Last week, FOTW staff met with Town of Essex Parks staff, Zoning staff, Stormwater and Town Engineers to review the final design plans for the Saxon Summit Loop. This was the final step before moving forward to construction. We fielded a number of questions about drainage, limits of soil disturbance and feature design (real exciting stuff folks!)
If we still have your attention after that riveting opening paragraph, let’s talk more about this trail. Almost four years ago, we began to understand that the access to the summit trails at Saxon Hill is not certain. With two private parcels on the Mojo climb, we needed a way to secure access to the summit. This led to the idea of the new summit climbing trail.
The terrain on the summit is steep, ledgey and already packed with trails. To get to the top we knew we needed something machine built. At one of our board meetings, Brittany Garland our board president suggested that we make this a loop. If we have a blue flow inspired climb, we need something of equal caliber for a descent, hence the summit loop. Brilliant idea Brittany, we all thank you!
One of our major goals with this project was to add a new route without sacrificing any of the trails we know and love at Saxon Hill. We didn’t want to re-imagine an old trail, we just wanted a better way to the top and something thrilling for the way down. From this, we began flagging for a new climb trail, a new decent trail, and a section of Outer DH and Pumptrack that will be rerouted at the bottom to funnel into a shared exit back to the climb trail. This adds a total of 1.2 miles of trail to the network!
There is a difference between making a trail worth checking out, and one worth coming back for, again and again. When we met with contractors we learned there is a large range of pricing for a project like this. Several high end builders shared with us that construction could cost $55,000 at the low end and $110,000 at the high end. The difference is a flat featureless trail versus something with flow, features and fun for everyone.
The FOTW board discussed and we want to aim high! We want this trail to be one of the best in the state, think Little River, Cady Hill Florence, or some of the most recent high end builds at the Driving Range. The more we invest, the better our collective future.
To date, we have raised $80,500 through 7 different grants and community sponsors. We need to raise $25,000 dollars to make this trail something truly special. That’s where you come in. We can’t do this alone. Our fundraising drive for the Saxon Summit Loop is kicking off today! This is an investment to the community and it’s your turn to show us it’s important to you as well. Help us build something great.