Trail use

It is always encouraging to see people on the Pumpkinvine Nature Trail, and it is even more encouraging to see groups suing the trail as a destination for a group outing.

Last Saturday, Aug. 8, I was with a group riding from Goshen to Aunt Karen's in Middlebury for breakfast when I saw people in red shirts helping bikers safely cross County Road 127 north of Goshen. It appeared that there was some sort of organized ride going on. I knew that Aug. 8 was also the day of the Amish Land & Lakes ride, but I was fairly sure that they did not come that far south with their routes.

I then began to see other riders in red shirts, so when the opportunity presented itself, I asked one of them what group they were with. They said that they were from a Baptist Church in Elkhart.

I continued on toward Middlebury on County Road 35 -- the gap in the Pumpkinvine Nature Trail -- when I saw a large group of people and at least a dozen cars at the small Pumpkinvine Nature Trail parking lot at County Road 35. This parking lot was designed to hold six or seven cars, and it was jam packed with twice that many. I'm not sure what the group was doing -- whether they were meeting riders at the end of their ride or just getting ready to start a ride. I'm guessing they were supporters waiting for riders from Goshen, because when we returned 90 minutes later, they were gone.

How gratifying it is to see groups like this using the trail for a group event.