President’s Letter

by Anna Taylor, President Friends of Webster Trails

In gathering the topics for the October FWT Board Meeting agenda, I reviewed our list of completed events and activities in 2026, and it included 11 guided group hikes, five trail workdays, and four tree planting days. Not listed were approximately 30 weekly Habit Preservation Committee workdays. This tallies up to 50 planned activities on our Webster trails in 2026!

That number does not include a Ribbon Cutting celebration for the Hojack Trail Repairs Project, our support of Scout/student projects, our Chainsaw Crew’s work, our Trail Counting Initiative, our ReTree group’s planning meetings, and the weekly work of our outstanding Trail Stewards. As successful as this year has been, even more amazing is that it is on par with our past five years, and the years prior. This is achievable for two primary reasons: We have outstanding, dedicated, smart volunteers on every level of our organization, and we have members and trail lovers who find us and donate to our mission.

As 2026 winds down, thank you to all who helped in small and big ways in making 2026 another successful year for FWT. Enjoy the updates in this newsletter and continue to reach out to us with your feedback on Facebook or through our website. Remember to become a member, tell your friends to become members, watch our Events listing on our website, and if it sounds interesting, join us.

See you on the trails!

Upcoming Events

The full list of events is always available online.

Oct. 17 – Annual ReTree Planting at Whiting Road Nature Preserve. Join ReTree for the 5th annual tree planting event. Hundreds of new trees and shrubs have found forever homes in Webster’s preserves thanks to this effort, replacing some of the trees we’ve lost to the emerald ash borer and other threats. We will be planting in Whiting Road Nature Preserve this year.

Nov. 7 – Scavenger Hunt at Kent Park/Webster Arboretum. The Family Scavenger Hunt is back and better than ever! With activities for kids from 2 to 12, the whole family can participate in this annual event. Stop by any time between 10:30 and noon, rain or shine at the Kent Park pavilion. Your family will explore the Arboretum trails, and all children completing the hunt will receive a prize.

Nov. 7 – Hot Cocoa Hike at State Road Nature Preserve. Bring the whole family for a flashlight hike through the woods, with a sweet treat along the trail. The trail is approximately 1 mile long, and it includes a stop for socialization and hot cocoa. This is a fun, free, self-guided hike.

Nov. 9 – Annual Meeting at Finn Park Lodge. Join us for a look back at 2026 and a preview of what’s to come in 2027. And there will be snacks!

Jan. 1 – First Day Hike at State Road Nature Preserve. Start the year with a guided winter hike. We will cross our fingers for wintery trails and sunny skies so we can kick off a year of outdoor activities.

Membership Report

by Denise Bilsback, Membership Chair

Membership remains steady, with a current total of 254 members. To date, membership dues and donations have contributed $6,281 to support Friends of Webster Trails. These contributions help fund materials for bridges, boardwalks, benches, signage, and other projects that maintain and improve Webster’s trails. Membership support plays an important role in keeping our trails safe, accessible, and enjoyable for the community.

Thank you to all our members and generous donors for your continued support. Your contributions help Friends of Webster Trails maintain and improve these valuable community resources for everyone to enjoy.

Become a member today!

Treasurer’s Report

With a few months left in the year, income and expenses are trending positively, with a few budgeted infrastructure projects still to be completed.

We wrapped up the Ralph C. Wilson, Jr. Grant this year, which required some final documentation and a more detailed tax filing, but the upgraded Hojack Trail was well worth the additional administrative steps.

A final report on income and expenses will be distributed with the year-end summary late this year.

Trail Work

With nearly a dozen official trail workdays completed, and close to that many scout and student projects, it’s been a busy year on the trails.

Volunteers spread gravel and wood chips, planted seedlings, cleared debris from drainage ditches, stabilized trails at switchbacks, removed trail trip hazards, and cleared down trees.

Projects included building kiosks, benches, boardwalks, and puncheons; repairing boardwalks and stairs; and replacing bridges, among others.

Added to that was hundreds of hours spent by the Trail Stewards and Chainsaw Crew to keep the trails clear and safe.

It wasn’t always light work, but it was always done with a smile, making Webster’s trails worth walking.

