UConn Trail Marking Project
“Do not follow where the path may lead. Go instead where there is no path and leave a trail.”
Ralph Waldo Emerson
The University of Connecticut's forests are important resources for educational as well as recreational uses. In order to preserve these natural areas, while still encouraging public enjoyment of the the forest, several student group members cooperated in an effort to improve trail signage.
The goals of this initiatives are simple: The students created new signage in order to improve understanding of the University's forest resources and related conservation and management strategies. Also, their efforts will help to increase the safety of those individuals using the trail systems associated with the University forest lands.
Progress
With support from the members of the LUSD subcommittee, volunteer students from the Soil & Water Conservation Society, the Forestry Club, and the EcoHusky Student Group have designed and constructed trailhead markers to be installed at the six most highly trafficked and easily accessible trailheads of the Fenton Tract of the UConn Forest. These markers provide informational signage that will improve awareness of the University’s forest resources and related conservation efforts, as well as enlarged trail maps to increase the safety of the trail system’s users. The students have also made several trips into the tract to repaint the markers along the trails, and will continue to meet throughout the fall and summer to maintain the remaining trails. Ultimately, the workgroup hopes to use GIS technology to update the current map of the trail system, which will then be published online to further increase public safety related to use of the UConn forest.
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