Red Trail Tops April 20 Mine Falls Clean-Up List

Contributed by Mine Falls Advisory Committee

The major project for the Saturday, April 20 Trail Day at Mine Falls Park will be the continued renovation of the Red Trail along with a general clean-up of the park after a long winter.

The Red Trail has been given many nicknames over the years, the last being the roller coaster by middle school,  high school and college track teams who practice runs on the Red Trail. Other names given to the rough and somewhat hilly trail are the GI Jane Trail, Gorilla Trail and the Root Route as  it is one of the most difficult trails to master. Cross Country meets have been held on this trail through the years which runs alongside the power canal and Mill Pond leading to the Gatehouse.

Mine Falls Park  Advisory Committee member Dick Gillespie and Volunteer Dick Larose will lead two teams of nine volunteers each in an effort to repair the badly rooted and eroded trail, stated chairman Greg Andruskevich.

Andruskevich also praised Nashua Park Recreation Superintendent Nick Caggiano for all the help in planning and getting the needed equipment in place for each trail day during the spring and summer months.

"His continued perseverance in helping to keep the park the gem that it is is really appreciated by every member of the committee and I'm sure the general public which utilizes the park daily," he said. Park Recreation crews play a key role in keeping the park in tip-tip condition," Andruskevich addded, "kudos to them." 

The Trail Day will run from 9 a.m. until noon, rain or shine.  Volunteers are needed to man the various tasks planned for the three-hour tour. The clean-up of the park continues the monthly series sponsored by the Mine Falls Park Advisory Committee. Those who participate in Trail Days will receive a T-shirt. The registration process is headed by retired Nashua High teacher Peter Testa. He welcomes his former students to come and help in keeping the park in its natural state.

Among other projects planned according to Andruskevich and vice chairman David Silva  will be the reclamation of the Canal Trail by Second Street at the Seventh Street entrance and a general cleaning of the Cove area to include the cleaning of birdhouses placed there. Guiding his venture will be committee member Ed Moran, the committee's paintover expert. Longtime member Mark Soucy will oversee the cleaning of an area called the Triangle where an Everett Turnpike overpass goes over the Nashua Power  Canal. Pam Anderson and Mike Dillon will head a team in the cleaning of six pedestrian bridge crossings,  especially  the Lincoln Park footbridge which leads visitors into Mine Falls Park over the Nashua River.

Trail Days involve a general clean-up in the park and some renovation of existing trails and bridges. Trail Day participants are urged to meet at the Lincoln Park entrance to Mine Falls at 9 a.m. on Saturday, April 20 dressed appropriately for "yard work." The entrance is off Exit 6 behind Hannaford supermarket. The clean-up and renovation time runs from 9 a.m. until noon.  

Those interested may also contact the Mine Falls Advisory Committee at 603-589-3400, box 5005.

Bikers, walkers, wildlife enthusiasts from New Hampshire and Massachusetts who make use of the park are urged to participate in this once-a-month endeavor during the warmer months of the year.

Mine Falls Park is one of the most instantly recognizable areas of the city of Nashua. The park is located in the heart of the city and was purchased in 1969. The 325-acre park includes, forests, bike and walking trails, fishing areas and open fields. Visitors enjoy numerous passive recreational opportunities including walking, jogging, boating, fishing, cross-country skiing and biking along with several soccer fields and a lighted softball field.

Park hours are from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m.