The Chelmsford Open Space Stewardship – What We Are and How to Get Involved

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.

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.

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.

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]

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]

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.

I have added 138 photos and moved the gallery around to make it easier to use. so clikc the camera and start your trip!

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!

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!

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.

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

Family Event: learn about Geocaching! click the link below for the full flyer!

Click here for Full Flyer

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.

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

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)