Sippican Lands Trust cuts the ribbon for Osprey Marsh Boardwalk

MARION — Though the rain hampered the skies, good spirits prevailed at the July 17 ribbon cutting of the Sippican Lands Trust’s Osprey Marsh Accessible Boardwalk.

The elevated pathway is handicap accessible and can be used by people with mobility constraints or parents with strollers.  

To have a trail that is accessible for older adults and those with mobility constraints “just seems like a worthy cause and a worthy extension of our mission” to have people get out into nature, said Jonathan Howland, a member of the trust’s board of directors.

Howland is cousins with Mary Howland Smoyer, one of the people who donated the 22-acre property to the trust. Smoyer, and David and Victoria Croll gave the land for the boardwalk, and Jack and Nancy Braitmayer helped fund the project. The group was at the ceremony and cut the ribbon to the path.

Marion Board of Selectmen Chair Randy Parker was at the event as well. He said the 1,800 foot path is the type of thing that “keeps a small town bonding together.” Parker is the Chair of the Stewardship Committee and a director for the trust, as well as a member of the Osprey Marsh Committee.

The project was proposed as far back as 2014, and construction began in June 2019. 

“I’m delighted to see this project come to reality,” said Executive Director Jim Bride. He also thanked the donors, supporters and friends who helped the boardwalk come to fruition. 

Lands Trust President Alan Harris said that the path has had “far more success than what I predicted,” and it feels great that people who once didn’t feel welcome due to mobility constraints now feel welcome at the boardwalk.

The Osprey Marsh Boardwalk is open by appointment only as a coronavirus precaution. To book an appointment, visit https://sippicanlandstrust.setmore.com/.