Celebrate Ward Pound Ridge Reservation’s centennial Saturday

Sarah Walkley and her son, Russell Walkley-Butts, and Avalon Bunge hiking in Ward Pound Ridge Reservation. Russell was the youngest participant in the park’s 100-mile challenge in January when he was 4 months old. CONTRIBUTED PHOTO

By ROBERT BRUM

Westchester’s largest county park is marking its 100th birthday Saturday with a daylong celebration that pays homage to its past while looking ahead to preserving its future. 

Ward Pound Ridge Reservation’s May 17 centennial bash will welcome hundreds of visitors to the Meadow near the entrance to the 4,315-acre park. The event — running from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. — features guided walks, demonstrations, music, activities for kids and food trucks.

It’s free, open to the public, and the usual weekend entrance fees are being waived. Plan on getting there early: Some 700 visitors had registered beforehand, but no one will be turned away.

Nature tours starting at 10 a.m. will be guided by past Ward Pound superintendents, curators and Taro Ietaka, the reservation’s supervisor. A scavenger hunt, photo booth, live animals and crafts are on tap. Falconer James Eyring will give flight to his birds of prey, and storyteller Jonathan Kruk will perform.

The park’s curator and historian, Virginia Carnes, and Pound Ridge town historian, Maureen Koehl, will give presentations. Writer Tonia Shoumatoff will speak about her brothers, former Trailside Museum curator Nick Shoumatoff and author Alex Shoumatoff.

Native wildflowers and shrubs planted near the park’s Benedict House offices and Trailside Museum by garden clubs from Bedford, Lewisboro and Pound Ridge will be in spring splendor.

100-mile challenge

The celebration’s closing ceremony will honor hikers who completed the park’s 100-mile challenge between Oct. 21 and May 7. The event operated on the honor system and was not a competition.

A total of 414 participants signed up for the challenge, ranging in age from 89 years old, to a newborn carried by his mom. Adults and families from as near as Pound Ridge and as far as Philadelphia, Pa., hit the trails.

Of the roughly 300 hikers who logged miles online, some traveled well past the century mark — a woman, 62, from Ridgefield, Conn., posted just over 701 miles and a 3-year-old from White Plains tallied 1 mile. 

Eighty-six participants completed at least 100 miles, “which is still more than I expected,“ said Ietaka, who planned the challenge. “Honestly, I really didn’t think that many would do it, and I certainly didn’t expect anyone to do 700 miles. That was mind-blowing.”

Ietaka added, “We had one challenge participant who loved it and wants us to do it every year, maybe variations on the theme. And we did get people reporting trail damage, which was very helpful from a maintenance point of view.” 

Pawling’s Sarah Walkley hiked 5 miles in January with her 4-month-old son, Russell Walkley-Butts, in tow. The former South Salem resident said Russell enjoyed his first hike and looked forward to returning as the weather warms.

“We have big plans for more hikes and backpacking in his future,” Walkley said. “His first campout is planned for later this spring, here at the park.”

A fundraising drive coinciding with the centennial has a goal of $100,000 to improve some of the park’s time-worn trails. The nonprofit Friends of Trailside Museum and Ward Pound Ridge Reservation is also supporting the restoration.

“I’m very pleased with the donations we got and still hopeful that on the day we’ll get more,” Ietaka said.

The reservation, whose initial acquisition by the county dates back to 1925, attracts between 100,000 to 200,000 annual visitors to its 35 miles of trails, campsites and picnic areas.

Ward Pound Ridge Reservation is located at Routes 35 and 121 South, Cross River. 

For more information, visit parks.westchestergov.com. To make a donation to fund trail restoration, visit trails.friendsoftrailside.org.

Robert Brum is a freelance journalist who writes about the Hudson Valley. Contact him and read his work at robertbrum.com.