Tue, 26 Aug 2008 12:52:14 -0500 http://www.thechelmsfordian.com/thechelmsfordian/ en-us http://www.thechelmsfordian.com/thechelmsfordian/images/logo.gif http://www.thechelmsfordian.com/thechelmsfordian/ phil@thechelmsfordian.com http://www.thechelmsfordian.com/thechelmsfordian/Article427.html We need help. As the new School year starts we have had kids starting to try and reuse some of the open spaces as hang outs and places to drink. If you see any fire pits or see beer bottles at any place on any site call me at once. We will come and clean them up and alert both CPD and CFD. I can be reached at 978-273-1474 at any time. I will not give out your name so do not worry but we need to nip this in the bud. No cars should be in any lot after dark unless they have the Open Space sticker on the back. Please help us keep our open spaces safe. Tue, 26 Aug 2008 12:52:14 -0500 http://www.thechelmsfordian.com/thechelmsfordian/Article426.html A major construction project will be underway at Crooked Spring with a new 44 foot bridge spanning the neck of the pond on the far side. This will allow safer bike and walking access all year round. We have five new kiosks going in at Red Wing, the Cranberry Bog, Deep Brook and Russell Mill. The new marking of trail will also be ready for the fall. Four new Bike racks will be going in on sites and a major trail upgrade at Thanksgiving forest. So we are flat out and I will post new pictures soon. Tue, 26 Aug 2008 12:47:12 -0500 http://www.thechelmsfordian.com/thechelmsfordian/Article425.html Is it true they are seaching for Jimmy's body in Bartlet Park? Well maybe but more likley it is to replace the blocked pipe that has been a major issue for water on the site for many years. I iwll get some photos and post them later today but its amazing to see a stream going right under the center of town. Mon, 18 Aug 2008 04:32:32 -0500 http://www.thechelmsfordian.com/thechelmsfordian/Article424.html If you are new to the site or have not been in the gallery its more than just photos. The gallery is connected via hundreds of links and allows you to explore sites ,maps, what we do. We have thousands of pictures and documents covering the Stewardship from its start in 2005. So take a while and explore Chelmsford with a single click. [Click here to enter the Gallery] Mon, 11 Aug 2008 06:52:00 -0500 http://www.thechelmsfordian.com/thechelmsfordian/Article423.html I hate to say it but every once and a while “real life” has to take precedence of my Open Space work. The last few weeks have been that way and its been crazy. I do have some interesting news. The Stewardship now has “caretaker” status over the area around where the old horse barns stood on the Lewis property. The property was purchased by the town but it is NOT conservation land but run by the Town. We where concerned that the fields would totally over grow and become an eyesore so we asked if we could cut them until the Town decides a final use for the property. We have started on but it is a huge job with hundreds of old fence posts to remove and a ton of fences to fix. The weeds and junk have grown to well over 5 feet but we are making headway. [Click here for Photos of the Lewis Property] We continue to spend a lot of time over at Red wing and it looks amazing. If you have not seen it yet click the link below. As for the tons of black raspberries on the property they are a big attraction along with the butterfly garden. [Click here for Photos of Red Wing] We also have been keeping up on site maintenance and cover all nine sites every Sunday Am by 9 am (Takes about 2-3 hours) [Click here for Photos Sunday Site Tour] Mon, 11 Aug 2008 06:37:28 -0500 http://www.thechelmsfordian.com/thechelmsfordian/Article422.html this is a very little talking and lots of walking trip... we fondly call it our "death march" Water and Farmland Dates: Sunday July 27 Distance 3 miles Terrain: Moderate Meet: 9 a.m. Thanksgiving Forest (Janet Road) Pre-register: Please pre-register by sending an email to Phil@thechelmsfordian.com so we know how many people to expect. We will meet at the parking lot and walk along the pond passing the beaver dams and into Great Brook. After a quick tour of Great Brook (and a stop for ice cream) we will return to Thanksgiving Forest and see one of Chelmsford’s most interesting rock formations that is over 20 feet high. This is a long walk but you will have a lot to see. No open toe shoes and please bring a hat, a water bottle and bug spray. Please remember to bring ice cream money! If you have a Scout troop, church group or walking group and would like a tour of the trail system, check out our upcoming events. If you have a group of fi ve or more, please e-mail us and we can arrange a walking tour (no charge). If you have tools like rakes and shovels or any other items we can use , please let us know and we would be happy to pick them up. If you are a company and want to do an employee work day, we have a variety of projects available. For more information, contact Phil@thechelmsfordian.com or call Phil Stanway at 978-273-1474. Wed, 23 Jul 2008 05:41:44 -0500 http://www.thechelmsfordian.com/thechelmsfordian/Article421.html I have added 138 photos and moved the gallery around to make it easier to use. so clikc the camera and start your trip! Tue, 15 Jul 2008 08:03:59 -0500 http://www.thechelmsfordian.com/thechelmsfordian/Article420.html Wow long