Come celebrate with Letchworth State Park on Sunday May 3rd from 1 to 4 pm, to honor all the park’s patrons and supporters for voting to help the park win a recent national poll as the #1 State Park in the USA.

Stop at the Glen Iris Inn under the tent for a special sweet treat, raffles for Whitewater Rafting with Adventure Calls and a raffle by Balloons over Letchworth.  Posters, bookmarks and other trinkets will be handed out by The Friends of Letchworth State Park.  Be part of a group photo at 2:30pm and enjoy a special guided hike touring the Glen Iris Grounds at 3:00pm.  Stop by the Park’s Visitor Center for a chance to win a 2 night stay at Letchworth State Park’s Conference Center and get a free bottle of water in the Visitor Center Gift shop courtesy of park concessionaire “The Basics”.

There is no entrance fee on May 3rd.  Handouts are available while supplies last.

A moon lit kayak with Canadice Outfitters will be held Saturday Night. Bring a flashlight and a snack.  If you would like to rent a kayak or canoe call Canadice Outfitters at 585-669-9512. Rental fee $20.00.  Please arrive at 8:30 for a launch at 9:00.

Every fall, Trail Maintenance and Trail Quality hold two meetings for trail maintainers and any other interested parties.  One of the meetings, intended for hikers or workers on the  main trail between Portageville (M 7) through Watkins Glen (M 14), the Letchowrth, Bristol Hills, or Crystal Hills Branches and the Queen Catharine
Marsh and and Montour Falls Historic Loops, will be held at the Bath Fire Hall.

Each meeting will be informed by your specific questions and the problems you have encountered, but both will include about any trail management policies which you need to be familiar with.  This years meeting will feature Marty Howden, Western Regional Coordinator for the FLTC and Coordinator of the Chainsaw Training.  Marty and Lynda Rummel, FLTC VP for Trail Quality, will talk about the status of the NPS & USFS chainsaw and cross-cut saw certifications and the increased emphasis on working safely in the field.

Who should attend? All hikers who enjoy the Finger Lakes Trail system including Springwater Trails members who wish to help maintain the Bristol Hills Branch.

For more information, please see the full meeting announcement.

10 AM sharp.  Bring your lunch, your questions, and your ideas.  Coffee, apple juice and some breakfast goodies provided.

Directions:

From Springwater: Take Rt 15 South for 6.9 miles. Turn left to merge onto I-390 South for 20.2 miles. Take exit 38 from I-86 (Rt 17) for Bath.  Turn left onto W Washington St.  Turn right at the 2nd cross street on W Morris St.  The firehouse is on the left about a half mile down Morris St (past Pulteney Park). Parking is available behind the fire house.

Saturday, April 23, 2016 at 10:00AM , this will be a short hike, with lots of history about the CCC Camp at Big Bend in Letchworth State Park.  The announcement, states: 3 hour, moderate walking 1/2mile, bring a lunch.  At 10:00AM, the “meet locale” is at Parade Grounds parking lot, and then there will be a carpool to the event site (the Big Bend CCC Camp).

This event  is offered thru the Letchworth State Park hike and activity series.  A very active series that holds numerous hikes and other activities year round, mostly in Letchworth State Park and on the Genesee Valley Greenway State Park (aka GVG -or- GVGSP).  These events are published in The Genesee Naturalist published quarterly.

This event is led by Historian and author Tom Cook, author of a book about the Letchworth Park CCC Camps, and author of other books as well.

Also of note, Tom Cook will be presenting the Avon Preservation and Historical Society (APHS) program about the Genesee Valley Canal (GVC) during which he will particularly highlight the challenging area of canal construction in and surrounding present day Letchworth State Park.  This APHS program is scheduled at 2:00PM on Sunday April 24th, 2016 at the Avon Opera Block second floor meeting room (handicap accessible) located at 23 Genesee St in the Village of Avon (off the west/southwest side of the traffic circle in the Village of Avon that Routes 5&20 navigate through.

Following this presentation, Springwater Trails will be holding a hike (hike meet at ~3:15PM or so) on the former GVC corridor (now the Genesee Valley Greenway State Park aka GVGSP -or- GVG).  This Springwater Trails hike will be on the GVG (spanning miles 12-17 of the GVG) in town of Caledonia which is just across the Genesee River from Avon.  Various length hike groups are planned for on this hike, the shortest of which is suitable for mobility limited hikers (inclusive of wheelchair hikers).

