PRESS RELEASE
May 7, 2008

National Trails Day to Be Observed at Papscanee Preserve

Trail Advocates Ed Swartz & Mickey Mahar to be Remembered

National Trails Day will be observed with a walk through the Papscanee Island Nature Preserve, with the walk also serving to remember trail advocates Edward Swartz and Mickey Mahar.

The observance and trail walk will take place on Saturday, June 7 at 10 a.m. at the Preserve. Members of the public are invited to take part in the walk, which is being sponsored by the County Legislature and the county Environmental Management Council.

Swartz served as a member of the County Legislature from 2001 until his tragic death in September 2007. As legislator, he served as chairman of the Legislature’s Environmental Committee and devoted considerable time to helping maintain the Preserve.

“Ed was very devoted and dedicated to the Preserve and to the great outdoors as a whole. He believed the Preserve was a very special place and always participated in clean-ups or improvement projects at the Preserve,” said Legislator Martin Reid.

Mahar served as director of the county Environmental Management Council and was a strong advocate for the Preserve until his passing in 2003. He helped manage and prepare the nearly four miles of trails in the Preserve during his time as EMC director.

“Mickey was very enthusiastic about the Preserve and very proud of his work on the trails and the shoreline. Mickey believed the Preserve was a very special place and put a lot in his job,” said Chairman of the Legislature Neil J. Kelleher.

The county has managed the Papscanee Preserve since 1996 in cooperation with the Open Space Institute, who own the Preserve. The Preserve is located in the

towns of East Greenbush and Schodack and includes 156-acres and a natural shoreline along the Hudson River. To reach the Preserve, drive approximately 2 miles south on State Route 9J from Rensselaer to the intersection with Staats Road, take a right onto Staats Road and follow the road across the tracks to the entrance of the Preserve.

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