Trail Update: A Path into the Lowell Woods

Don't arrest me for trespassing, but I could not resist checking out the trail that is still under construction at Fox Meadow. After following the stone dust portion to some steps that lead back up to the entrance to Fox Meadow, I followed the sidewalk around to the small parking area and discovered the path has been cleared and mulched down to the old carriage road that leads into Lowell Woods. I recorded my whole run (including the mile and a half up Gay Street) on a map below:

This map illustrates opportunities to access Lowell Woods from Fox Meadow, Sandy Valley Road, Cedar Hill, and the Hanlon School. Parts of the trail I ran were very overgrown still, but it will not take much to make this a viable trail run/hike.

The only "dicey" part of this run remains Gay Street, but some improvements are coming there too. The section of Gay Street that was repaved last year between Milk and Thatcher will be re-striped with white "fog lines" measured 11' from the yellow centerline instead of the default 12 or more feet. This will create a bit of a marked shoulder that should make the road appear narrower and encourage people in cars to consider that a runner or cyclist could be on the shoulder. The segment at the bottom of the hill (Milk St) and up to Buckboard remains narrow and dangerous for runners--don't try this run at 8am!