Kick-Off Event!

Thanks to everyone that came out for our kick-off event at Utica College yesterday! It was a bit of a chilly day, but everyone went away happy and with smiles on their faces. We hope to post some pictures soon, but until then we have a few links for the news segments that were aired!

http://wibx950.com/american-heart-association-and-uc-dedicate-new-walking-path/

http://www.wktv.com/news/local/Walking-trails-recognized-in-CNY-area–148907165.html#idc-container

We’re already in the process of working on two more walking paths and look forward to sharing our finds with everyone soon!

Welcome!

In 2011 the American Heart Association introduced a My Heart. My Life. A healthy-living initiative working to help individuals and families understand how to get active and eat healthy. As part of this initiative the AHA has been working to create walking paths in the community to help make physical activity available to all individuals. We are excited to have first official American Heart Association designated walking path in Oneida County created on the Utica College Campus . A one and one-third mile path will take walkers around the campus as one of four designated American Heart Association walking paths that highlight some of the region’s prized locations. Additional paths through Proctor Park, The Sculpture Garden at Griffiss Business and Technology Park, and through the village of Cooperstown are also American Heart Association recognized paths. The American Heart Association would like to thank members of 2012 Leadership Mohawk Valley Class that are responsible for helping to make this happen for the AHA, Ed Pulaski, Kristen West, Lisa Volo, Jackie Paladino, Kyle Strife, and Karen Roth. Please enjoy the blog, let us know if there’s anything else you’d like to see, and keep watching for more walking and path information!

~ Andrea MacDiarmid, American Heart Association

Utica College

Walk Distance: 1.15 mi
Seasons: Sidewalks and parking lots are kept clear all year around unless school has been canceled
Entrance Fee: None
Night Trail: You can walk this path 24/7 and there is lighting and emergency phones to connect directly to campus safety. However if you choose to walk later at night please be safe and aware of your surroundings as you would anywhere else!
Safety: Overall this area is very safe and is regularly full students, even in the summer time. Blue lights around campus are attached to phones that dial directly to campus safety. There is also plenty of overhead lighting along the paths, until you go down toward the stadium. If you’re walking late at night it’s recommended that you stick to the lighted areas of campus.
Difficulty of Walk: 1 out of 5. Most of the walking area throughout the campus are well maintained and there is only a 40ft elevation difference across the entire walk (The bulk of which can be avoided if desired and we’ll point out where in the description). Occassionally you will run into patches that are being repaired or uneven, so be careful to watch out for these areas.
Photos: All photos in this post are copyright Andrea Volo
AHA Walking Path Link (And Printing Link!): http://www.startwalkingnow.org/path54889
MapMyWalk Link: http://www.mapmywalk.com/routes/view/83898269/

Proctor Park

Walk Distance: 2.15 mi
Seasons: Maintained during the summer, but only the sidewalks are plowed during the winter. The side dirt paths can be easily walked on snowshoes however.
Entrance Fee: None
Night Trail: Not recommended. TR Proctor Park has several baseball fields on it that will be lit up when there is a night game, but otherwise there is no direct lighting for the trail itself at night. The gates are closed for the park at 9PM so there is not a lot of time for night walking anyway.
Safety: Overall this area is very safe and is regularly full of other walkers and bikers, but it is a public park and the back of FT Proctor Park is more tree covered and isolated. Be aware of your surroundings, just like in any other public park, and you should be fine.
Difficulty of Walk: 2 out of 5. Most of the walking path area throughout the park is well maintained and on level ground. There are some ups and downs, but no more than 20-30 feet elevation difference at any point in time. If you choose to go off of the main path there are some steep drops down into stream areas that would up the difficulty of your walk.
Photos: All photos in this post are copyright Kristin West
AHA Walking Path Link (And Printing Link!): http://www.startwalkingnow.org/path52170
MapMyWalk Link: http://www.mapmywalk.com/routes/view/70786288

Historic Cooperstown

Walk Distance: This is a 2.07 mile walk in Cooperstown, NY. The walk has a total ascent of 72.18 ft and the path is on city sidewalks with minimal street traffic except for a short distance along Main St.
Seasons: Sidewalks are maintained during the winter, making this walk a pleasant stroll year-round.
Entrance Fee: None
Night Trail: This entire walk is adequately illuminated by street lights.
Safety: This area is very safe and has very little crime. Cooperstown is a major tourist destination with adequate parking and a park-and-ride trolley service during busy summer months. Additional information regarding Cooperstown can be found at http://www.thisiscooperstown.com/
Difficulty of Walk: 1 out of 5. Most of this walk is well maintained and on level or gently sloping ground. Total elevation gain/loss is less than 73 ft. A nice feature of the walk is that it is very easy to modify the route to visit different residential neighborhoods and to change the overall length of the route.
Photos: All photos are copyright Andy Zygmunt
AHA Walking Path Link (And Printing Link!): http://www.startwalkingnow.org/path52173
MapMyRun Link: http://www.mapmywalk.com/routes/view/70732820

Griffiss International Sculpture Garden

Walk Distance 1.75 miles
Seasons: Maintained during the summer, but only the sidewalks are plowed during the winter. The gravel area of the trail can be easily walked on snowshoes however.
Entrance Fee: None
Night Trail: Not recommended, all of the sculptures have spotlights on them, but the gravel portion of the trail itself is not lit. The sidewalk portions are lit via street lights, but the lighting is dim.
Safety: This area is very safe and has very little crime. The City of Rome patrols the highways and the proximity to Air Force assets also provides additional police and military police presence nearby.
Difficulty of Walk: 2 out of 5. Most of the walking path area throughout the park is well maintained and on level ground. The gravel area of the path does gradually lower down by about 20 feet and there is some loose gravel. You can easily skip that area if you want a 1 out of 5 difficulty for your walk however!
Photos: All photos in this post are copyright Andrea Volo
AHA Walking Path Link (And Printing Link!): http://www.startwalkingnow.org/path52172
MapMyWalk Link: http://www.mapmywalk.com/routes/view/70706482