day! site checks at 7am... 2 walks.. one geo clinic and a geo hunt... butterfly garden... I am just beat with a club!... lots of phtos I will post tommrow once I sort them. Thanks to EVERYONE! Sun, 13 Jul 2008 18:50:24 -0500 http://www.thechelmsfordian.com/thechelmsfordian/Article419.html Garden will be planted at 9:30 Sunday morning July 13. Stop on over and say hello and maybe give them a hand and look at the yard! Sat, 12 Jul 2008 11:11:01 -0500 http://www.thechelmsfordian.com/thechelmsfordian/Article418.html Those coming to Geocache 101 will be given a chance to be the first to search for the new cache at Red Wing. We will be stocking it with goodies and a FTF drawing for a prized Yellow Stewards shirt. Mon, 07 Jul 2008 10:52:55 -0500 http://www.thechelmsfordian.com/thechelmsfordian/Article417.html Looking for something fun to do? something free? check out the self guided tree tour of Wright Reservation. Great for a afternoon with kids. Click here for Self Guided tour Mon, 07 Jul 2008 07:59:36 -0500 http://www.thechelmsfordian.com/thechelmsfordian/Article416.html Family Event: learn about Geocaching! click the link below for the full flyer! Click here for Full Flyer Mon, 07 Jul 2008 05:52:01 -0500 http://www.thechelmsfordian.com/thechelmsfordian/Article415.html Nice to see everyone at the 4th.. well except the rain!. Tune in tommrow for picture and some video of the storm and information on our open spaces. I would do it now .. but hey its the 4th and I have a cold one and a burger waiting. Fri, 04 Jul 2008 12:18:06 -0500 http://www.thechelmsfordian.com/thechelmsfordian/Article414.html The second bridge at deep brook is in. 12 people showed up and it was a blast! Check out the photos Click here for photos Tue, 01 Jul 2008 13:39:40 -0500 http://www.thechelmsfordian.com/thechelmsfordian/Article413.html Thanks to the Independent for a great story on Red Wing. Click on the camera icon on the left to enter the gallery system and explore Red Wing and other sites in town. One BIG mistake in the article “500 a month” … not even close .. its 500 per YEAR! That 60 cents per acre per year. That’s why we are looking for donations. Each time we cut the grass at Red Wing its 25-30 dollars so we have next to nothing. If you have an old riding lawn mower, grass cutters , chain saw, weed wackers, rakes and want them to have a second life and help out the program WE NEED THEM!. My number is 978-273-1474 Want to see what we do drop by Deep Brook this SUNDAY 9 am we will be building a bridge over the stream. Click here to see what we will be doing Click here to see Red wing Work Click here for Bikes Trails at Russel Mill http://wwc.townofchelmsford.us/conservation/townmap.html Bill Edge/Deep Brook Reservation Located on Dunstable Road in North Chelmsford the Bill Edge/Deep Brook Reservation consists of just less than 16 acres of land. Much of the property is wetland associated with Deep Brook, but there are also stands of soft and hard woods. Access is available from Dunstable Road where there is a small parking area. Although relatively small in size, Deep Brook Reservation "feels" bigger due to the unbuildable land along Deep Brook and the abutting Lowell Sportsmen's Club to the South. There is a small system of walking trails through the property, one which leads to the pond in Deep Brook. Location: Dunstable Road, 1 mile northwest of North Chelmsford Center (Vinal Square) Fri, 27 Jun 2008 07:51:58 -0500 http://www.thechelmsfordian.com/thechelmsfordian/Article411.html Hiking in Your Own Home Town – Free Guided Tours Through the Chelmsford Open Spaces With more than 700 acres of conservation land and nine additional Chelmsford Land Trust sites, Chelmsford has a wide variety of beautiful wooded sites to discover. Whether it be the hidden water fall just off Chelmsford center, the rare trees and plants left over from an old nursery, or even walking through the rocky crags of the old quarry, there is a lot you might not know about our town. The Open Space Stewardship has been working hard for almost two years to restore and improve the trail systems that wind through these areas and we are ready to show some of them off. We will be offering three walks to explore some of Chelmsford’s best hiking and walking trails this summer. Mon, 16 Jun 2008 08:36:13 -0500 http://www.thechelmsfordian.com/thechelmsfordian/Article410.html When: Sunday, July 13, 2008 at 2:00pm. RAIN OR SHINE. Where: Thanksgiving Forest, Chelmsford (MA). What: Learn the basics of Geocaching. The listed coordinates (N42 34.000 W071 20.282) are for the Thanksgiving Forest parking area/trail head at the end of Janet Road. We will assemble there at 2:00pm on Sunday 7/13/08. This event will focus on the basics of geocaching, but attendance is not limited to novices. If you're an experienced geocacher you're welcome to participate well. It's nice to have multiple sources for novices to tap for information. Topics covered will include: * GPS basics. How do I get coordinates loaded? How close to the geocache will it get me? ...etc. * Geocache containers. We'll have several different types for show-and-tell. * Hide styles. We'll go over some of the various methods used to hide geocaches. * Using geocaching.com. How to find (and interpret) geocache listings. * Trackable items. Travel Bugs, Geocoins, etc. * Geocaching etiquette. Respecting property, trading fairly, Cache In/Trash