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MEETING TIME AND PLACE: 10:00 a.m. Monday,September 18, 2023. Fitzgerald Lake Conservation Area, Northampton, Mass. We will meet at the Cooke Avenue entrance where Boggy Meadow Road starts by the parking lot. For a GPS address, please use 164 Cooke Avenue.

Please note there are no restroom facilities at the Fitzgerald Lake Conservation Area.

DRIVING DIRECTIONS: Cooke Avenue is reached from Hatfield Street between Bridge Road and North King Street (Routes 5 and 10) in Northampton. From Bridge Road make the first left hand turn from Hatfield Street onto Cooke Avenue and proceed about 0.2 miles to its end where there is a gravel parking lot (former location of the Moose Lodge, which has been razed). For a GPS address, please use 164 Cooke Avenue.

DESCRIPTION OF WALK: The group will be walking on Boggy Meadow Road to the dam at Fitzgerald Lake and return, a distance of about 2.2 miles. On the way to the dam, we will pass a large beaver pond. At the dam there are pleasant views of the Lake. It is possible to lengthen the walk by about ½ to 1 mile by taking side trails. We might be able to see some birds by the dam, so you may wish to bring binoculars. There is a kiosk on the right hand side of the parking lot that has maps of the Fitzgerald Lake Conservation Area, or you can find a map online at this link;

https://www.broadbrookcoalition.org/files/Fitzgerald_Lake.pdf

TRAIL CONDITIONS: The pace will be moderate, taking about 30 minutes to walk one mile. Please wear stout hiking boots, bring a rain jacket, hiking staffs if you use them, insect repellant, and water and snacks. Please note there are no restroom facilities at the Fitzgerald Lake Conservation Area. However, the group will have a separation break near the dam if requested.

COORDINATOR: Barbara Smith; (Cell phone) 413-575-4903; email: smithbooksandpaper@gmail.com

CANCELLATION POLICY: If the walk has to be canceled for rain or otherwise, we will email a notice the night before or the morning of the walk