MEETING TIME AND PLACE: 1:00 p.m., Monday, January 2, 2023. Entrance gate to Ashley Reservoir, 250 Whitney Avenue, Holyoke, Mass 01040. The entrance gate is adjacent to the Elks Club parking lot where we will park. The Elks Club and the adjacent parking lot are the only structures on Whitney Avenue. There are Porta-potties in the Ashley Reservoir at two different locations that we will pass by on our walk.
DRIVING DIRECTIONS: For those using a GPS, the address is: 250 Whitney Avenue, Holyoke, Mass 01040. From Northampton, take I-91 south to NEW EXIT 12 (OLD EXIT 15). This is the Lower Westfield Road interchange that you may be familiar with since if you go to the left it leads to the Holyoke Mall. However, take the exit to the right which is still Lower Westfield Road, proceed straight ahead about ? mile through the traffic light at Homestead Avenue and up a hill, another ? mile. Make a right hand turn at the first street which is Whitney Avenue. The Elks Club is on the right and has two parking lots, one on each side of the building (there are no other buildings on Whitney Avenue). You can park in either lot. The entrance gate to the Ashley Reservoir is about 500 feet ahead on Whitney Avenue, which is where we will meet.
DESCRIPTION OF WALK: Starting at the entrance gate to the Ashley Reservoir, we will walk approximately ? mile on Whitney Avenue (which is a gravel road with no cars allowed) to the reservoir complex itself. There are several different length walks available at the Ashley Reservoir ranging from one mile to over four miles. Each person walks at her/his own pace and walks only as far as they wish. There is no obligation to complete the walk or walk a certain distance.
Google maps offers a good map of the Ashley Reservoir; the link is here: https://www.google.com/maps/place/Ashley+Reservoir/@42.1789168,-72.6584097,421m/data=!3m1!1e3!4m5!3m4!1s0x89e6de51f2094495:0xa2dbfe656eedd164!8m2!3d42.1754463!4d-72.6526215 ).
Our pace will be moderate