The Restoration of Echo Point

Parking in Hubbard Park on Saturday was out of the question. Parking on Reservoir Avenue, outside the park gate, was your only option.

Visit  #987, Saturday 21 November 15, 8:30-11:20AM, 5.8 miles.
Temps in the mid-30's, partly sunny.

Thanks are in order to Chris Bourdon of the Meriden Parks Department. He had the traffic cone and trash bag picked up which I left on the road last week.

With the Meriden Parks Department crew in full-throttle mode getting Hubbard Park ready for next week's Christmas display,  the access roads to the park were closed. Limited parking next to the skate house meant few could enter the park. Determined to fulfill my weekly duties, I found a spot on Reservoir Avenue. Astute observers paid attention to the No Parking signs on the north side of the road and parked on the south side.

Remember last week and mention of my Current, Soon To Be Revealed Special ProjectⓇ? Well, that project is finished.

Echo Point is located on the road around Merimere Reservoir. I first heard the name when it was mentioned to me by someone in their 60's, so it's been in existence for at least that long. It's also been neglected for all those years.

Here's what it looked like earlier this year.

 

It's name comes from the fact that you can truly produce an echo from the spot around the railing. But the view was being consumed by the trees. I decided I was going to try and restore some of that view.

All these had to go.

I had actually finished the majority of the cutting last week having done it in installments, and just needed to trim a few saplings.

I walked the road north, picking up trash as I went. I reached Echo Point and in five minutes, it was done. Granted, there are no leaves on the trees now, but the view is much more open now.

I'll revisit the spot next summer and post a comparison.

From the opposite shore of the reservoir, you can see all the trees I dropped.

 
Finished trimming, I walked to the north end of the reservoir and turned around. Teaser: Heading south along the road I spied something in the reservoir that the low water level has revealed. Next week's post will be all about it.

I returned to the park with a full trash bag and dropped it off before heading west to clean the trails between West Main Street and I-691. I was surprised to find so much trash considering the road has been closed to vehicles for a few weeks.

My other special assignment for this week was to remove some stickers recently placed in various places on the walkbridge over I-691 and at the gate across from Belmont Avenue. This is not the first time I've encountered this exact same sticker, so we have a serial stickerer on our hands in Hubbard Park. Thank goodness they purchased quality vinyl stickers; they came off easily in one piece.

 

 

At the Belmont Avenue end I turned around and covered a few more trails enroute to the parking lot, where I deposited my second bag of trash.

Happy Thanksgiving!