Out, ...etc. After discussing the above topics we'll go out and find some geocaches in Thanksgiving Forest. The hike will be about 1 mile total. We'll be happy to field questions and discuss other aspects of geocaching while we're hiking/seeking. Thanksgiving Forest is one of many Chelmsford open spaces that is maintained by the Chelmsford Open Space Stewardship program (aka COSS). Some of the COSS stewards will be on hand for this event. Aside from the incredible work that COSS does on their open spaces they encourage geocaching in Chelmsford by regularly promoting it at town events, checking up on existing geocaches during their daily trail walks, and providing input/approval on potential new cache locations. We are fortunate to have such a great group of stewards here in Chelmsford. Thanks, COSS! Fri, 13 Jun 2008 12:13:30 -0500 http://www.thechelmsfordian.com/thechelmsfordian/Article409.html Description: Wear your old clothes and bring some pruners and gloves for a few hours of brush and vine clearing. A rewarding wildflower discovery both during and after. Get to meet the stone walls up close and personal. Date: Saturday, June 7, 2008 Wed, 04 Jun 2008 10:30:57 -0500 http://www.thechelmsfordian.com/thechelmsfordian/Article408.html where did all the mulch come from for all the sites in town? they came from a generious donation from Brown & Parsons Earth Products. Please think about using them if you need mulch or tree work. Click here for Location and how to get therey Click here for photos of the big load up Tue, 03 Jun 2008 08:44:06 -0500 http://www.thechelmsfordian.com/thechelmsfordian/Article407.html Well the Land Trust had its trip on Russel Mill pond at Thanksgiving Forest. Small pond but fund to see a lot of brids. Click here for Photos Tue, 03 Jun 2008 05:22:43 -0500 http://www.thechelmsfordian.com/thechelmsfordian/Article406.html "Chelmsford -The Country Lane Garden Club of Chelmsford will be hosting the dedication of the garden at the Adams Library on Saturday, May 31, at 1 p.m. The club began the creation of the garden in 2005 as a gift for the residents of Chelmsford. The intent of the project was to create a space, which would showcase historical plants, provide education, and demonstrate drought tolerant organic methods of gardening. This historic theme garden was designed to reflect the original building, which was erected in 1894. Each of the four sections of the garden represents plants that were used for culinary, medicinal, household and ornamental purposes. The garden has received several accolades including a 2006 award from the National Garden Clubs, Inc and a design award from the Landscape Design Council of Massachusetts. The public is invited to join the club and their guests for the ceremony. In the event of rain, the ceremony will take place in the Library meeting room." I was at this and it was very interesting. They do have a "map" showing the plants and what they where used for in 1894 but it was inside during the reception. They are going to send me the map and I will post it on http://WWW.TheChelmsfordian.com (if they ever get servers restored). I am not a gardener so it was cool to look at the plants and find out what they where used for. We are doing a walk in July from the library and this will now be our first stop. Great idea and I guess you could say this is real "Living History". The Club will maintain the garden from their own pockets. Love those people who stop talking about problems , roll up their selves and actually make a difference. If from no one else you get a big THANK YOU from me for making the center nicer looking and more interesting. Click here for Photos Tue, 03 Jun 2008 05:16:49 -0500 http://www.thechelmsfordian.com/thechelmsfordian/Article405.html So the main server in TX go "Boom" taking down 9,000 servers! We are back and I have a ton of posts you will see over the next 24 hrs. The site will be slow until repairs are complete. Mon, 02 Jun 2008 10:01:49 -0500 http://www.thechelmsfordian.com/thechelmsfordian/Article404.html Hey Stewards, Thanks so much for everything you do and keep up the good work..... Oh and Jim, I put in a special order of square nails just for you : ) Also thanks to our friends at New England Mountain Bike Association who always show up in force to help. Click here for Photos Sun, 25 May 2008 15:45:40 -0500 http://www.thechelmsfordian.com/thechelmsfordian/Article403.html We're going to be replacing the a bridge over the brook at Wright this Sunday (May 25th) starting at 10am. It's the oldest bridge on the trails and it's really showing its age. Keep following the trail to the right, it's the first bridge you cross. We could use volunteers to help, especially if you have a battery powered saw. BIG THANKS go to Moore's Lumber for giving an amazing discount on the materials. Update: The build went well! Check out the results HERE. Wed, 21 May 2008 15:52:08 -0500 http://www.thechelmsfordian.com/thechelmsfordian/Article402.html This Saturday, the 17th, is Massachusetts Park Serve Day. The closest participating parks are Great Brook Farm State Park adjacent to Thanksgiving Forest, and Lowell-Dracut-Tyngsborough State Forest. Great Brook's cleanup is indicated as kid friendly. The Lowell-Dracut cleanup is a Friends of the Forest clean-up day in conjunction with the DCR Park Serve Day. Full info is on the Park Serve Day website. Thu, 15 May 2008 11:48:50 -0500