Trail-blazing work day set

A work day has been set for preparing a site for the Winamac/Stearns iron bridge that is being restored by canal and trail volunteers.

On Oct. 14 at 9 a.m., additional volunteers are being rallied to help with the site preparation at the VanScoy Trail behind Pizza Hut and Dairy Queen.

Anyone interested is invited to come to Canal Park and receive orientation for the various jobs. A free lunch will be served by the Psi Iota Xi sorority at noon.

Clearing of brush and debris will return the site to its former "looks" when this area was first a section of the historic Wabash & Erie Canal. Excavation will begin later in 2006 to recreate the canal. Many trees will have to be removed to rehabilitate the canal and towpath. A new 300-foot long section of trail will be developed on the east side canal berm from behind Pizza Hut south to the bridge site.

At the bridge site there is presently another historic feature. The "sidecut," sometimes called a "slip," that brought canal boats east to the old edge of town will be exposed and recreated for a short distance. This busy waterway stub connected the commerce of Main Street with the mainline of the canal itself and ran from the present McDonald's restaurant site under Dairy Queen to the canal.

A stark change in the bridge site will occur with the removal of vegetation as most of this has not been seen or explored for years, except perhaps by mushroom hunters.

"The slip is barely visible from the present VanScoy Trail on the opposite side, but when the bridge is placed at this confluence, a completely different view of the once busy intersection will be a treat to trail users," said Dan McCain, chairman of Delphi Historic Trails.

"Other towpath areas developed in a similar way upstream have at first alarmed the public," McCain said. "An example would be in Canal Park where decades of vegetative overgrowth, downed trees and debris choked the waterway. These changes to allow towing animals on land to pull a boat with a long rope lead to a better public understanding of how the canal operated."

The bridge will be set sometime next year.