Hikers Need Your Help To Clean Up Bulkley Park Saturday

Ed "Rocky Hill Hiker" Chiucarello is asking Rocky Hill residents to join him and other members of the Rocky Hill Riverfront Preservation Society Saturday, June 22 at 8 a.m. at Bulkley Park for a work party.

The group will meet in the parking lot where Chiucarello will be there handing out tasks.

"We need to clear newly made paths of branches and take care of some overgrown areas," Chiucarello said. "You should wear long pants and shirt or bug spray as there are lots of mosquitos and some poison ivy. If you have tools like a lopper, pruner, shovel, hoe or rake that would be great too."

Chiucarello said his reasons for doing this are simple. 

"A good hiker is always making a trail better," he said. "When I'm walking on any trail I'm always clearing a branch or picking up litter. That's the  hiking philosophy I was raised with. Maybe it was the Cub Scouts, or my dad, or all my granola eating friends that walk the trails. I've lived the 'Leave No Trace' lifestyle for a long time. 

"I've had an interest in walking the trails in Rocky Hill ever since I moved into town in 1995. The first place I explored was the Great Meadows along the Connecticut River. There are over a 1,000 acres of land down there. I used to bring my son when he was a little boy and we'd walk from the Ferry into the Meadows and back through Quarry park."

He said his real interest began later, however, as he became more active in town. 

"I started to really get involved with park improvement around 2010," he said. "I read the Park and Rec Master Plan which described the goal of a Linear Trail in Rocky Hill. There are Linear Trails in many towns in Connecticut, the Airline Trail, the Farmington Canal Trail. After I learned of this goal I started to make maps. Rocky Hill offers a free GIS system on its Town website. So I download a few maps and put them in a powerpoint. Once I figured which side of the map should be up I was on my way."

His work at Dividend Pond has not gone unnoticed. He made it a goal to clean up the area. 

"In 2011 I took on Dividend Pond as a personal goal," Chiucarello said. "It was really in pretty bad shape. Lots of tires, litter, couches, metal and brush all over the place. I started to call myself the 'Rocky Hill Hiker' and asked everyone I talked to if they were interested in joining my Hiking Club. Right now I have 100 people that have said yes. At least 50 of them have volunteered to help clean Dividend. Rocky Hillians old and young, Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts  spent over 400 hours out there. 

"Working with Parks and Rec Director Lisa Zerio and State Archaeologist Nick Bellantoni the volunteers helped to bring June Cooke's original plan to fruition. June researched and uncovered 10 archaeological sites out there. DPT is a State Archaeological Preserve. And now, thanks to Rep Tony Guerrera who attained an $88,000 grant DPT will be transformed even further."

So what does he hope to accomplish by this?

"My goal is to work with others on the Park and Rec. goal of a Linear Trail. I am in the midst of making a map for every walking trail in Rocky Hill. I've met with the Park and Rec. Advisory Board  a few times in 2011 and we are meeting again this July.

"We have an excellent opportunity right now, with the Foundry property being developed, to make the River section of the Linear Trail. The River trail would extend from Quarry Park, in the North, to Bulkley Park in the South. It would pass through Ferry Park and the new Tulisano park that is being proposed at the River's Edge. This is exciting. Walking trails make towns more friendly and attractive. They help build community pride. Walking trails are a good selling feature for real estate, not to mention good exercise."

If none of these facts entice people to come out and help the hikers clean up the trails, Chiucarello resorts to another tactic. 

"I'll tell you a secret about Bulkley Park that'll get you and others out there quick - Captain Kid buried his treasure there," Chiucarello said. "Volunteerism is an important part of my upbringing. My 91-year old dad has given service all his life to the church, to scouting to a friend in need and family of course. I feel lucky to be able to walk in the woods and clear a path in my own back yard of Rocky Hill.

"Bulkley Park is a small 25 acre parcel that was given to the town in the early 1900s I think. It can't ever be built on. People have been in there before doing the same thing that we are doing. Making the park better for others. Bob Ludwig, a neighbor, helped blaze the first trails in there. He also blazed Quarry Park. He will be there tomorrow with his bad back and his loppers. He is an amazing volunteer."