A trail for all in Troy

When Judy LaLonde inherited land in Troy from her late brother, she wanted to preserve the natural beauty of the place.

“We need the forest,” she said, adding that it provides a habitat for the deer, turkeys and all of the other animals that visit it.

LaLonde also knew that her brother, Brad Neuman, wanted it preserved as well. She worked with the Palouse Land Trust to create a conservation easement in 2013 and now that forest is called the Neuman Forest Environmental Learning Pavilion in his honor.

LaLonde and the Palouse Land Trust then wanted to make it easier for people to explore the property. Thanks to a collaborative effort involving the University of Idaho, Palouse Land Trust, Idaho Firewise and the Troy School District, there is now a trail ready for outdoor enthusiasts to enjoy.

The 1.2-mile path is called Judy’s Trail, named after LaLonde, and the community is invited to a ribbon cutting at noon today at the trailhead along McKeehan Road to celebrate its completion.

“It’s just a beautiful place and I’m thrilled to be able to share it,” LaLonde said.

Just across the road from Troy High School, the students have already used the trail as an outdoor classroom and the cross-country team uses it as a running course, said Lovina Englund, executive director of Palouse Land Trust.

“The vision was always to be able to allow students to be able to access the property,” Englund said.

Englund said future plans for Judy’s Trail include adding signage with the help of grant funding and assistance from nonprofit Idaho Firewise. Also, the UI is working with the Palouse Land Trust to create a dedicated learning space on the property for Troy students and other groups that want to take field trips to the forest.

Englund said Palouse Land Trust partnered with UI students and enlisted the guidance of UI professor Ed Krumpe to design the trail. AmeriCorps member Emma Sondker, along with volunteers from the Troy School District and the community, came out to construct the trail after breaking ground in July.

LaLonde said that when word got out that a trail was being constructed, she got many emails from people excited to use it.

She hopes that students continue to use it as a way to learn about the natural environment and appreciate the beauty of the forest. She said the progress on the trail, which has been a goal of hers for years, has been “amazing.”

Englund said the trail is a result of LaLonde’s willingness to make her property a community resource.

“She felt like it was something that was really special to share and not something that she wanted to restrict people from being able to have access in the future,” Englund said.

Kuipers can be reached at akuipers@dnews.com.