POSTED | June 18, 2009 - Dorothy Fletcher
Boardwalk Declared Open
PRESQU'ILE MARSH BOARDWALK DECLARED OPEN
Photo Don Davis
On Sunday, June 14th, local MPP Lou Rinaldi and Mayor of Brighton Chris Herrington formally opened The Marsh Boardwalk Trail by unveiling the trailhead sign. Under blue skies, hundreds of visitors enjoyed the event and were given commemorative certificates for walking the one-kilometre trail.
In May 2005, the Marsh Boardwalk at Presqu'ile Provincial Park was removed after being deemed to be no longer safe for people to walk on. The boardwalk was a very popular feature at Presqu'ile and was used by school groups, birders and the general public.
The Friends of Presqu'ile took on the project raising $300,000 for materials and providing a total of 9000 hours of volunteer labour to construct the Boardwalk. Thanks for this tremendous effort were formally brought by MPP Lou Rinaldi, Mayor Herrington, Park Superintendent Tom Mates, Friends of Presqu'ile Chair Craig Kerr, Site Supervisor Bill Wilson and Fundraiser Pete Alker. Bill Wilson particularly praised the tireless work of the volunteers through sometimes extreme conditions.
Photo Jenny Alker
Some of the volunteers who built the boardwalk
"To date we have raised $306,710.91 and built over 800 meters of boardwalk, one tower and three teaching zones. We now have enough monies to cover the cost of materials, interpretive signage and a publication for children to use on the boardwalk."
"We should have enough in the coffers to pay for next year's student interpreters who will provide these educational programmes and any other monies donated to the boardwalk will be devoted to this element," said Pete Alker.
Building work will recommence in August to build the final tower and spur, and interpretive signage will be designed and installed by spring 2010.
Photo Don Davis
Some of the hundreds of people who walked the Boardwalk on Opening Day
Editors note
The whole trail from edge of parking lot to edge of parking lot is 1127 metres with 854 metres of boardwalk in two sections (777m and 77m)
Trail length 1127 m or 3697 feet or 0.70 miles
Total boardwalk 854 m or 2801 feet or 0.53 miles
Continuous boardwalk 777m or 2549 feet or 0.48 miles
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