The Coronavirus/COVID-19 health crisis is evolving quickly and concerns for the health and safety of communities across the country are growing rapidly. Older adults and individuals with compromised immune systems and chronic health conditions are at highest risk, but public health officials are urging all of us to take precautions such as social distancing, voluntary quarantining when sick, and good personal hygiene if we must enter public spaces. These measures are intended to slow the spread of the disease, to protect ourselves, and to support the health of our communities.
In response to this health crisis, the Finger Lakes Trail Conference office in Mt. Morris is closed to outside visitors until further notice. For the time being, the office WILL be staffed.
While the Trail itself remains open, we are making the following changes to our schedule for group hikes and activities:
· Cross-County Hike Series in Cortland County/Fall Weekend
The first hike in our popular Cross-County Hike Series, scheduled for April 18, will be postponed. The Hike Series will instead begin on May 16 and will conclude October 17.
The final hike in the series was scheduled for September 12 and was planned to coincide with our Fall Weekend. At this time, we are considering moving Fall Weekend, scheduled to take place at Greek Peak September 11-13, to October. We will keep you informed as these plans develop.
· Hiking 101
We are planning to launch a Hiking 101 Series this summer using the Passport Hikes in the Eastern and Central Passport Books. The first hike is currently scheduled for Saturday, May 2. At this time, we hope to offer this hike as planned and will be opening registration soon. This is a FREE event. We will keep you informed if plans for this hike change.
· Alley Cats Project: Kanakadea Lean-To
At this time, we are planning on the Alley Cats project at the Kanakadea Lean-To May 16-20 to continue as planned.
· Spring Weekend
Our Spring Membership Meeting/Weekend is scheduled for June 12-14 at Houghton College. At this time, we do not anticipate changes to Spring Weekend but will keep you informed if a change becomes necessary.
We hope you take good care and stay well in this difficult time. For many of you, getting out into nature will be a critical component of maintaining good physical and mental health and we hope you will do so safely. We encourage you to continue to use the Finger Lakes Trail, but to avoid areas with heavier traffic.
Please feel free to contact me or our office with any questions. Thank you for your patience and cooperation as we work to keep ourselves and our trail community safe.
