As of yesterday, Autumn Hill Reservation parking lot remained unplowed as well.
For now, please park at Smoyer Park or drive to the back of Stone Hill Church,
and park near this shed. The trail leading into Herrontown Woods is just beyond it.As of yesterday, Autumn Hill Reservation parking lot remained unplowed as well.
For now, please park at Smoyer Park or drive to the back of Stone Hill Church,
and park near this shed. The trail leading into Herrontown Woods is just beyond it.A big step has been taken by FOHW to make the red trail--the main trail route in Herrontown Woods--fully usable year-round. In the past, trails in the preserve would dry out in summer as the trees pulled moisture out of the ground, then cold weather would harden the ground in winter. But as rains have increased in New Jersey, and mild winters often fail to freeze the ground, the season when trails are soft and muddy has expanded. Though volunteers have laid hundreds of stepping stones along trails in Herrontown Woods, a 500 foot section in the northwest corner of the preserve has long seemed beyond remedy. A reroute two years ago on what appeared to be drier ground quickly turned to mud, as foot traffic broke down the delicate root structures that had held the highly organic soil together.
This year, however, we set about making a more permanent fix. It began, as most major initiatives do in Herrontown Woods, with Kurt Tazelaar focusing his energy on the problem. First came a reworking of large stepping stones to cross the stream. He then stockpiled 100 large stepping stones along a pathway leading into the preserve from Stone Hill Church, occasionally assisted by family and friends. The stones came from the Windy Top development on Snowden, where periodic excavations for new homes have for years now been our handy go-to for stones that vary from small to massive.Herein lies the story of the moving of the gazebo and shed, which played out from August through November in that year of years, 2020.
At some point this gazebo and shed will come to look like they've been in the Princeton Botanical Art Garden forever. But so involved and challenging proved the moving of them from their original home at 145 Ewing Street that, when we eased the gazebo's four posts back down onto its base, it felt like we'd just pulled off a mission to the moon.2020 saw a rapid acceleration of creative work at Herrontown Woods, riding a tide of interest and new visitors displaced from their routines and the indoors by the pandemic. Some key improvements to trails were made. Veblen House received some painting, cleaning, regrading, landscaping, historical researching, and weatherizing. What we now call the Princeton Botanical Art Garden became a focus of volunteer energy, aided by regular workdays. Native plantings are filling in, and now are complemented by structures that are unique in shape and style, and a matrix of pathways that kids love to explore. Families in particular have been grateful for this new destination for discovery and delight, with one parent calling the botanical garden "a lifeline." On the 140th year of his birth, Oswald Veblen's legacy was celebrated by an article in Princeton Magazine and by Princeton University's President Eisgruber in his annual State of the University report.
THE PRINCETON BOTANICAL ART GARDEN
HISTORICAL WORK
EVENTS
On October 24, the Princeton First Aid and Rescue Squad (PFARS) came to Herrontown Woods to conduct an exercise in backwoods rescue. All of this came about through the initiative of Friends of Herrontown Woods board member Inge Regan, who is an emergency room doctor.
Since then, with help from a crew contracted by Princeton, FOHW has been battling a massive clone of wisteria that had already overwhelmed and downed several trees. But nothing compares to this year's transformation of the forest by Kurt Tazelaar, who built the trail using large stepping stones scavenged from the building site, and cut down masses of invasive shrubs that were clogging the understory and blocking views of the scenic valley. The trail includes several carefully crafted stream crossings and passes by some impressive trees that have thrived on the slopes overlooking the stream.
The trail can be accessed by heading down the red trail from the parking lot, then taking a left just before or after reaching the stream.
Other projects Kurt undertook in this year were scenic bypasses of two badly eroded sections of the red trail, and some clearing of invasive shrubs near the cliff. After nearly a year fighting an illness, Kurt was able to return and has again made a big difference in Herrontown Woods this year.