Westford Stewardship

This past year has been a good one for the Westford Land Stewards. We have installed a number of signs, hosted a handful of trail and property cleanups, and have several additional projects in the works (some details of which are in this newsletter). Now that Fall is upon us, it’s a great time to walk your property, perform trail cleanups, or just simply enjoy a nice fall day before the ground is covered with snow! If you could take a moment and fill out and mail the attached land steward form, we would really appreciate it.

On Saturday, October 9^th at 9 am, Marian Harman will lead a trial clearing effort at the new subdivision on Hutchins Way off Robinson Road (near Hartford Road) known as Westford Manors. If you would like to participate, please meet us at the sub-division and bring your clippers, chainsaws, weedwackers, rakes, and enthusiasm! Hope to see you there.

On September 12 a trail clearing was held at the Snake Meadow Brook Conservation Land at the Picking/Gould Farm, now known as Meadowbrook Farm. The purpose of this event was to create a public parking area and to blaze a new trail, the first of several, on the easterly (house-side) portion of the property. It was a beautiful day and over a dozen people turned out! There is now a new parking area along the road on the house side and there are plans to install a sign later this month. The new trail starts at the parking area and meanders easterly along an old orchard and then through a hay field. Beyond the hay field the trail enters the forest and wanders along Snake Meadow Brook. There are several beautiful vistas along the way as the trail navigates down to a large beaver dam across Snake Meadow Brook at a point close to the Slifer Conservation Land. Thanks goes to Gordon Osgood, Bill and Marian Harman, Peter Hennessey, Rina Caldwell, Greg and Kim Johnson and sons Glynn and Jessie, Clyde Walsh and his sons Edward and Conner, John Piekos, Christie Williams, and Mike Killoran for making this trail clearing a success!

The John Gagnon Nature Trail, also known as Kissacook Hill, now has two signs and a kiosk, thanks to its land steward, the Westford League of Women Voters. On May 1^st, the Westford League of Women Voters held a trail dedication and the unveiling of the trail sign. After the ceremony (a photo appeared in the Westford Eagle), Bill Harman of the Westford Conservation Trust led a group of about fifteen people on an informative and entertaining trail walk.

By Kim Colson

The Spring Land Steward Work Project successfully gave the Cider Mill Pond Conservation Land a facelift thanks to the many volunteers that lent a hand on May 23rd. The volunteers included Christie Williams, John Piekos, Marian and Bill Harman, Robert and Anne Froner, Debbie Gustafson and her two great kids, Mark Tinknell, Julie Kopser, Bev Vucson, and Kim Colson. The parking lot was reestablished through cutting brush and marked with a new sign and kiosk. It can be found on Lowell Road across from the Fletcher House. In addition to the parking lot, several trails were trimmed and cleaned. An overgrown trail was reestablished and trash was removed from the woods. The day was a beautiful day to be in the woods, the honeysuckle fragrance filled the air, and there were many birds to be seen that didn't seem to mind our large presence.

The Westford Open Space and Recreation Plan Committee, appointed by the Conservation Commission, is in the process of updating Westford’s Open Space and Recreation Plan. This plan, required by the state, is a summary of the community’s land use aspirations and history, an inventory of lands and natural resources, and a formulation of priorities and policies for acquiring and managing open space for conservation and recreation.

The committee’s first effort at gathering resident’s opinions about open space and recreation opportunities in Westford was a survey mailed to every resident in town. Response has been tremendous, with over 900 surveys returned. The committee is currently collating and analyzing the survey results. They are also planning an Open Space and Recreation forum to gain more insights into the concerns and priorities of town residents. We hope everyone interested in land stewardship will also be interested in participating in this event. It is an important opportunity to let town government know what your priorities and opinions are and to help shape Westford’s Open Space and Recreation Plan.

The Open Space and Recreation forum will be held on Thursday, October 14th, at 7:30 in Conference Room B at the Emerson Hospital Health Center on Route 110. Hope to see you there.

By John Piekos

Earlier this year, Mike Killoran, Christie Williams, John Piekos, and Ellen Rainville, Director of the Fletcher Library,participated in the Westford Newcomers Spelling Bee. Our team name was The "Spelling" Bee Keepers, and we went dressed in full bee keeping gear, courtesy of Mike Killoran (a bee keeper!). The winner of this contest was to receive $1000 toward their cause. Our group was "playing," naturally, for the Westford Land Stewards. In addition, because of generous entry-fee donations from Angela Harkness, Attorney at Law, and the Hall And Finnegan PC, we were eligible for an additional $500 via a special random drawing. I’m unhappy to report that we lost the spelling contest in the first round with an incorrect spelling of entomology, ironically meaning "the scientific study of insects." Thankfully we weren’t the only ones who misspelled this word – all but one team in our group misspelled it as well. And our bad luck continued when we did not win the special drawing. Regardless, a great time was had by all--though those costumes sure were hot!

The paint used for trail blazing is a yellow latex-based paint, not oil-based as stated in the last newsletter.

There are several upcoming land steward projects:

Featured Property: The Cider Mill Pond Land
By Kim Colson

The Cider Mill Pond Conservation Land is an approximately 39 acre area that was the home to a cider mill owned by Dan Sheehan at the turn of the century. The cider mill burned in about 1905 however the foundation still exists and can be accessed from either Lowell or Stony Brook Roads on trails through the woods. A dam near this foundation was responsible for the existence of a pond until about 10 years ago when vandals dismantled the dam. The pond was very popular among ice skaters, nature lovers, and wildlife and therefore, a proposal to repair the dam has been filed with the Conservation Commission and received preliminary approval. Besides a wetland, many varieties of trees, and an old foundation, the land parcel has a curious deep hole in a rock that was identified by a neighbor as an Indian hole. This disputed hole may have been used for grinding grains with a stone. Explore the Cider Mill Pond Conservation Land for yourself and discover a wonderful Westford resource! The Cider Mill Pond Conservation Land is located on Lowell Road.

The Westford Land Stewardship Steering Committee is made up of members from the Westford Conservation Commission and the non-profit Westford Conservation Trust. Please feel free to contact any one of us with your Land Stewardship questions.

Christie Williams (Westford Conservation Commission)

692-0107 or 692-2596 - cwilliam@tiac.net

Mike Killoran (Westford Conservation Commission/Westford Conservation Trust)

692-7925 – mike_killoran@iris.com

John Piekos (Westford Conservation Trust)

Westford Conservation Trust: http://www.ultranet.com/~killoran/wct.html

Westford Conservation Commission: http://www.ultranet.com/~killoran/cc.html

MeadowBrook Farms: http://www.ultranet.com/~killoran/picking/html/start.shtml

Westford Conservation Land: http://www.johnpiekos.com/conservation

Old Steward Newsletters: http://www.johnpiekos.com/steward