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An Informal Survey of the CT River Walk & Bikeway (Part 3)

by Bill Dusty

On Part Three of our journey along the Connecticut River Walk and Bikeway, we explored the North End section of the pathway leading up to the Chicopee line. We started out on Wason Street, about a couple of hundred yards south of the city line, and walked southward to the North End Bridge and Bassett Boat, where we had ended our previous expedition.

Our trip began at Wason Avenue (which turns into Riverside Road, above), off of Main Street in the North End of Springfield. There is no parking here other than the roadside.

On our trip was our leader, Sheila McElwaine, and concerned citizens Mark Hambley, Bob McCarroll and myself. Below is a transcript of Sheila McElwaine’s report on our trip. There are also some photos I took, and at the very end of this post is a 9-minute video [go there now] of our trek along the bike trail.

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TODAY’S WALK: At 9:00 this morning, four of us (Bob McCarroll with dog Cho-cho, Bill Dusty, Mark Hambley and I) walked from Wason Avenue to Route 20 (West Street). Because it is high and abuts a quiet residential neighborhood, this leg of the biketrail feels much safer than other stretches. The only people we met were dog walkers and a runner; all were friendly and polite and said they used the trail all the time and felt safe there. There was considerable graffiti on pumping station boxes and the flood wall, but only a small amount of litter and junk (including a waterlogged couch along the river bank). Several open pits or holes remain where lights or signs may have been planned or placed at one time.

OTHER NEWS: Proposed Ramp – Bob told us that Phase 2 of the Main Street rehab project by VHB and MassHighway includes an accessible ramp from M Street to the top of the flood wall there. This came up during VHB’s presentation to the Historical Commission’s last meeting. Scott Hanson will talk to Bob about this project which would add another universally accessible way to get onto the trail. It would be nice to include more information about the ramp in our file on the trail.

Invasive Plants: An area of concern was the rapid regrowth of invasive plants. These including Japanese bamboo and ailanthus trees which promise to block river views within a few more weeks if the weather stays hot and abundant swags of bittersweet and poison ivy draping most riverside trees. Letters have been sent to the Springfield Conservation Commission expressing concern about the vine problem, but no response has been received. Bob suggested asking to get on their agenda; Alicia Zeller staffs the commission.

Ticks: Bob reports a severe tick infestation along the dike beyond the paved path. Explorers beware!

Walk and Bikeway as Parkland: Pat Sullivan said on Monday that he would be in favor of taking the Springfield leg of the CT River Bike and Walkway as park land. He is willing to talk to us and will be available after the city budget is set (July 1).

Meeting with David Panagore: Chris Curtis suggested we might want to meet with the city’s Chief Development Officer, David Panagore; he will set up a meeting.

Downtown Signs: Chris Curtis of the PVPC says money is available for signs to be placed in downtown Springfield. Information is needed about how much money there is and how many signs it might buy.

Elevator: Deryk Roach of the Department of Parks, Buildings and Recreation Management was to be getting bids for repair of the elevator leading to the skywalk, but there is no word as to where this stands at the present time.

Boating facility: Jonathon Moss and Jim Buker are interested in starting a boating program, including a program for city kids, near Riverfront Park. They had preliminary discussions with Mayor Ryan and Pat Sullivan. They inherited boats and other equipment from a program previously run by the downtown YMCA. Bob has also wondered aloud about who might know the location of a channel in the river and whether it might be marked with buoys.

Walk with planners and homeless coordinator: The walk along the central part of the trail between Riverfront Park and Route 20 originally scheduled for tomorrow has been postponed due to the heat. It will be rescheduled for later in the month, vacation schedules permitting.

Proposed “Biketrail Week”: Bob suggests we think about the idea of a Biketrail Week during which there would be scheduled guided walks at a range of lunch times and possible on Saturday and Sunday as well. The idea would be to provide trail newcomers with a safe way to sample what the trail has to offer. Potential markets include downtown workers and residents, families looking for outdoor activities, physical fitness buffs and cyclists, and guests in downtown hotels.

* * * * * * * * *- End of transcript.

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Walking south. Riverside Road is to the left.

We passed by many old trees along the way.

Unfortunately, the smooth surface of the retainer wall that runs along the pathway, as well as other surfaces, provided ample canvass space for graffiti.

A riverside path runs parallel to the Bikeway for much of the area from the Chicopee line to about a hundred yards or so before the North End Bridge. Here at the river bank, an old couch was found – presumably for a comfortable seat while fishing, along with some dead fish and eels that had been hacked up as bait.

Our southward trek ended at the pillars of the North End Bridge and Bassett Boat, just across the street.

Looking north…

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An Informal Survey of the CT River Walk & Bikeway (Part 3)

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Posted by Bill Dusty on Jun 11th, 2008 and filed under Society, Springfield. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. Both comments and pings are currently closed.