On Saturday November 27th, about two dozen adults, several children and a few canines braved the windy day to walk the newly paved Trolley Brook Trail.
Above photos by Matthew Marshquist
Above photos by Vijay Subramanian
Trolley Brook Trail - Ribbon Cutting Ceremony
Today town officials, volunteers and various supporters gathered to commemorate the opening of the Trolley Brook Trail with a ribbon cutting ceremony. The 1/2 mile long paved route connects from downtown Ashland, (Megunko road near Stone Park), to Memorial Drive, near the Ashland Middle School and the future site of the YMCA. This is just the first piece of the Ashland Upper Charles Trail, which will eventually connect Ashland to Sherborn, Holliston, Milford and Hopkinton and points beyond.
Above photos by Philip Bosinoff
Ribbon Cutting
First biker (Preston Crow) to use Trolley Brook Trail after Official Opening Ceremony
Above photos by Matthew Marshquist
Town officials and members of the Ashland Upper Charles Trail Committee hold the ribbon while Jenn Ball prepares to cut it. (Photo by Ashley Place)
The five-town, regional Upper Charles Trail, which was originally envisioned by Reno Deluzio of Milford and Robert Weidknecht of Holliston, was brought to life here in Ashland through the efforts of the Ashland Upper Charles Trail Committee with strong support from the many people and organizations listed below.
The Friends of the Ashland Upper Charles Trail would like to extend our deep appreciation to the various volunteers, staff and leaders who helped to provide guidance, planning, engineering, labor, funding and promotion of the trail.
The Ashland Upper Charles Trail Committee-Joel Arbeitman, Valerie Paul, Tony Lewis, Doug Costello, Preston Crow, David Rosenblum, Rob Scherer, Marty Ring, Chuck Lidz, and past members William Child and Rick Hampson.
The Ashland Select Board– Joe Magnani, Yolanda Greaves, Steve Mitchell, Brandi Kinsman, Rob Scherer
Town of Ashland Staff
Michael Herbert – Town Manager
Jenn Ball – Assistant Town Manager
Peter Matchak - Town Planner
Beth Reynolds - Director of Economic Development and Community Outreach
Ashley Place - Communications and Cultural Coordinator
Diane Mortenson – Personnel/Financial Assistant
Commonwealth of Massachusetts
Karen Spilka – represented at the opening by Susan Nicholl
Jack Lewis - State Representative for Ashland and Framingham
Peter Sutton - MassDOT Bicycle & Pedestrian Coordinator
Kevin Hollenbeck and Paul Jahnige - DCR State Parks
Libby Knott and Amanda Lewis - DCR Mass Trails Grant Program
David Loutzenheiser- MAPC Senior Transportation Planner
Friends of the Ashland Upper Charles Trail- Matthew Marshquist, Philip Bosinoff, Kamatchi Vijayakumar, Vijay Subramanian, Judy Rosenthal, Steve Crocetti, Scott Little, Cathy Rooney, Greg Wands
Project team
Bill Paille – BSC Group (Engineering Project Manager)
Mark McCloud – Ramco Survey Stake Co. (contractor which built the trail))
Community supporters
Aaron Ladd - Ashland Community Preservation Committee (CPC)
Rick MacPherson - President & CEO of MetroWest YMCA
Peter Waisgerber - Chief Development Officer of MetroWest YMCA
Rick Alberini (business owner abutting the trail)
Media - WACA TV
Trolley Brook Trail Progress - September 29, 2021
Wonderful progress continues on the trail; see the photos below, taken today 9/29/2021. A couple of very friendly surveyors were busy marking the trail with orange markers: orange rocks in the exact center, and vertical orange stakes marking the precise edge of the path. They said the pavement will stop two feet inside the edge markers, and those two feet will be filled with gravel and loam.
The river crossing appears ready to receive the new bridge, which is temporarily sitting beside the trail. Paving will begin after the bridge is set in place.
The slope up to Memorial Drive is remarkably smooth and gradual compared to before trail construction began.
Photos courtesy of Philip Bosinoff
Trolley Brook Trail Progress - July 5, 2021
Exciting news! The Trolley Brook Trail portion of the Ashland Upper Charles Trail is funded and construction has begun! Paving is underway. Four of us, including Tony and Phil, walked the trail on July 5 to see the progress.
It has all been widened, with trees either already removed or labeled to be removed. Green trail barriers (erosion control) mark the trail width. At this point it appears the trail surface is flattened at full width from the Megunko Rd. entrance up to the bridge.
See the photos below. Compare with how the trail looked in prior Trolley Brook blog posts.
You may recall the small bridge along the trail. That bridge has been replaced with a much larger, still temporary, one. It is our understanding that the final trail will have a 30 foot bridge here! Compare an older photo on the left with the newer ones. You can even see the old bridge - two boards - in the bottom right photo.
Photos courtesy of Philip Bosinoff
Winter Walk - March 1, 2020
We had a great turnout at our Winter Walk along the Trolley Brook Trail. It was a tad chilly, but the sun was shining and all the adults, children, and dogs had a terrific walk. Afterwards most participants headed over to Dulce D Leche and had a free cookie or pastry along with their purchased beverage (often hot chocolate, which many rated quite delicious!)
Below are some contributed photos to remember the event.
Above photos courtesy of Vijay Subramanian
Above photos courtesy of Philip Bosinoff
Above photos courtesy of Rajashree Ghosh
Trolley Brook Trail Clearing
Vijay submitted some photos from a November 23 Trolley Brook Trail clearing event.
There will be more Trolley Brook Trail clearing events to come, including ones where additional volunteers will be most welcome!
Above photos courtesy of Vijay Subramanian
Dike Trail Walk on June 9, 2019
Once again we were treated to a great weather day for a walk! It was a sunny 80 degree blue sky day. The Friends, and friends of Friends, consisted of a group of 17 adults, one child, and two dogs. We walked along the Dike Trail from Rt. 126 to the Sherborn train tracks, and back.
Above photos courtesy of Philip Bosinoff
Above photos courtesy of Rajashree Ghosh
Above photos courtesy of Vijay Subramanian
Trolley Brook Trail Walk on April 7, 2019
The weather cooperated beautifully for the Trolley Brook Trail walk. Many of the town’s residents showed up to enjoy the gorgeous spring day and to learn about this historic trail. About 40 people including several children and three dogs made the approximately half mile walk each way to learn about this old trolley line that used to connect Hopkinton to Ashland. After some brief introductions, Matt Marshquist of this Friends of Ashland Upper Charles Trail group got us started in two separate groups, the first led by Tony Lewis, the second by himself. Joel Arbeitman, of the Ashland Upper Charles Trail committee was present to inform us of some of the historic details of the trail as we walked it.
Below are some photographs to help document the day.
Above photos courtesy of Philip Bosinoff