Last week, we traveled to the Northeast for our Backyard Collective in Concord, Massachusetts. Hosted by the Vibram USA team, volunteers from Eastern Mountain Sports, NEMO Equipment, ECCO & Revolution House Media commuted from near and far to participate in trail building and restoration organized by our partners at the Appalachian Mountain Club with the cooperation of Concord Land Conservation Trust and the Town of Concord.
Volunteers put their hands, pulaskis, mcclouds, and loppers to good use to build and clear trails at two public lands locations. A team of volunteers carpooled to nearby Wright Woods, an area that links Walden Pond Reservation with the Sudbury River and conservation land of the Town of Concord.
We also sent a team by foot to the Domino Nocella park where volunteers removed poison ivy, Japanese knotweed and one large appliance.
A small feast from Nashoba Bakery was onhand for the returning volunteers, followed up by nonprofit presentations and a pop quiz.
Kristen Sykes, Director of Conservation Strategies at the Appalachian Mountain Club shared maps and information about The Bay Circuit Trail and Greenway, a 200 mile long trail that connects thousands of acres of conservation land with 57 communities surrounding Boston. Though it is in their backyard, 90% complete and open to the public, few in attendance knew of its existence.
Learning about local lands preserved and cared for by the work of grantees is one of the gifts of our Backyard Collective events.
As always it was the team effort that made the day memorable. Many thanks to Clif Bar for the nourishment, ECCO for the raffle prize and Vibram for sharing a sweet surprise with our attendees-everyone was invited to a five fingers fitting and walked away with their own pair.
Thank you New England, we look forward to our next visit!