A Walk Through Open Space Along Point O’ Rocks

By Kendra Bobowick

Tree limbs placed in parallel lines led Conservation Commission members along a trail etched on one of Newtown’s open space parcels along Point O’ Rocks Road.

Glancing at clouds sprinkling fits of rain and wondering if a shower would wash away their field trip Tuesday afternoon, commission Chair Joe Hovious and members Marjorie Cramer, Mary Kaley, Pat Barkman, Mary Gaudet-Wilson, George Ferguson, and Martha Wright found a post indicating Newtown open space for a parcel where surveying has begun. An access point and boundaries to the parcel have not yet been marked.

Interested to see the town property, however, the group hiked on along the dirt road, past a grove of invasive autumn olive, bright pink wild azalea, and endless rows of garlic weed with its pale green leaves and white flowers. Ms Barkman leaned down and reached what she could to pull it up by the roots. Several hundred yards along where Deep Brook Road merges with Point O’ Rock, the group marched past private residences and chose an path into the forest leading to a swath dropping down toward a power line. An official entrance has not yet been distinguished from private property, Mr Hovious warned.

Looking at the opening leading toward dense tree cover, Ms Barkman guessed the clearing might be an old logging road. Further evidence of a human hand were the yellow triangular markers along trees declaring a Newtown trailway.

Surveying posts like the one the group had first passed will soon be in place to define the property boundaries. The markers will prevent trespass on private property, but also indicate the areas where the public can walk the land. “We have open space and we want to use it and enjoy it,” Ms Cramer noted.

Following a wildlife path through the marsh as water began to pool where a deer’s hooves had been, Mr Hovious noted, “This is a very walkable trail.” On the ground were turkey feathers, an animal’s jaw bone, curls of old cattle wire, and stonewalls standing as remnants of lifestyles past. Pushing aside tendrils of an emerging invasive multiflora rose, Mr Ferguson said, “The funny thing is, you can [walk] this and no one knows about it. Easements — some don’t allow public access, but when they do, it’s great.”

As groundwater soaked her hiking boots, Ms Barkman walked beside Ms Wright, as the two women scratched their memories for botanical names, identifying small, budding undergrowth and blooming wildflowers on the woodland floor. Yanking out strands of bittersweet, Ms Barkman pointed to one strangled tree where the vine had wound around the trunk. Despite the weeds crowding the native plants, Ms Cramer looked around her at the woods: “This is wonderful; we need more of it.” In addition to the portions of the parcel the town had purchased are areas preserved through conservation easements — a choice landowners can make.

Although a complete surveying was not in evidence Tuesday, the conservation members were able to walk the combination of easements and open space, enjoying the town-owned property.

As budget funds allow, the commission members intend to mark all of Newtown’s more than 1,800 acres of open space — some small, some large, Mr Hovious said.

Residents that would like to learn more about land preservation and conservation easements can contact the Newtown Land Use Agency at 270-4350 and ask for deputy director Rob Sibley.

Visit www.Newtown-ct.gov and select the town department link to read more about the town’s Plan of Conservation and Development. The site also states, “The Conservation Commission is mandated under state statute to advise and regulate the natural resources for the town of Newtown.”