The most recent Linnean Park trail work was also a teaching moment

The May 22nd trail crew. (photos by John Burwell)

If you’ve walked the Linnean Park trail in the past couple of months, you may have noticed some improvements. For those, we can thank volunteers who have adopted the park, a pair of trail maintenance experts, the DC Department of Energy and the Environment (DOEE), and a group of young people being trained in the skills needed for green infrastructure jobs.

John Burwell, the chair and cofounder of the Linnean Park Partnership, sent us this account of the work performed on May 22nd.

Linnean Park trail improvements took place under the watchful eyes, callused hands and the hard earned knowledge of years of trail work experience from two members of the Potomac Appalachian Trail Club (PATC), Elizabeth and Don.

These seasoned PTAC volunteers led a crew of youthful muscle and eager enthusiasm from the Latin American Youth Center’s River Corps program. Six River Corps members (Robert Washington, Kevin Howell-Riley, Darius Jackson, Bill Davis, Camia Green, Kim Martinez, and Naimah Blake) did the heavy lifting – installing three check dams and a new waterbar – and performing maintenance on those existing erosion-reducing structures that help stabilize the trail.

Elizabeth and Don were informative and patient with the young men and women, sharing their valuable trail maintenance expertise and adding new skills to those in this session of River Corps cohorts.

Jim Woodworth, from the Maintenance and Pollution Prevention Branch of the Watershed Protection Division of DOEE, arranged payment and delivery of the raw materials needed for these improvements and we are thankful for the attention and concern Linnean Park has received to benefit the Forest Hills community.

About the Potomac Appalachian Trail Club – Rock Creek Crew: “We’re all about maintaining trails in Rock Creek Park in Washington, DC. No, the Appalachian Trail doesn’t actually meander this far east, but we don’t let that stop us.”

About River Corps (from layc-dc.org/rivercorps): “The River Corps Program engages District residents, ages 18–24, through classroom education and field-based experiences to gain technical skills needed to install, inspect, and maintain Green Infrastructure, and learn critical skills to secure employment.”