MILFORD, PA — Nearly 50 scouts from the Milford, PA area and more than 500 visitors participated in National Public Lands Day and Community Appreciation Day events at Grey Towers National Historic Site on Saturday, September 27. The U.S. Forest Service selected Grey Towers as one of three signature sites for National Public Lands Day activities.

Scouts from Shohola, Milford, Matamoras and Dingman Township helped spread wood chips and mulch on a section of the Forest Discovery Trail at Grey Towers so that the public can begin to utilize it after damage from Hurricane Sandy made it unsafe and unpassable. The trail is used by visitors and school groups who participate in experiential conservation education programs about forest health and forest history.

Once the Forest Discovery Trail was re-opened, visitors enjoyed a hike in the woods and learned about forest history at the re-created campsite of the Yale Forestry School, which educated America’s first foresters at Grey Towers from 1901 to 1926. Visitors could also borrow a backpack filled with wildfire educational materials and a stuffed Smokey Bear as part of Grey Towers’ Hike with Smokey backpack program.

The day also was an opportunity to celebrate the 50-year anniversary of the Wilderness Act of 1964, which today protects nearly 110 million acres of federally owned lands, many of which are part of the National Forest System. Forest Service Acting Director of Wilderness and Wild and Scenic Rivers Liz Close participated in the day’s events, including raking out trail mulch and sharing information with visitors about the Wilderness Act.