New Canaan Land Trust, Nature Center to Open ‘GreenLink Trail’ at Earth Day Celebration

The New Canaan Land Trust and the New Canaan Nature Center will officially open the new GreenLink Trail, a 2.5-mile walking loop that connects the nature center, downtown and Irwin Park, at an Earth Day celebration on April 22 running from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., Recreation Director Steve Benko announced at the Parks & Recreation Commission’s most recent meeting.

The free family- (and dog-) friendly event will include “Signs of Spring” nature walks, a tree identification workshop, bird shows, a beekeeping demonstration, youth-friendly activities, food trucks and a family photo fundraiser at Irwin Park to benefit the New Canaan Garden Center, Benko said at the March 14 meeting, held in the Lapham Community Center.

The GreenLink Trail crosses three of the New Canaan Land Trust’s properties and was completed with support from the New Canaan Community Foundation, he said.

To make the trail safe for pedestrians, Benko told the Commission that a police officer will be hired to direct traffic at Weed Street and Wahackme Road. “It’s really a dangerous intersection and I felt really strongly about having a police officer there to help people cross,” he said.

Benko added that Public Works Director Tiger Mann is considering putting flashing lights at the crosswalk in the near future to alert drivers of the pedestrian crossing.

After years of planning, the GreenLink Trail was approved by the town last fall. “This has been, since I started on the Land Trust, the Holy Grail, to make this connection,” Chris Schipper, a board member and former president of the organization, said in October.