Membership & Donations
Thank you to everyone who purchased bricks for Trestle View Park. There are more than 600 engraved bricks around the wheel and along the paths in the park. It’s an amazing show of support from the people of Franklin and all who love the park.
Get Involved
Dear Friends,
The Winnipesaukee River Trail is a beautiful 5.1 mile multi-use pedestrian trail that connects the communities of Tilton, Northfield and Franklin. The trail follows the old railroad line and is a peaceful and scenic experience – except for a small stretch that requires people to deal with sidewalks and traffic in Tilton.
To improve that stretch of trail, we are going to build the “Missing Link Bridge” that will connect the trail across the Winnipesaukee River from the end of Granite St in Northfield to a spot near the old Ernie’s used cars on Rte 3 in Tilton. We need your help to do that.
We received a grant to help with the cost of the bridge, but we need to raise in excess of $130,000 in matching funds to complete the bridge and insure future maintenance. Won’t you help us reach our Missing Link Bridge Goal by the end of June? Every donation helps.
Please make your tax-deductible contribution today using the secure PayPal button in the right column
Thank you for your continued support,
Rick Silverberg
President
Winnipesaukee River Trail Association
P.S. Your gift may be doubled if your employer has a matching gift program. Please see your Human Resources Dept.
The Trail
The park is designed to serve as a gateway to the city’s downtown and a trail head for the Winnipesaukee River Trail The park provides parking, a kayak take out for the many kayakers that utilize this white water section of the Winnipesaukee River and features a memorial plaza that allows for a historical prospective on the City of Franklin.
The City of Franklin and the Winnipesaukee River Trail Association working cooperatively with funding provided by a NH Land and Water Conservation Grant constructed the park. The required 50% match was made possible by the donation of land for the park by the Grevior Family and donations of labor and equipment from others. Beck & Bellucci, Inc. contributed a large amount of the construction and other services to complete the park. The National Park Service provided design work. The Franklin Saving Bank provided needed funds to have land appraised for the grant and engineering costs to subdivide the property. George F. Sargent, Inc. donated design services and labor to install the irrigation. Shrubs and Flowers in the park have been provided, planted and maintained by the Burn’s family in memory of Ian Burns. Other funds were provided for trees and shrubs by a NH moose plate grant. Funding was also obtained from a Nestle D.I.R.T. Grant.
The park features a 15’ diameter mill wheel weighing in excess of eleven tons. This flywheel served as part of steam engine that powered a textile mill in Franklin’s historic mill district. The mill wheel prior to installation was determined by testing to have lead paint. Modern Protective Coatings of Hudson, NH donated their services to remove lead paint and repaint the wheel.
The mill wheel is dedicated to the memory of Russ Feener. Russ was a founding member of the Winnipesaukee River Trail Association and his enthusiasm for the wheel led him to make extensive efforts to have the millwheel included in the park design. A plaque is installed at the base of the wheel outlining the history of the wheel and it’s dedication to Russ.
Dedication of the park was held on Tuesday Sept 27, 2005.
The Trail
For many people, a trip to the Lakes Region of New Hampshire includes using the various rail trails that dot the region. The Winnipesaukee River Trail is a popular destination because of it beauty, its connection to the Northern Rail Trail, and its proximity to world-class shopping, dining, and lodging.
The following is a list of “bicycle friendly” lodging near the Winnipesaukee River Trail.
Super 8 Tilton/Lake Winnipesaukee
7 Tilton Rd, Tilton, NH 03276 US
This hotel directly abuts the trail and they provide a bicycle rack as well as trail guides and literature. This hotel has been a big supported of the trail – please support them when you visit the Lakes Region!
195 Laconia Rd. – P. O. Box 288, Tilton, NH, 03276, USA
This hotel is located about 1 mile from the Tilton trail head.
Holiday Inn Express & Suites Tilton
75 Tilton Road, Tilton, NH 03276
This hotel is located less than 1 mile from the Tilton trail head.
255 Main Street Tilton, NH 03276 USA
This hotel is located in downtown Tilton, just minutes from the trail.
About & Contact
This website was created and is hosted by Techra LLC. Jim Zimmermann, owner of Techra and Lakes Region Bicycling, created the website using WordPress.
Techra develops websites and provides hosting for local non-profits and small-to-midsize businesses. Techra also can create a strong social media presence for your organization.
If your organization or business needs a new or improved website or social media presence, please email Jim Zimmermann.
Here are some other sites created by Jim Zimmermann of Techra:
