Skip to Content
Register · Login
About Theme

A Letterboxing Community

Atlas Quest
Event #2334

The Riverbound Nature Sanctuary Project ParkPotluckBox-friendly

Riverbound Farm Sanctuary, 1881 Cheshire St, Cheshire, CT
Join event
View
Photos
Traditional LetterboxNearby
Boxes
Registered Boxes: All Traditional HH/Cootie/Flea Postal LTC Event Box Traveler Other
StartsSat May 5, 2012 11:00am
EndsSat May 5, 2012 5:00pm
OwnerTeekerProfileContactLogbookNote
Admins2 Irish Chicks
The Flip Flopper
Pixie and the Sprites
Teeker
Signups34/∞
LocationRiverbound Farm Sanctuary, 1881 Cheshire St, Cheshire, CT
Add to CalendarGoogle calendar ICS file (e.g. Outlook, iCal, etc.)
The Fallen Bird Blind

Description

Located in Cheshire, CT, the Riverbound Nature Sanctuary is a donated property maintained by a few volunteers at the Quinnipiac Valley Audubon Society. This year, downed trees damaged the bird blind on the property. While recently letterboxing on the property, the idea of a community service project started to develop. Now, having talked with staff to arrange details and get an idea of how much work is needed on this property, I propose a "date".

On 12/9/11, I met with Eric at the site to brainstorm ideas of an event that coordinates with some community service. They have several indoor rooms that could be utilized for letterboxing fun, trails with 6+ boxes already planted and potential for more. Also, there are many little projects that could be done such as gardening, trimming, cleaning. And, bigger projects such as rebuilding a bird blind that fell down with the recent storm, creating a few cedar fences, improving a crumbling rock wall, and leveling the ground on walking paths that are uneven. This location is perfect for a letterboxing event, IMHO! They do have indoor and outdoor electrical outlets. Plenty of folding chairs and tables, lots of space to create more nature related displays in the house (Hint: hey kids, want your posterboard science project displayed for all to see?) The possibilities are seemingly endless.

If you live nearby and have not explored this property yet, letterboxes on site include: Christmas Card, Southpark Wrestling Characters #2 Ultimate Warrior, Monkeying Around Southington?, Connecticut Steeple Chase: Rose, and Et Phone Home Letterbox. About 1 minute down the road is the Cheshire Street Cemetery (1 box). About 3 minutes down the road is the Curtiss Family Open Space Preserve (7 more boxes).

Looking For Something Fun to Do This Week?
Hey everyone! I just got back from the Riverbound Nature Sanctuary! Here's a few more details:
1. There are several spots that are muddy. I suggest boots or sturdy sneakers.
2. There are three trails, under 2 miles total, some slight inclines but mostly flat ground.
3. If you have kids, the red trail provides a scavenger hunt at the trailhead (pencils and paper provided). The property manager has put all sorts of non-natural garbage from the woods and put it up in trees, by rocks, etc. This little hunt is great for teaching kids to be more observant! After all, there are several bird watch stations as well as a butterfly garden and a river on this property.

Apr 15, 2012: Riverbound: Financial Donations
If you would like to contribute to the Riverbound Farm in a financial manner, you can make a check out to:
Quinnipiac Valley Audubon Society

and send it to:
Quinnipiac Valley Audubon Society
P.O. Box 4631
Wallingford, CT 06492

If you would like funds to go directly to the projects that letterboxers are doing, please note "Letterboxing" in the memo. Current needs include wood for new benches, roofing material for a kiosk that needs to be re-done, and the materials for a bird blind to replace the one that collapsed in 2011.

Apr 18, 2012: Pixie Houses
The Sprites have been studying pixie houses, and would like to invite you to make one! The series we've read is "Fairy Houses" by Tracy Kane, and advocates using all natural materials.

So, when you come to the event, look for our pixie house, and you may even find a pixie inside...

We welcome you to create your own house to leave nearby, and encourage more fairies to join the party!

May 1, 2012: List of Projects Available on Event Day
Hello Everyone! We are definitely looking forward to seeing you this Saturday at the Riverbound Farm. Eric and Loretta from the local Audubon both plan to be at the location all day long. Here's a run-down of how things will ideally be:

8:30 - 10:30
They have a bird walk for the public. During this time, staff members ask that we either join them for the bird walk, or resist the urge to search for boxes and make lots of noise so that bird identifications and other fun stuff that they have planned can go on.

