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Conway, NH – As the 2021 school year begins, students, teachers and the public will have access to a beautiful new multi-use trail at the Pine Hill Community Forest near Kennett High School. The “Ravine Trail” was recently completed with funding from the White Mountain Trail Collective. Support was also provided by school administrative personnel, Tin Mountain Conservation Center, the Mount Washington Valley Trails Association, the Town of Conway, and others. 

The trail was constructed by Recon Trail Design, LLC and consists of a 4-foot-wide packed gravel traveling surface, an impressive granite retaining wall, and granite bridge abutments supporting a 30-foot span pedestrian bridge. It provides access to the Kennett softball and baseball fields, connects with existing trails and forest roads near Route 302, and ends north of the field hockey fields on Eagles Way. The Ravine Trail is one component of a larger network of existing and proposed trails at the Pine Hill Community Forest. USVLT is raising funds to expand this trail network as part of its ongoing capital campaign – 20 Years and Onward (see www.usvlt.org for more information about the campaign and to donate).

Attendance at the Ravine Trail ribbon cutting ceremony (Thursday, September 2 at 3pm) is being limited to those directly involved in the project. However, USVLT encourages the public to celebrate this new asset by visiting the Pine Hill Community Forest. USVLT thanks the White Mountain Trail Collective for its generous contribution to the project, Recon Trail Design for its dedication to the trail’s quality, and other partners for their consistent support. 

In addition to the Ravine Trail, USVLT and Recon Trail Design will partner to upgrade part of the existing Conway Rec Path during the month of September. This work will require a temporary closure of the branch of the Rec Path from Kennett High School to the Saco River. The proposed work involves regrading and placement of new packed gravel to provide an improved multi-use traveling surface. A connection will be developed between the Ravine Trail and Rec Path to facilitate access from the Smith-Eastman Landing in East Conway. This work is being funded by the Recreation Trails Program through the New Hampshire Department of Natural & Cultural Resources.