When the Trail and Trees project is complete, students, staff and community members will have 3.5 km of interactive, landscaped trail to enjoy year round.

The project is in its planning and fundraising stages with a target to begin construction in the summer of 2012.

Trail and Trees will provide an excellent outdoor area for physical fitness and will connect with the City of Medicine Hat trail system. It will run the perimeter of the college campus with a link to the Kin Coulee trails.

Rodger Sloan, manager of environmental health and safety, said there has been talks of a campus trail for over a decade. Trees were planted around the perimeter of the campus as a windbreak but the trail idea wasn’t pursued.

Three years ago, the environmental stewardship committee revived the idea and drafted a new plan.

“There is so much potential for a campus trail. It supports the outdoor classroom concept and can host teaching spaces. It supports employee and student wellness and reinvigorates the campus itself. When you don’t utilize all of your space, it tends to become a dumping ground,” said Sloan.

Sloan would like to see the restoration of the campus grounds to extend into the pond and other areas around the college.

Zakk Morrison, coordinator of the Be Fit For Life centre at MHC, believes it will be a venue students, staff and faculty will take advantage of.

“The college has a vibrant energy. We have staff and students interested in growing, changing and learning in innovative ways. They place a high priority on fitness. The new trail will allow them to carry out more physical activity on campus,” he said.

The trail will be paved and maintained year-round, allowing for walking, cycling, inline skating and the use of strollers or walkers.

It will feature break-out areas with interpretive signs, benches and fitness equipment, and viewing areas.

Beyond the physical benefits, several program coordinators and faculty will be incorporating the Trail and Trees project into their curriculum. Each semester, Jo-Anne Reynolds uses a real project for an actual client to teach her ecotourism and outdoor leadership students. Her students, who often go on to have careers in guiding and park interpretation, will hone those skills by creating a preliminary plan for signage and interpretive areas along the trail.

Her ETOL 202 class will create mock-ups of panels for the college pond, Kin Coulee park, Saamis tepee and other areas of interest along the path. As the project progresses, those mock-ups will become reality and over time, Reynolds’ students will continue to revisit the signage.

The students will also likely use the trail for cross-country skiing, snowshoeing and other outdoor activities, she said.

“We do a lot of outdoor field trips that require the students to be physically fit and the trail allows them to do that right on campus,” said Reynolds. “We are really excited to be involved in a project for the college.”

The trail system will come to life with plants, trees and shrubs planted along the route. Cathy Linowski plans to use the trail as an outdoor classroom for her environmental land reclamation program. Students will be involved from planning to planting.

“My class will be involved in mapping and surveying the land, measuring and creating plans for what types of trees and shrubs could go in there,” said Linowski.

The trail, as with other landscaping on campus, will be xeriscaped – a form of landscaping requiring minimal water.

The remediation program has three new instructors and three ground water testing sites. The outdoor classroom will only add to its allure.

“We have beautiful grounds; it’s a shame people don’t get out and enjoy it more,” she said. “The trail contributes to mental wellbeing and physical fitness. Just being outside, seeing the birds, hearing the wind, are important to find your centre.”

The trail will also attract area residents. It will be connected to city trails and will include a new bike path connecting the campus with the Southridge neighbourhood. Elementary and secondary schools looking for an inexpensive field trip can wander the trails and make use of the natural history and interpretive activity areas.

The $100,000 fundraising goal received a major boost thanks to a $25,000 donation from the Southern Alberta Summer Games committee. The games were held in Medicine Hat last summer, with more than 3,000 athletes competing in sports and activities promoting family fitness.

“Thanks to the generous support of our sponsors and careful budgeting, we ended the games with a surplus,” said committee member Ken Sauer. “We looked for a particular project where we could offer some assistance and support that had benefits to the community and met all of our interests.”

The Trail and Trees project caught the committee’s eye and after a tour of the campus and the proposed trail route, Sauer and committee chair Larry Henderson made the donation.

“It ties in nicely with the city trails, and citizens young and old can continue either their cycling or walking on the campus trial. I think it’s a delightful, positive move and our board of directors is pleased to be involved in this. We wait with bated breath for the opening,” said Sauer.

To support the Trail and Trees project, contact the MHC foundation office at 403.504.3667.