For years, part of the trail system at the Smithfield Land Trust's Olivia's Forest preserve lay in neglect. The white-blazed trail was hard to follow, had no creek crossing, and was almost never taken, if the last five years of footprints in the snow are any evidence. The white trail was meant to form part of a larger loop, overlapping with the Orange Trail, but it seemed almost no one knew of it; the blazes faded with the memory.
But now, thanks to the ever-energetic Tom Gruczka, who's been doing all kinds of trail-building and restorative trail work through the SLT's system, the white trail is renewed and ready to walk. The path has been cleared and swept from both sides; one can enter it just off the unblazed spur that leads to Shamrock Lane, or else just to the side of where the orange trail crosses the creek. And now, instead of a perilous leap from one loose rock to another, there's a lovely, well-crafted durable bridge at the crossing
It's a modest addition -- the trail map lists it a .14 of a mile -- but add a lovely stroll along the creek, amidst mossy stones, and gives a view from the other side that would otherwise be unavailable. Hiking the whole trail system now extends to nearly 7/10 of a mile, and offers a half-hour walk at a leisurely pace, making Olivia's Forest a perfect trail system for new walkers or parents with young children. I walk it nearly every day, and can report that it's getting a good deal more use thanks to Tom's work in restoring, maintaining, and publicizing the preserve!
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