Mabel James

Mabel James

compiled from various resources

Mabel James was the founder of both the Conservation Trail and the Foothills Trail Club.

By all accounts she was a remarkable woman, and a remarkable conservationist. She worked with the Nature Conservancy and with the Buffalo Audubon Society regarding various Nature Sanctuaries including Beaver Meadow in Java. 

She was Born June 14, 1887 on a farm Mansfield, Connecticut but lived most of her life in the Town of Holland.  Much of her childhood was spent outdoors looking at plants and animals.  An avid hiker and while at Holyoke College in Mass she obtained permission to take walks instead of going to gym class.  She became a science and math teacher and it was here that she began introducing her students to her favorite places in the woods and fields.

In 1918 she moved to western New York noticed the difference in plants and this caused her to want to know more about plants and she would walk in the woods to study them.

In 1935 she was a naturalist for the Garden Center Institute of Buffalo and she would take people on Sunday nature trips to Holland.  She would charter a bus for $10.00 a day, filled it with people who were interested in the outdoors and went to Holland to hike.  Each person paid 50 cents for the bus fare; 5 cents for all the coffee they wanted and each brought their own bag lunch.

She then wanted longer – all day – hikes and realized for that she needed foot trails.  She thought of the Long Path in Vermont and wanted to use this as a pattern.  So the trail from Lewiston to Allegany State Park was her dream.   To her delight Art and Olga Rosche were willing to help, along with boy and girl scouts.  Thus the birth of the Conservation Trail.

On May 5, 1962, the first section of the Conservation Trail, Humphries Road to Vermont Street, was dedicated, with 250 people in attendance.  The first sign was uncovered revealing the words: THE CONSERVATION TRAIL, MABEL H. JAMES SECTION.  This dedication took place at the Becker Pond.

In a 1969 interview Mabel James mentioned that “people hike because they have a feeling for beauty and a wonder for the outdoors.  People seem to feel right when they are in the woods or on the trail.  Many people drink in the wonders of nature and it is this “sense of wonder”, the magic to be found outdoors on a hiking trail that was something very precious.”

Mabel passed away on March 18, 1974.

The Conservation Trail in Sardinia

Headline: The Conservation Trail in Sardinia

Footpath is part of almost 6000 miles of linked trails across seven States and into Canada

There are some pretty well kept secrets places in Sardinia.  The Erie County Conservation Club on Miller Road that we wrote about in our July 2007 Issue is one of them. The Erie County Forest tracts now burdened with the consequences of county budget cutbacks are another. Programming and activities not related directly to extractive logging has made these forests, -enormously important public recreational resources, all but invisible.

Many Sardinians and our neighbors from surrounding towns may not be aware that we have some of the most important natural areas of the whole region right here in our town.  Let’s start with the Cattaraugus Creek and its watershed which forms the southern boundary of Erie County and the Town of Sardinia. Did you know that the Cattaraugus Creek Watershed is the largest intact watershed in the Eastern Great Lakes?  This means that this watershed is one of the most valuable natural resources in New York. Perhaps even in the entire Great Lakes. The watershed provides clean water and important biodiverse habitat that protects both wildlife and humans. It is a great resource for Sardinia.  We also have some of the shining natural jewels of Erie County here. Several tracts of spectacular Erie County Forest lie within Sardinia and in adjacent communities.

One “best kept secret” of Sardinia is The Conservation Trail. You can enjoy the great outdoors in all seasons, breathe in the fresh air, watch birds, study wildlife and plants, or just exercise and or relax all compliments of the Conservation Trail.  This 177 mile footpath is a branch trail of the well known Finger Lakes Trail. The Conservation Trail connects south west of Sardinia to the main Finger Lakes Trail (FLT) near Ellicottville.

The main FLT runs approximately 562 miles and is the longest continuous foot trail in New York State.  The whole connected FLT system has five branch trails (including the Letchworth Trail) and 15 loop trails and covers approximately 880 miles in New York.  The western end of the FLT is at the Pennsylvania Border in Allegany State Park. Here the FLT connects to the North Country Trail (NCT) which spans seven states from New York to North Dakota. Several sections of the main FLT have been certified by the National Park Service as official components of the North Country National Scenic Trail.

The eastern end connects to the Long Path in the Catskill Forest Preserve. Along the way the path goes through the Finger Lakes, Hornell, Bath, and Watkins Glenn.

The other end of the Conservation Trail, traveling north from Sardinia, connects to the world famous Bruce Trail in Canada. The Bruce Trail is Canada’s oldest and longest footpath and is the only public access point to the Niagara Escarpment which is a UNESCO World Biosphere Preserve.

Where to Find the Trail in Sardinia

You can enter the Conservation Trail from several access points in Sardinia. From these access points you can take a short family hike through some of the most exquisite natural areas of Sardinia and the still beautiful terrain of the Erie County Forest tracts located in Sardinia. And should you be ambitious enough, you can walk from Sardinia to Letchworth State Park, or Niagara Falls, or North Dakota, or Vermont.  You can even walk to Georgian Bay in Canada. In addition, you may encounter guests that are walking through our community on their way too and from distant destinations.

The Conservation Trail traverses Sardinia from the Cattaraugus County line at Cattaraugus Creek to Holland near the end of South Protection Road.

Sardinia has about 8 miles of trail, which like the FLT passes through both public and private lands.

The Trail enters Sardinia on Rt 39 near Van Slyke Rd. where it crosses Cattaraugus Creek bridge.  It goes north along Van Slyke Rd, and then into a forested area along an old rail line.  It eventually crosses Middle Road near Hyler Creek.

On the North Side of Middle Rd the trail enters Lot 2 of the Erie County Forest.  Lot 2 is a whopping 852 acres that lies between Middle Rd and Genesee Rd.   It is the largest block of forestry in the county.  A full 810 of the lot’s acreage is covered by hardwood and conifer trees (mostly red and white pine) that make for terrific scenery.

“Old Starbuck Trail” is the name given to the hiking path that is part of the Conservation Trail. This portion runs a few miles through Lot Two in two loops, one on either side of the gravel creek bed that cuts through the property.  There’s a kiosk near the Genesee Road entrance that contains a painted map of the trail.  It’s a fairly easy-going hike and is quite suitable for all members of the family, young and old.

The Conservation Trail crosses Genesee Road and enters Lot 1 of the Erie County Forest as the Silent Wood Trail. It continues north through and beyond this portion of the forest and eventually crosses Allen Rd, Matteson Corners Rd., Warner Gulf Rd, and then crosses into Holland near Savage Rd and Rt. 16 just north of South Protection Rd. 

The trail continues on through Holland where there is a section dedicated to Mabel James. The Conservation Trail then continues through South Wales, and eventually on to Niagara Falls at the Rainbow Bridge where it connects with the Bruce Trail.