So many meadows
Finn Park
Finn Park is 50-acre area of woodland and meadow accessed via Maple Drive in Webster, just north of Route 104.
The park’s main feature is the Liberty Lodge, which is a very handsome log-house style design. Its landscaping, however, could use some attention because it looked pretty messy and weedy when I was there. There are also a few grills, a horseshoe pit, picnic tables and a playground. All of these amenities, however, we can assume are used pretty much only by families renting the lodge.
Aside from all of that, there’s not much to Finn Park. There is a 1.3-mile trail, which leads from the back of the lodge into the woods, and around a large meadow. Like the playground and grills, I suspect this trail is mostly used by lodge-renters, mostly because it’s not really worth the effort to go to the park just to walk it.
The on-line write-up about the park calls this a “handicap-accessible” trail, but I don’t think you’d want to take a wheelchair along the first part of this trail through the woods. The woodsy part is really the most interesting, however. Once it opens up to the meadow, you can walk around it, but once you’ve seen one side of a meadow, you’ve pretty much seen all sides. So I didn't bother walking it. The online info also says that this is an ideal monarch butterfly habitat, but I didn’t happen to see any.
The trail around the meadow is simply a path that’s mowed lower than the rest of the meadow grasses. I suppose that means it’s handicap-accessible.
Another reason that this is not one of my favorite trails is that nowhere in the park can you escape the constant sound of traffic from nearby Route 104, which is so loud it almost drowns out the birds. The meadow trail actually draws very near the highway.
The gallery below show the small playground; the trailhead behind the lodge, complete with a blank kiosk (maybe they'll add something to it soon); a look at where the trail exits the woods into the meadow; you can see the traffic on Rt. 104 and you can easily hear it; walking back through the woods, there's a nice Boy-Scout-built bridge over what would be a rushing stream were it not the middle of a very dry July, and a few random benches.
Gosnell Big Woods Preserve
The Gosnell Big Woods Preserve, on the other hand, is a great place to hike. There are three trails within the preserve itself, which total about 2.5 miles. But these trails also connect to others within the Webster trail system, so it’s possible to walk for many miles should you want to.
Gosnell Big Woods is located on Vosburg Road, which can be accessed from Lake Road to the west and Drumm Road to the south. There’s plenty of parking off of Vosburg.
True to its name, Gosnell is a dedicated preserve. That means there’s no picnic area (although there is one picnic table near the entrance), no grills, no bathrooms. Unlike Finn Park, you’re far enough away from main roads that it’s very quiet and peaceful.
I didn't hike all the trails, but I did do the Meadow Trail loop and the entire Big Field Trail.
The Meadow Trail is rather skinny, sandy and at points steep. Not great for young children. But it is beautiful and woodsy. The Big Field Trail, on the other hand, is wide and grassy. It encircles a huge meadow.
I know, I know, I just said that if you’ve seen one side of a meadow you’ve seen them all. But the Big Field is a significant feature of Gosnell, and its longest trail, so I felt the need to walk it.
I’m glad I did. The meadow is filled with wildflowers, which I’m sure make it a great honeybee and Monarch habitat. (I actually did see a Monarch in this meadow.) About halfway along the trail was a bench where you could rest and enjoy the solitude. This trail is hard packed enough that you could also ride a bike on it.
The only Gosnell trail I did not hike was the Big Woods Trail, after which the preserve is named. According to the Friends of Webster Trails website, it’s the best part of the preserve.
“The highlight of the Gosnell Big Woods Preserve is the awesome old growth ‘Big Woods’ parcel. Experts estimate that the oak, hickory and hemlock trees in these woods are as much as 350 years old, and many have grown to a girth of several feet around, their gnarled roots and well-textured trunks standing in stunning contrast to the younger trees that we see in our neighborhoods.”
Cool. I might go back just to see these old trees. There aren’t many of them around anymore.
The informational kiosk at the park entrance shows a fourth trail, the very short Overlook Trail, which was not marked on my map. I might have to check that short trail out as well. Overlooks are always worth the trip.
In the gallery below: The information kiosk at the Vosburg Rd. parking lot tells a little more about the Gosnell family and the preserve's habitats; a sign created with help from the Girl Scouts stands along the Meadow Trail; a typical scene on the sandy Meadow Trail; a typical scene along the Big Field Trail -- meadow, meadow and more meadow.
