All,
It has been a while since I have roamed around the Parker Preserve using the entrance at Chatsworth Lake, so this morning Jessica and I did just that. I have a few photo's that I took beginning in 2004 in this part of the preserve, so I figured I would also visit those locations to see how they have changed.
In September 2004 Bobpbx and I attended the dedication ceremonies for the Franklin Parker Preserve and I took this photo of Franklin Parker at the sign they put right in one of the bogs.
One year later (6 years ago) Jessica and I visited there again.
And the same location today.
When Bob and I were walking to the dedication in 2004 we were walking alongside Congressman Jim Florio and I took a photo of Bob with him.
The same location today.
They now have street signs
In November of 2004 PBX was granted permission to hike the preserve before the public was allow to go there. Here is our group photo which included the late Bob Bruneau. Member Ed Campbell is also there on the far right.
Today, they have dug the road up at the same location and there are large plastic pipes under the road. The rise in the road is where the pipes go under.
They built an observation tower on the roof of one of the old pump houses, and if you want to visit there you should go soon. In a few years the view will surely be hampered by the growing vegetation. Oh, BTW, watch for the poison ivy by the steps. Also, look very closely for the Apple Pie Hill Fire Tower in this photo. It is there.
Jessica calls these a "keyboard." She so wanted to write all the characters on each key and type a letter.
Apple Pie Hill way in the distance.
Jessica playing around in the pipes.
Then we headed down the tracks and tried different routes to get back to our car. At each decision we were blocked and had to turn around. We bushwhacked through some serious woods spending over an hour trying to do what should have taken 15 minutes. Jessica started to overheat and on several occasions she was throwing up. A few times she felt faint and frustration was high. Eventually we made it out to 532 and back to our car.
Just before reaching 532 we found this yellow morel which is an edible mushroom that are prized by gourmet cooks all over the world.
After spending a few hours at this Parker Preserve location, I can say I am disappointed on how they have blocked off many of the dikes. Granted, they may be putting the "keyboards" at some of the locations in the future, but if you look over an aerial map while traversing this area you may not be able to get down the dike you had wanted to go down. Your best bet is to follow the trail signs which unfortunately I usually avoid. In any event, I recommend you visit this place soon, even though it appears to me not many people do. It seems a waste to have all this land available to visit when it appears not many do.
Guy
It has been a while since I have roamed around the Parker Preserve using the entrance at Chatsworth Lake, so this morning Jessica and I did just that. I have a few photo's that I took beginning in 2004 in this part of the preserve, so I figured I would also visit those locations to see how they have changed.
In September 2004 Bobpbx and I attended the dedication ceremonies for the Franklin Parker Preserve and I took this photo of Franklin Parker at the sign they put right in one of the bogs.
One year later (6 years ago) Jessica and I visited there again.
And the same location today.
When Bob and I were walking to the dedication in 2004 we were walking alongside Congressman Jim Florio and I took a photo of Bob with him.
The same location today.
They now have street signs
In November of 2004 PBX was granted permission to hike the preserve before the public was allow to go there. Here is our group photo which included the late Bob Bruneau. Member Ed Campbell is also there on the far right.
Today, they have dug the road up at the same location and there are large plastic pipes under the road. The rise in the road is where the pipes go under.
They built an observation tower on the roof of one of the old pump houses, and if you want to visit there you should go soon. In a few years the view will surely be hampered by the growing vegetation. Oh, BTW, watch for the poison ivy by the steps. Also, look very closely for the Apple Pie Hill Fire Tower in this photo. It is there.
Jessica calls these a "keyboard." She so wanted to write all the characters on each key and type a letter.
Apple Pie Hill way in the distance.
Jessica playing around in the pipes.
Then we headed down the tracks and tried different routes to get back to our car. At each decision we were blocked and had to turn around. We bushwhacked through some serious woods spending over an hour trying to do what should have taken 15 minutes. Jessica started to overheat and on several occasions she was throwing up. A few times she felt faint and frustration was high. Eventually we made it out to 532 and back to our car.
Just before reaching 532 we found this yellow morel which is an edible mushroom that are prized by gourmet cooks all over the world.
After spending a few hours at this Parker Preserve location, I can say I am disappointed on how they have blocked off many of the dikes. Granted, they may be putting the "keyboards" at some of the locations in the future, but if you look over an aerial map while traversing this area you may not be able to get down the dike you had wanted to go down. Your best bet is to follow the trail signs which unfortunately I usually avoid. In any event, I recommend you visit this place soon, even though it appears to me not many people do. It seems a waste to have all this land available to visit when it appears not many do.
Guy