11:00 - 5:00
By about 11 o'clock, the people who come for the bird walks usually head out to do other stuff and therefore, there will be more room in the parking areas. They have enough room for at least 20 cars because the extended parking lot will be open. If that lot fills up, one might find it safest to park on S. Borough Rd which is diagonally across the street. The Audubon building is a white house. Some GPS maps might not like the 1881 Cheshire St. address. It's because this location is "also" technically South End Rd. in Southington. Exit 4 off I-691 towards Southington, then turn onto South End Rd at the McDonalds/IGA/Arby's intersection. South End becomes Cheshire St right after it goes under the 691 overpass thingy.

Potluck items can be brought into the building. There is a kitchen area with a sink, but no refrigerator or stove. Yes, they have electricity. Yes, they have a restroom. :-)

Yes, we can stay later than 5:00 on that day, especially if we're doing some of these fun projects:

-Bird blind = Two rooty stumps are still kinda in the way. The "new" bird blind would ideally be a bit bigger than the old one so the soil needs to be troweled away from the tree stumps and the holes filled in. Those who like to use their muscles can get the base poles established and ideally we'll finish even more! No chain saws will be provided due to safety but if you have your own power tools that you want to bring, you may bring and use them.

-"Kissing" Bridge. An Eagle Scout project done a few years ago...the bridge's planks are made of cedar that has started to fall apart so the spaces are too wide now. Ideally, we pull apart a few pieces, lay down new boards. It would be GREAT to see this project through from start to finish.

-Benches = There are 4 at the Butterfly Garden and 1 triangular bench down by the Quinnipiac River that need to be either totally boarded or ideally reboarded.

-Weeding = Staff members are happy to have volunteers that are willing to pull out invasive species (garlic mustard, Japanese barberry, etc). Maple saplings in the garden areas need to be pulled too.

-Cut & Fill at Barn Foundation = The ideal walking path is a flat surface. There is a part of the path, pretty close to the farmhouse that is at an angle. We would need to shovel the dirt from one side and lay it out flat across the path. If we get that done and want to keep going at this area, the barn's foundation has stones that are rolling away from time to time (but about half of them have poison ivy wrapped around them). And, Eric wants to build a cedar fence that would keep the plants from growing into the path's walking area.

-Wood Chip Hauling = Yup, there's still plenty of wood chips to be hauled. Just grab a shovel, fill a wheelbarrow, bring it down to where there's no woodchips and then rake it out flat.

-Window Washing = Windows get dirty...but somehow they're not too bad to clean if it's not your own house, right?

-Painting = There might be a few painting projects to do by Saturday, including old farm equipment that is on the property and some recently donated chairs for the yard.

***I (Teeker) am so unbelievably excited about this event!!! Thank you to Celtic Roots for testing the series and my fellow admins for all your work and advice. This will be a very fun day. If it rains, wear appropriate clothing and be ready to enjoy!

***If you have an idea of what project(s) you want to work on and would like to let me (Teeker) know by Thursday afternoon, I'll give an update to Eric so he knows how many people to expect on each project (he'll prioritize based on interest). If you don't know which project you'll want to pick...please join us and we'll help direct you where we need you most. :-)

May 1, 2012: Potluck
Okay folks, the clock is ticking...and Saturday will be here before we know it! Please take a minute to sign up for food to bring for our potluck--we don't want any hungry letterboxers/volunteers! Plates, utensils, napkins are all taken care of. Everything else is fair game, and there are even outlets if you need them...

Signups

  1. Teeker
  2. Bubbaloo Magoo
  3. The Flip Flopper
  4. Betty Boop3
  5. Pixie and the Sprites
  6. 2 Irish Chicks (2)
  7. mason (4)
  8. MVIV (4)
  9. LevreaultFam
  10. Musicnote (2)
  11. Mommy Mouse
  12. Leilanis Aunt
  13. Porkchop
  14. Sparky Butterfly (2)
  15. a loco kittens (3)
  16. chthiker (2)
  17. TallDave and ThimbeLinda
  18. Kit Kat 61 (2)
  19. Samantha Loves Jessie
  20. Purple Penguin
  21. cooledcoyote
Total signups:34