Towns Along the Trail — Shoreline Greenway Trail

Come and join us on Shoreline Greenway Trail!

Happenings this month

Chet and Judy will be leading 5th grade students from Walsh Intermediate School on a walks at Pine Orchard Birch Road on 4 Thursdays in April and May.

Besides our First Saturday Walks, we are planning some exciting upcoming events including: Connecticut Trails Day (6/1); Branford Festival (6/15); CT Parks Centennial Bike Sojourn (8/22); Run the Gauntlet (9/29). So stay tuned to the website for details!

Sequels

April 13 Branford River Clean-up – Every year volunteers work together to clean up unsightly debris along the Branford River. This year we would like to thank Derek Faulkner, Sean Barry and Pete Davis!

Derek Faulkner and Sean Barry

Sean and Derek

Pete Davis

See the difference!

Clean-up after Sandy - After the storm, two Branford trails were completely blocked by fallen and dangerously leaning trees. Not wasting any time, Pete Peterson brought in a contractor to clear the trail from Pine Orchard Rd to the Birch Rd trail head; the trail along Tilcon Rd near the western end of the Trolley Trail and our trail head sign there. The total length cleared was about 3,000 feet. It took the contractor a full day, with crew and equipment, to simply allow passage. There still remains a great deal of unsightly tree trash alongside the trails to be removed and chipped. We will be working on that this spring. Special thanks to you Pete!

Trail maintenance – Thanks to Tony Corso for removing some trees that had fallen over the bridge on the Tabor trail section and to Jack Wood, Josh Wood and Chet Blumquist for clearing some trees on the Pine Orchard Birch Road trail section.

April 5 – 7 Table at Zanes Big Wheel Sale - It was so nice meeting you all at Zanes! Thanks to the Branford team, Ginny Raff (Madison) and Milton Charlton (Guilford) for standing outside in the cool breeze answering questions about Shoreline Greenway Trail. Now that you know about it, come and join us on the trail!

Profile of the Month – Peg Stamp

Peg joined the Branford Team of the Shoreline Greenway Trail in 2010, and she has been busy ever since. Peg has brought her project management skills to our team, and has taken over development of the important connection with East Haven at the Farm River and moving east toward Alps Road. She has also become our unofficial treasurer, keeping track of funding, and she keeps her eye out for grant opportunities.

Peg Stamp

Peg says that she has always lived near the water: Washington, D.C., Bristol, RI, Milford, and finally Branford, where she has settled down for 35 years. She has also always loved the outdoors, and is proud to have been among the last recipients of the Curved Bar, one of the Girl Scouts’ highest honors.

Peg is retired from Aetna where she worked as a project manager. She also spent some time with the Aetna Foundation where she worked on grant giving. She is married to Dave Stamp, who volunteers with Branford’s SGT Trail Management team. Dave and Peg love to travel, hopping into their airplane for flights over the northeast. One of their favorite activities is to fly to an airport such as Block Island’s, have lunch and a stroll, and then fly back. Recent long distance travel (on public airlines) has included Spain and Hawaii. She also enjoys spending time with their daughter, Yvonne, son-in-law, Peter, and their two granddaughters: Margaux and Chloe, who are noted by SGT for their cheerful help with Run the Gauntlet last September.

Peg’s energy and expertise have contributed greatly to Branford’s progress in the last few years. We are fortunate and grateful to have her help.