island.”
Summer Trails Crew is a seasonal jobs program for college-age young people, administered by the Bainbridge Island Metro Park & Recreation District with support from the Parks & Trails Foundation. The program is now in its eighth year.
Grant support from the Bainbridge Community Foundation funds a sixth crew member this year, for the eight weeks of the program.
This year’s crew members include Dane Verharen, Aidan Brady, Nick Shiach, Nic Lofgren, Will Gleason and Jack Harbour.
Along with general trail maintenance, the crew has also finished a new south-end trail from Country Club Road/Toe Jam to Bolero Drive. The trail will be open once signage is in place.
The Trails Crew has expanded its capacity in recent years, building new trails from scratch at Sakai Park, Gazzam Lake and elsewhere.
“It’s as much a trail-building program as a seasonal maintenance crew anymore, and that’s fantastic,” said Mary Meier, Parks & Trails Foundation Executive Director. “It speaks to the Park District’s commitment to skill building with young seasonal workers, and to giving our community more access to trails, wherever you may live on the island.”
