Troop clears half-mile path behind Environmental Center.
By: Rebecca Tokarz
Township residents can now enjoy a brisk walk through the woods behind the South Brunswick Township Environmental Center thanks to a group of Scouts.
Cadets in Girl Scout Troop 764, all high school freshmen, spent more than a year working to clear the trail and label trees along the ½-mile path.
"It was pretty difficult. We picked our trees and took pictures of the trunks, leaves and branches and then took them home and had to research what trees they are," Scout Stephanie Bartolotta said.
The trail served as the troop’s Silver Award Project, where each girl had to perform 25 hours in a leadership position, and 30 hours of community service hours. The project also worked toward fulfilling other Girl Scout patch requirements.
The five-member group came up with the idea of blazing a trail in spring 2002, but needed a location. They contacted Kevin Hood in the Township’s Department of Parks and Recreation, who works with the Environmental Center on Old Road.
Although the center is not open and there is no target date at this time, there is an existing trail behind the center. Mr. Hood took the troop on a walk on the trail which was a difficult trek because of plant growth, a fallen tree trunk and a stream that ran through a part of the trail, Troop Leader Kathleen Ryan said.
Mr. Hood suggested the group create an arboretum trail with improved accessibility. The trail needed to be 38 inches wide and as free of rocks, tree roots and growth as possible. The path was covered with wood chips to keep the removed undergrowth from returning.
The group established an outline for the trail and spent Saturday mornings for three months with their families clearing undergrowth and trees. The cold winter and wet spring kept the girls from returning to the trail to complete the clearing and placement of wood chips along the route. When they finally returned to the trail, they had to re-clear parts of the trail, delaying the completion date.
Once the trail was blazed, the girls took tree samples of tree bark, leaves and twigs and with the help of three tree experts, including one from Rutgers University, identified 23 trees along the path, including beech, hickory, hornbeam and sweetgum.
The trees are numbered along the trail and there are handmade, painted mailboxes at the start of the path and throughout the trail. Brochures identifying the trees are in the mailboxes as well as activities for trail visitors to have fun with.
"We had to ID them. We picked out ones we thought were of a different variety. We looked in tree books and asked at least three other people. We took away and added some trees because they were duplicated or were different than we thought," Scout Liz Ryan said about the tree identification list.
The hard work proved to be worth it and they even learned something, the girls said.
"I wanted to give something back. We do something for Earth Day and rake leaves for the seniors. I just wanted to give back," Liz said.
Scout Jamie Farrell said she was happy that the trail would be around for everyone’s enjoyment.
"I like doing community service; it’s nice to help people out. This is going to last for years and it’ll be fun," Jamie said.
Mr. Hood said he was impressed with the girls’ work ethic and their determination to get the trail completed.
"With the volunteering and the amount of work they put into it and the bad weather, they did a phenomenal job," Mr. Hood said. "Hopefully residents will go out there and enjoy the trail and the hard work of the girls. There’s 17 acres of land out there."