By Scott Brinton
The conference recently adopted the trail, which runs through the Wantagh wetlands. The idea, said Richard Schary, is to eventually connect the wetlands with the Town of Hempstead's Twin Lakes Preserve in Wantagh and Mill Pond Park in Bellmore to create one large hiking trail.
The hope, he added, is that the trail will receive official status as a single connected park that would encompass state, county and town woodlands.
Last year, following a Herald series examining the Wantagh, Southern State and Meadowbrook Parkway woodlands, an intergovernmental group called the Unprotected Woodlands Task Force formed under the direction of Nassau County legislators David Denenberg (D-Merrick) and Norma Gonsalves (R-East Meadow). The task force includes state, county and town representatives from agencies such as the state Department of Environmental Conservation and the Department of Transportation.
Richard Schary said the idea for the park has received support from the task force, of which he is a member, representing the county's Open Space Committee.
Gonsalves, who has supported the trail and park ideas since they were first proposed more than two years ago, plans to attend Sunday's hike. Town of Hempstead Supervisor Kathleen Murray (R-Levittown) and Denenberg, who have also lent support to the project, have been invited to attend.
Schary said he believes the park proposal will go through. The only holdup is that the town must install three foot bridges at Twin Lakes Preserve to complete the trail. According to Schary, the town has agreed to make the improvement.
The new park, said Schary, would be passive, meaning no human activities would be allowed there except hiking. Schary believes that if concerned people regularly hike through the woodlands, there will be less vandalism in the forests, as hikers will report any criminal activities they spot.
This Sunday's 3- to 4-mile hike, titled "Hidden Treasures of Wantagh," is to get under way at Forest Lake School in Wantagh and will wind past streams, ponds and lakes and through forests and open fields.
Children over age 8 are welcome. The rain date is May 25. Bring a camera, something to drink (preferably water) and a snack. For more information, call (516) 826-8339.
