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Opening of expanded Delaware Township footpath celebrated

Click here to watch ribbon cutting on YouTube

DELAWARE TWP. - Local, state and Hunterdon County officials celebrated the opening of the expanded and improved Jones Memorial Footpath, a scenic trail along the Wickecheoke Creek in Delaware Township, at a ribbon-cutting ceremony on Sunday, Nov. 9.

The 5.5-mile footpath is named in honor of Beverley Jones and her late husband, Donald, both conservation leaders who helped preserve local landmarks including Green Sergeant's Covered Bridge, the Locktown Stone Church and Prallsville Mills.

The Jones Footpath meanders on and off quiet country roads, connecting numerous lands preserved by New Jersey Conservation Foundation and its partners. The trail begins near Prallsville Mills in Stockton and extends northward to the Locktown Stone Church, passing the covered bridge about mid-point.

During the past several months, New Jersey Conservation Foundation has blazed new trails, installed bicycle racks and automobile pull-offs, posted trailhead signs and built an information kiosk. The foundation received a $23,500 National Recreational Trails Act grant for the work, matched with more than $5,000 worth of volunteer labor.

“This is the culmination of over 20 years of work by a number of different groups, agencies and partners, all working together,” said Michele S. Byers, executive director of New Jersey Conservation Foundation, during the ribbon cutting at the new kiosk off Lower Creek Road. “We’re at well over 1,500 acres preserved along the Wickecheoke. And we’re still, every year, adding new properties.”

Delaware Township Mayor Susan Lockwood noted that the Jones Footpath ribbon cutting was her second this year with the foundation. In June, officials celebrated the purchase of the 182-acre Thompson property off Route 519. “We have a township that’s blessed with natural beauty - and blessed with people who recognize beauty and the importance of holding onto it, managing it and making it available,” she said. “Donald Jones was one of those people.”

Elizabeth Mataset from the state Green Acres Program, which provided funding for many of the preserved properties along the Wickecheoke Creek, congratulated New Jersey Conservation Foundation, Delaware Township and Huntedon County for their success in making the footpath possible. “The state is very happy to support these organizations and the good work they do,” she said.

Hunterdon County Freeholders Ron Sworen and Matt Holt said further land preservation can continue, now that county residents have voted to continue an open space tax that had been scheduled to expire last year. Seventy-six percent of county voters favored the measure.

“Three-to-one (voting margin) in a down economy – I don’t think you need to say any more,” exclaimed Holt. “Preservation of land is obviously good for Hunterdon County.”

The ribbon-cutting ceremony was held in conjunction with the 15th annual Donald Jones Memorial Hike, co-sponsored by New Jersey Conservation Foundation and the Delaware River Mill Society. The event attracted more than 200 hikers and included three separate hikes of varying lengths, followed by a tea at the Prallsville Mills. Two of the hikes were along sections of the Jones Memorial Footpath, while the third was on the newly-preserved Thompson property.

At the tea, Stephanie “Muff” Jones recalled how her father was moved to preserve beloved landmarks and landscapes in Hunterdon County after lamenting special places that had been lost to development. “My father represents the notion of how one person can make a difference in their world,” said Jones, the current president of the Delaware River Mill Society. “So this Jones Walk is also celebrating the power of individual action and accountability for the future.”

PHOTO CAPTION:
Snipping the ribbon to open the expanded Jones Memorial Footpath along the scenic Wickecheoke Creek on Sunday afternoon, Nov. 9, were, from left, Hunterdon County Freeholder Ron Sworen, Delaware Township Mayor Susan Lockwood, Hunterdon County Freeholder Matt Holt, New Jersey Conservation Foundation regional manager Alix Bacon and New Jersey Conservation Foundation land steward Ray Steingall.