Improvements to Thurmont Trails

New trail at Eyler Road Park.

Improvements

to Several Thurmont Trails

By Jim Humerick, Chief Administrative Officer – Town of Thurmont

Thanks to grant funding from the Maryland Dept. of Natural Resources’ Program Open Space grants, there has been some great trail improvements completed recently in Thurmont.

The recent acquisition of a 10.09 acre parcel of future parkland near the wastewater treatment plant created an opportunity to continue with the extension of the extremely popular Thurmont Trolley Trail. Town of Thurmont Streets and Parks Dept. staffgraded and installed the gravel base for a 350’ long and 8’ wide trail connecting to the existing Thurmont Trolley Trail offof Moser Road. The new trail extension runs parallel with the roadway and stops for now, at the entrance to the 10.09 acre parcel. The park site will be constructed in the future and is planned to have amenities to include additional trails, a wetlands observation area, boardwalk, and more. The Town of Thurmont is working with Frederick County in the future planning to extend this trail into the county, eventually connecting to the Catoctin Furnace and possible sites to the south from there. This section is the first phase in making the connection to the county. Asphalt work on this section of trail was completed by the American Asphalt Company from Baltimore. Trail lighting to match the existing lighting currently along the Trolley Trail is planned for the future.

Volunteers from the Hagerstown & Frederick Trolley Trail Association (HFTTA) constructed the new “Library Loop Trail” connecting the Thurmont Regional Library to the new trail extension. An existing nature trail that was previously constructed by the SUCCESS program makes a great connection tying everything together. Now trail users can traverse the .77 mile Thurmont Trolley Trail, cross Moser Road to the new extension, turn onto the Library Loop Trail and connect back to the Thurmont Trolley Trail, while learning about the interesting natural items all along the nature trail.

Another exciting project has been the construction of the new exercise trail at Eyler Road Park. The .51 mile trail circles the entire perimeter of the front section of the park. Once again, Town of Thurmont Streets and Parks Dept. staffgraded the entire length of the trail and installed the stone base. Town staffalso constructed three foot bridges and installed new trees along the trail. The work that was performed by staff members Tim Eyler, Colby Savage, Donnie Kaas, and Greg Andrew was nothing short of exemplary. Just as was the case with the Trolley Trail Extension, asphalt was installed by the American Asphalt Company. The exercise trail has been a project that many residents and visitors have been anticipating. The project has been so anticipated that the trail was being used before the stone base was installed! “Every time I go past Eyler Road Park, I always see folks using the trail. They were even using it when it was dirt!” said Thurmont Planning and Zoning Manager Kelly Duty. “I’m really pleased to see how much everyone enjoys it”.

While these trails may currently be located on opposite sides of the town’s municipal borders and miles apart, plans are already underway to connect them. The town and HFTTA are working on acquiring funding to make this happen! The Town of Thurmont Comprehensive Plan prioritizes pedestrian connectivity very high on the list of the town’s future goals and objectives. These projects have made great strides in achieving these aspirations!