If you have an interest in the Ashokan Rail Trail (ART) and in the management of invasive plant and animals in natural areas, join us at the first of two invasive species management plan stakeholder meetings. Catskill Center staff will present on the work to be completed in 2020 along the ART and discuss ideas for the management plan. We’ll take questions and feedback on how we can help protect the ART from the spread and growth of future invasive species. No prior knowledge of invasive species required to attend. Light snacks and beverages will be provided.

Opened in the fall of 2019, the Ashokan Rail Trail (“ART”) is a shared-use recreational trail running 11.5 miles along the northern edge of the Ashokan Reservoir between Basin Road in West Hurley and Route 28A in Boiceville. The ART was developed through a partnership of the County of Ulster and the New York City Department of Environmental Protection (“DEP”), which owns and operates the Ashokan Reservoir and adjacent lands. Input gathered at this and a follow-up meeting will be used in developing an invasive species management plan for the trail corridor.

The meeting will take place in the main conference room at the Olive Free Library in West Shokan, NY, located a few short miles from the new Boiceville trailhead of the Ashokan Rail Trail. Contact person: Olivia (obernard@catskillcenter.org/845-688-3369). Please RSVP if you can and feel free to ask any questions leading up to the event.

Photo credit: Andy Mossey