The Friends of the Cresheim Trail
The Friends of the Cresheim Trail
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Recent Posts

  • Cresheim Trail Volunteer Workday Sat 7/19
  • Sat 6/14 Cresheim Trail volunteer workday CANCELED
  • Cresheim Valley Drive Spring Cleanup – Love Your Park – Sat 5/17
  • Fundraiser Sat 4/19, Volunteer Workday Sun 4/20
  • FOCT Announces Leadership Transition and Continued Momentum

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Friends of the Cresheim Trail
PO Box 4341
Philadelphia, PA  19118

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Email: info@cresheimtrail.org

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We’re two weeks and change away from our July vo We’re two weeks and change away from our July volunteer workday, and it’s gonna be a good one. The boardwalk, as it will sometimes, needs a little attention with some planks in need of replacement, and one section that’s started to droop a tad. We’d also like to spend a little time under the SEPTA Chestnut Hill West Line bridge, where some rocks could use some re-armoring. And there's the usual July trail work, so we should have something for everyone. It’s all coming SATURDAY, JULY 19th at 9AM. We’ll meet at the classic CT meetup spot, along *northbound* Cresheim Valley Drive opposite Navajo Street. It’s easily recognizable by all the tree tubes and cages from recent plantings, with plenty of room to park on the shoulder safely off the Drive. There’s also plenty of parking on the 7500 block of Germantown Avenue, a 3-5 min walk to the meetup spot. (Please do NOT park on southbound CVD.) #cresheimtrail
Howdy folks, just a reminder that @septaphilly has Howdy folks, just a reminder that @septaphilly has begun their work on the rehabilitation of all five bridges serving the Chestnut Hill East Line, including the one that crosses Cresheim Valley Drive and the Cresheim Rail Trail. They have indicated that work will proceed each day this week through Saturday (including on the 4th), so please plan a different route for the interim. Work is expected to complete by August 31st, by which time we hope to have a nice freshly mowed corridor to ride or hike uninterrupted between Germantown and Stenton Avenues (with spurs to Ed’s Loop and into Wissahickon East). Also, while we’re on the topic, just another reminder that @phillyh2o will be doing work just north of here, at the Cresheim Creek outfall on the northern end of Wissahickon East. This work will require a closure of the rail trail while PWD carries out their project, estimated closure 3–6 months, beginning this fall or winter. We’ll share more info as we know it. #cresheimtrail
Incoming blossom alert: Bottlebrush buckeye! This Incoming blossom alert: Bottlebrush buckeye! This gorgeous shrub is native to the US — the southeastern US specifically, but its range has grown to include the Philadelphia area, where you can find it both in the woods and under the sun. There’s a nice stand of it on the east bank of the Wissahickon Creek just upstream of the covered bridge (pic 8), and @bartramsgarden has two, including one on the Bartram’s Mile that will soon be part of the Schuylkill River Trail. William Bartram actually gave the plant its botanical name Aesculus parviflora in his travels through the south in the 1770s. On the Cresheim Trail, there are a couple small stands, but nothing quite like the beauty on a bend of the Chestnut Hill West Trail (see @alltrails map in slide 2). Pic 1 is from last year’s bloom, pics 3–7 from earlier this week. This weekend should be a good one to catch it in full bloom (or approaching it). As a reminder, we keep trail alignments up to date on OpenStreetMap, which populates AllTrails. That includes all trail names, which Friends of Cresheim Trail recently adopted to clarify the wayfinding and geography within the Cresheim Trail *network*. The Chestnut Hill West Trail parallels the rail line of the same name (which unfortunately will be cut under SEPTA’s adopted budget unless the Commonwealth steps in strongly) from Richard Allen Lane Station to the junction with the main stem of the Cresheim Trail near the log ride. #cresheimtrail
So much for a detour. CT gratitude to Dan, Dmitri, So much for a detour. CT gratitude to Dan, Dmitri, Lance, and Nick, who came out on this very hot and very humid Sunday to clear all three trees that fell across the trail this week. All trails are clear now. Thanks, gentlemen! If you ever notice any trees down or similar trail conditions in need of attention, please email cresheimtrail@gmail.com with a location and photo along with the description. All pics by Nick. #cresheimtrail
After the storm: an UPDATE. Thanks to our man on t After the storm: an UPDATE. Thanks to our man on the scene @flotsam, here’s a next day assessment of the scene. There are three notable trees down that we know of: Pic 1, on the mainstem Cresheim Trail close to Cresheim Valley Drive just north of the SEPTA CHW bridge; Pic 2 right next to the 5-trunk tulip poplar on the Chestnut Hill West Trail; and Pic 3 on the Outer Loop near the reroute we did two years ago after another big storm and tree damage. Pic 4 is a map showing the suggested route for CT travel between Allens Lane and Germantown Avenue until we can sort out the downed trees. Until then, be prepared to climb over or bushwhack around, check yourself for ticks, and thanks for your patience. If you notice any we missed, please email cresheimtrail@gmail.com with a pic and location description. Swipe through for some before-and-afters of some other places Sam was able to clear on his own, including our beloved Cresheim boardwalk. (Thanks Sam! 🥖) #cresheimtrail
Downed trees bout to catch a BUZZ. That was some s Downed trees bout to catch a BUZZ. That was some storm that rolled through yesterday, but hopefully everyone caught the rainbow! This storm brought down lots of trees across the region, so the @philaparkandrec chainsaw team will be hard at it for a while. FOCT will do its best to coordinate clearance of (or rerouting around) any trees in the Cresheim Trail network. We’ll be out today and this weekend to survey the damage, but if you notice any downed trees first, you can email us at cresheimtrail@gmail.com. It’s super helpful if you have a photo and a description of the location. Thank you! (File photo from an earlier clearance of a fallen white pine near the Emlen crossing at Buttercup Cottage.) #cresheimtrail
Ties to history: railroad ties, that is. The fir Ties to history: railroad ties, that is. The first section of Cresheim rail trail to unofficially open is the ⅛-mile segment from southern end of the bridge over Germantown Avenue down to where it meets up with the existing Upper Loop (pic 3). We opened this segment with help from @philaparkandrec in January 2023 as a means of getting people familiar with the future plans. It’s a dead end for now, but it’s an important one, as the first step in a journey that will ultimately take us to Fort Washington State Park. As it’s under the power lines, it’s exposed to the sun and invasive vegetation grows faster here than it does under the canopy of forest trees. We do our best to keep it trimmed back and useful (with help from Parks & Rec), and beyond the invasive weeds, there are some good native plants like wingstem, virginia spiderwort, and blue stemmed goldenrod, which turns, uh, golden in September. And, if you know where to look, you’ll even come across some railroad ties from the corridor’s time as the Pennsylvania Railroad Fort Washington Branch (AKA Cresheim Branch). #cresheimtrail
Sorry folks, the weather tomorrow looks no bueno, Sorry folks, the weather tomorrow looks no bueno, so we’ve made the decision to cancel the June volunteer workday. We’ll run it back next month — Saturday July 19th is the target date. We’ll definitely have some vegetation to trim by then, and maaaybe some other top tier trail tasks. Stay tuned, stay dry, and stay safe. Till next time!

 

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The Friends of the Cresheim Trail
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