Trail Traffic Update

by John Boettcher and Richard Murray

We have been using a trail counter to measure the use of FWT trails for several years.
A report was issued in September 2025 of our findings. Weekly traffic on individual FWT trails varies from about 100 to 1000. Factors include trail attraction and accessibility. Repeat measurements show some variation due to weather and season.

So who is using the trails? This was examined using actual observer counts by us and Liz Harrold Hoogesteger on four trails. The graphic shows the results which were
similar among the trails. Hikers and dog walkers account for most of the traffic.

In addition to the FWT trails, we have also measured the traffic at Sexton Park which is a one-mile, paved trail maintained by the town. We came up with weekly use of 4,000! That is pretty close to 10% of the population of the Town.

We continue to monitor FWT trails using the counter. Look for a report of these results
in the near future.

Habitat and ReTree Celebrate Successes

by Norma Platt and Sarah White

The season is about over, so it’s time for a wrap-up.

This year, more than ever, the activities of Habitat and ReTree have intertwined. Here’s what we’ve been up to.

• We ordered rooted cuttings from NYS DEC and Monroe County and potted them on our Earth Day Event.
• RGE donated more nursery stock which they helped plant along the Hojack.
• A group of volunteers from the Ciena Corporation planted trees in Herman Road
• The members of Girl Scout Troop obtained 50 Red Oak seedlings and potted them for our nursery
• After many years of effort our pulling of Garlic Mustard has resulted in a clean slate around the NE corner of the Big Woods. Likewise at Bird Sanctuary and John Ungar Nature Trail.  And we’ve made inroads moving into Michael A Johnson.
• We got moved a lot of Buttonbush and Northern Bayberry plants into the field (Herman Road and Whiting Road).
• We cleared around existing plantings at Whiting Road. And located and protected some nice volunteer oaks.
• And we’ve prepared sites for this year’s October planting event.

This year alone we’ve put in 291 volunteer hours and planted 151 native trees and shrubs, with more to be added this fall.

We’re a good bunch and hope that you join us next year!!! Watch your email and social media for ways to volunteer.

Steward Reports from the Trails

Bird Sanctuary Trail

By Linda Siple

In September, Parks and Rec completed a major improvement to Bird Sanctuary Trail.  They spread more than 10 tons of gravel on the trail and installed several drainage pipes.  The trail is much improved and should be less muddy come the winter and spring.  A big thank you goes out to Mike Herbst and Tom Price, from Park and Rec, who did an amazing job with the improvements. 

Another a big thank you goes out to Todd Beverly, Garth Howell, Jacob Cooney, and Jeff Darling (aka The Chainsaw Crew) who have done an outstanding job of clearing trees from the trail after several severe wind storms. Bird Sanctuary Trail is in very good shape and we have these individuals to thank! 

One last important improvement: In the near future there will be a dog waste station installed on the kiosk at Orchard Street.  We hope this will encourage dog walkers to use the clean-up bags and properly dispose of them. 

Gosnell Big Woods Preserve

By John Boettcher

The Big Field was mowed by the town in late September. Prior to that the town provided mowing close to the fence line. Building on that start, we worked with Kevin Farrell of Genesee Land Trust (GLT) to clear the fence line. In the course of this, we managed to rescue an injured Osprey.

With GLT approval, steward Jonathan Horvath and I lightly blazed all the preserve trails
to aid users when leaves or snow obscure the trail. In addition, the bridge in the NW corner had some boards replaced.

A continuing issue is bikes using the Big Woods trails, despite their prohibition. A larger concern is that ATV tracks have also been found. Signage does note that these are not allowed, and Friends continues to work with the town on how to address this.

Vosburg Hollow Trail

by Rich Bilsback

The pump house in the Vosburg Hollow parking lot is expected to undergo improvements over the next few months. This work may affect hiking access on the trail. I don’t have additional details yet, but I’ll share updates through our monthly email as more information becomes available.

Whiting Road Nature Preserve

By Ron Happ

We have had a very busy year clearing the trees that were continually falling across the trails after every windstorm.

Scout Maria Frick built a new replacement boardwalk on the Red trail in June for her Eagle project. Many thanks to Fred Keck for hauling in the stone with his tractor for this boardwalk and also for next year’s project on the Herman Road access trail.

We will still be working to cut back encroaching brush along the trails in October and then
blowing leaves off the trails.