By Buffy Calvert

Across the bridge and up the trail…..

The Andes Central School Science Club, under the leadership of Stephen Fyfe, has laid out an inviting hiking trail on the school grounds. Behind the greenhouse and just to the left of the little pool, a broad grassy incline leads up into the woods across a neatly carpentered bridge. From there on up the trail is bordered by a double row of saplings laid end to end on either side, delineating the switchbacks and leading almost to the top of the hill. There it veers off to the left into an upland meadow and old orchard. A few withered red apples dangle above the reach of deer who have picked the lower branches clean. A compassionate hiker recently shook some down for the herd.

Expect some steep pitches. (An inviting mossy old stone wall might suit as a resting place halfway up.) The hike takes about 10-15 minutes. Kindergarteners have done it. “Look how high up we are!” At least one eighty-year-old enjoys it. And many in between.

At the top you could picnic or just marvel at the sky, the surrounding hills and the school and village far below seen through a fringe of trees.

A delightful after-school (5 pm) or weekend adventure. Thank you, students, for marking the trail! ~