Author: Anna Gorbold
In early November on a bitterly cold day, James Pippin (RXCSF President) and Matt Caton (Mendon Ponds Park groomer), together with a trusted band of RXCSF Board members, prepared Carsonite posts for installation in Mendon Ponds Park. Decisions had to be made as to where to place posts and what information they should provide.
The posts RXCSF has decided to use are standard issue for many parks. They are brown in color so they blend well into the terrain. In fact, it is easy not to see them under normal circumstances, but in the snow they will be conspicuous. Self-adhesive decals which provide relevant information are adhered to the posts prior to installation.
Posts have been placed where it was deemed desirable to provide trail information to skiers. You will notice these posts on the Water Tower loop, Fawn Hill, the Dog Kennel loop/10K loop, the classic only loop out by the bird song trail, just to list a few locations.
The decals show the difficulty designation of a trail, arrow directions for the trail or the trail head, and precautionary warnings in the case of steep hills. While RXCSF has tried to avoid any “One Way” or “Do Not Enter” signs, there is one exception which is Fawn Hill coming from the Water Tower – that hill really has to be “One Way” due to being steep coupled with bad visibility ahead on the trail. In the case of hill rep training we advise a spotter at the top to warn skiers there is training going on.
Funding for this signage is made possible by you – the skiers who, as paying supporters, fund RXCSF’s trail maintenance and grooming.
We would like to express additional appreciation to the Annual Honeoye Falls Ski Sale for their decision to share some of the sale profits with RXCSF. These funds were specifically directed at supporting the Trail Signage Project. Thank you to all our supporters that make the foundation’s effort to maintain Nordic skiing trails in our area possible! Not a supporter yet? Click HERE to donate to RXCSF and become a supporter for as little as $15 per season.
