the Way of the Turtle

MAJOR TRAIL CHANGES INDEED
4.8 Mile Run in the Albany Pine Bush
Wednesday, November 16, 2011

Chilly, rainy, foggy night... but I really wanted to get in at least a short run, so I stopped at the Pine Bush Discovery Center and hit the trails there. Fortunately it wasn't too chilly, since I dropped my gloves in a puddle as I was getting ready - don't know that I would have wanted to be out in the rain much longer than I was, though.

Very slow going, partially because I'm trying to be nice to my right knee, which I tweaked a bit last weekend (all those darn hills... sigh) and partially because I haven't run much at night this year and I didn't want to end up stretched out on the trail. I headed up and over the hill, then out to the trail that parallels the Thruway - sadly, as I expected, the connector trail has been closed down. From there I ducked under 155 and followed the loop through the fields on the far side of the road. That was interesting mostly because I kept flushing some sort of bird, possibly woodcocks - I could hear them flying off making a whistling sound and really only caught a glimpse of one because it was sitting in the middle of the trail when I flushed it.

Once I was back on the east side of 155, I followed the perimeter trail toward the landfill. I knew from my brief walk here almost two weeks ago that they've closed a bunch of the trails - what I didn't know is how extensive the change is. Found the fence closing off the connector trail, and then found myself on a wide path skirting the edge of the landfill - very different from the trail that ran along the base of the hill. The new path follows the landfill and then goes down into the section between the preserve and the old trailer park, follows some of the previously "illegal" mountain bike trails around the wetlands and back into the main preserve, and then traces a new route along the ridge before rejoining the old path through the hardwood swamp. From there the trail back to the parking lot is the same, except for showing lots of signs of the heavy equipment that was used to cut the new trails (my guess would be some sort of hydroaxe.) I've definitely got to get over there in the daylight to see what it all looks like.

I have to admit I'm a bit bummed about the trail changes... one of the nice things about the Karner Barrens was the variety of trails there, and the way you could build up longer distances by using different connector trails - that's no longer possible. Now there are basically two loops, I would imagine to cut down on the amount of habitat fragmentation. I also suspect the section along the landfill won't be as pleasant to visit in the summer, no matter how much "habitat restoration" (ie. planting on top of the landfill cap) they do - maybe Mayor Jerry and his cronies don't think the landfill stinks, but anyone spending time in the Karner Barrens on a warm windy day knows differently (heck, just driving by on the Thruway on a warm day makes the truth about that clear!) Perhaps it's for the best that I don't run in the Pine Bush nearly as much as I did several years ago... except of course in the winter when I need trails to run and snowshoe at night.

JMH