On October 14, the Friends of the Northern Rail Trail in Merrimack County (FNRT) finished building four miles of new trail in Boscawen, from the old Gerrish Depot near the N.H. State Forest Nursery on Route 3 to Depot Street in the center of Boscawen. The construction of this new section of rail trail was funded by a $30,000 federal Recreational Trails Program (RTP) grant and supplemented by required matching grants from the Stannard and Dorothy Dunn Trust, the Cogswell Benevolent Trust, the Crickett Foundation, and the McIninch Foundation.

This new four-mile section of rail trail in Boscawen winds along a scenic and secluded section of the Merrimack River. Regular trail users have all commented on the natural beauty and peacefulness of this trail segment.

It takes a lot of hands to accomplish trail building, and FNRT would like to thank all those involved. Chris Norris of Andover was the project leader for FNRT, and Ricker Miller of Andover ran the compactor. Their dedication to this project allowed it to proceed smoothly and on schedule.

Nita Tomaszewski of Franklin prepared the RTP application and Durgin and Crowell of New London volunteered the use of their grader, driven by Ed Larpenter of Candia. Stone dust material was provided by RD Edmunds and Sons of Franklin.

Additional assistance came from the Boscawen Town Line Trail Dusters, who cleared brush, and Ellsworth Morton of Sanborton, who coordinated the truck receipt takers, including Kit Norris of Andover, Taffy Johnson of Webster Lake, Lyman Cousins of Boscawen, and Steve Rayno of Franklin, who also provided construction support.

Earlier this season, Ellsworth Morton constructed the informational kiosk at the old Gerrish Depot trail head, dedicating it to the memory of his parents, Roy and Polly Morton. This is a good place to park and pick up a trail map of the Franklin and Boscawen sections. Additional parking is available at the Boscawen Town Park on Depot Street.

Those wanting to explore the rail trail in the Danbury area should stop in at the Danbury Country Store, where you can park on the store’s north side, pick up wonderful sandwiches, soups, and snacks, use their restroom, and get trail maps. FNRT is happy to have this new welcome center in addition to the wonderful one in East Andover at the Highland Lake Inn on Maple Street.

Volunteer groups in both Grafton and Merrimack Counties have worked independently for many years to build and maintain the trail. However, in 2011 the two groups celebrated the joining of their trail sections with a “golden spike” ceremony in Danbury.

This September they worked together to resurface one mile of trail in Danbury near the Grafton County line. Volunteer Steve Robinson of Hill cleared obstacles and pressed the edges all along the newly resurfaced section to ensure the rail trail through to the Grafton line was passable.

The Northern Rail Trail now totals over 56 miles in length, extending from downtown Lebanon to Boscawen, making it the longest rail trail in New Hampshire.

The FNRT is now raising funds to complete the final 2.2 mile segment of trail, with construction planned for late spring of 2014. Generous grants from the Brown Foundation, Fields Pond Foundation, and the New Hampshire Electric Cooperative Foundation have helped launch this fundraising effort.

For more information, membership opportunities, and maps visit FNRT.org, NorthernRailTrail.org or Facebook.com/FNRTNH.