Katherine J. T. Humphrey will present a discussion on what is new or current in home food preservation – like increased interest in fermentation, using less energy, using what is available locally and seasonally, deciding on what method of preservation would be best for a single person or for a household of many people, where to begin if a novice or an experienced home preserver, and the place to go for research based answers to questions, especially when it comes to safety and quality considerations.

Katherine was a full time Cornell Cooperative Extension Educator 1969-1991, and a CCE Livingston County Home Economics Program Leader. She has been a CCE Home Food Preservation Instructor since 1989.

The NCS Honor Society has offered to do some maintenance and construction work on the BHB in Naples as part of their community service commitment. They will be working on the landscaping around the new bridge on Gideon Hanggi’s land. If you can spare a couple of hours on a Sunday afternoon in October to help Donna, our FLT volunteer coordinator, to support these teenagers, please meet at Bob and Ruth’s parking lot on Rt 21 in Naples at 12:30. We will work from 1 to 3.  Please RSVP if you plan to come.

Springwater Trails has agreed to maintain the Bristol Hills Branch of the Finger Lakes Trail between Clement Rd and NY 245 in Naples. The FLT is sponsoring a workshop on trail mainentance on Oct 14th in Bath.

This is an opportunity for all hikers interested in helping to maintain hiking trail with Springwater Trails to learn more about the tasks required to maintain a great trail and to get to know other people who are also working on the trail.

Please look at this season’s Trail Tenders News for more details and RSVP if you are interested in attending.  We can arrange a car pool if we know you want to come.

Directions from Springwater: Take NY 15 south through Wayland. Turn left onto I390 S, which joins I86 E in 16 miles.  Take Exit 38 and turn left onto NY 54 N. Go under the expressway and turn right at the first intersection E. Morris St.  The Fire Hall is on the right in 1.1 miles.

The Steuben County Fairgrounds in Bath, NY will be transformed into a celebration of all things outdoors on Friday, July 26. The Finger Lakes Trail Conference along with the Steuben County Conference & Visitors Bureau and Friends of the Chemung River is excited to present the first Finger Lakes Trail Days over two jam packed days.

Kicking off the festivities Friday night is a concert featuring the Grammy Award winning bluegrass band, Steep Canyon Rangers. The duet of Rob Ickes and Trey Hensley will show off their guitar and vocal prowess warming up for the Steep Canyon Rangers.

Doors open at 6:00 pm and food and drink will be available.

Tickets can be purchased for either Friday evening’s concert or for Saturday; a two-day pass is also available. For more information on tickets, activities, on-site camping opportunities and the music schedule visit www.fingerlakestraildays.com or contact info@fingerlakestraildays.com

The Steuben County Fairgrounds in Bath, NY will be transformed into a celebration of all things outdoors on Friday, July 26. The Finger Lakes Trail Conference along with the Steuben County Conference & Visitors Bureau and Friends of the Chemung River is excited to present the first Finger Lakes Trail Days over two jam packed days.

Whether you are an outdoor enthusiast who already spends weekends hiking, biking, kayaking or fishing/hunting or someone who has always thought about trying something new, Saturday is filled with outdoor recreation activities of all kinds.

Additionally, enjoy local food, drinks, and a remarkable musical line-up. From 8:30 – 3pm there will be hikes of varying lengths and difficulty levels (click here for more information).

Also, check out the guided tours of places of interest in the area.

Beginning at 11 am at the Fairgrounds, attend one of the many interesting presentations, ranging from Geocaching to Yoga, Birdwatching to Medicinal plants and more.

Local food trucks and beer garden will be available all throughout the day.

Attendees can also experience a zip line, climb a rock wall, learn to kayak or mountain bike and navigate a ropes course.

There is a stellar lineup of outdoor exhibitors available to answer questions and provide information about their organization. Hiking groups from around the state will be available.

And meet the experts to find out more about birding, conserving land, our local rivers or monarchs.

Throughout the day you will hear a music line-up featuring Sawyer Fredericks (the 2015 winner of The Voice), Cicada Rhythm, Joshua Davis, Aaron Lipp & the Slack Tones, and Joseph Alton Miller.

There are plenty of activities for the entire family!