Suburban Ramble 2004 Follow-up

Hello Ramblers,

I want to thank you for taking part in the Suburban Ramble sponsored by the Essex National Heritage Area (ENHA), AMC, and Friends of Lynn Woods.

One of the reasons the ENHA holds their annual weekend of activities around the county is to familiarize people with the resources in the area.

The fight to preserve open space is an ongoing one. The Friends of Lynn Woods was formed to oppose expansion of the Lynn golf course further into Lynn Woods, and the Friends of Salem Woods is fighting the same battle on behalf of Salem Woods. As you know from our walk, Peabody's Golf Course now sits squarely on top of what was open space, albeit not a park.

Golf courses (and I don't want to seem anti-golf, I'm not. A golf course is much better than a parking lot or housing development, but unfortunately is often carved out of a conservation area or park land.) are just one of the threats to these areas. In the 1960s, Lynn residents fought the plan to put I95 right through the Woods and won. And there are other continuing threats of development.

Fortunately, there is a strong sentiment for preservation, and both Lynn and Salem Woods have active preservation groups. You can find them at flw.org and salemwoods.org. The Essex National Heritage Area web site is essexheritage.org and the AMC can be found at www.outdoors.org.

As for the Ramble, next time we'll offer a 3 and 6 mile option as well as the 12 mile option, consider slower and faster groups, maybe start earlier, spot more cars, and polish up the middle a bit. Suggestions welcome.

I really want to thank everyone who came. It was a great group and lots of fun. And, yes, a workout. Chris did a great job of keeping us all together.

We finished the Ramble around 5:30 after the sprint from Lynn Street in Peabody, and piled into two cars. Oddly enough, both groups independently and spontaneously went out for ice cream!

Best regards,

Richard Frenkel