Loon Echo Land Trust reached out to me recently after reading a blog post I did for Maine Trail finder. I had visited the trusts Pondicherry Park property located in the middle of the town of Bridgton Maine. The employees of LELT wanted me to help them improve the main trail that runs through the park to make it a more inclusive trail experience. This is exactly the opportunity I was hoping for when I took on the mission of assessing accessibility for Maine Trail Finder.
Meeting the People of LELT
I met with Maggie, Jon, and Matt in the parking lot on Depot St. By the way this is the best spot to start the hike. Google Maps will take you to the other end of the park. Just put The Magic Lantern movie theater into maps and you will find the right place.
We decided to hike the trail from the parking lot and just talk along the way about the various things that could be improved. As I said in my blog on Maine Trail Finder this trail is very close to being accessible as it is. With just a few improvements it is going to be amazing. Spoiler alert this is the plan for next summer.
The Survey
We talked about what I like to call the 3 S’s of accessible trails, surface, slope, and signage. All of these things will be improved in the new project. There is going to be a fully accessible surface from one end to the other. A few slopes will be lessened to make them more easily conquered. The signage will have pictures and descriptions of some of the obstacles that a person might encounter in the park. This will allow everyone to make their own decisions about where to hike. People with disabilities don’t necessarily want to hike an accessible trail. If they have all the information for an entire property they can decide what is possible for them. That is my mission. I want to give people possibilities. 
As this property was a gift to the town of Bridgton I hope that they will make this a destination for all people. The local school kids, tourists, and townspeople will be able to enjoy this park for many years to come all because of the efforts of the great people of LELT and the town of Bridgton. I can’t wait to check out all of the other properties of LELT and really push the mission to make the Maine outdoors accessible. If you would like to help with the LELT mission you can donate here to fund improvements.
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