Hello TROT! I am the newly appointed TROT Patapsco Valley State Park area coordinator. I live in the Patapsco Valley and have been riding, running and hiking Patapsco’s trails for more than 30 years. I am looking forward to engaging more with the TROT community and advocating for horsey needs in the Park.
I have three major goals for 2025 as PVSP coordinator:
- Hold an official TROT ride in the Park each month. These rides will always be footing/weather permitting.
Watch for updates on the TROT Facebook page. Here is what is scheduled so far:
January—The first day ride for January had to be cancelled because of weather
February—A three-hour medium paced ride on Saturday, February 15th at 11 am
March—A Saint Patrick’s Day ride to the Woodstock Inn on March 15th
June—A ride to the Woodstock Inn on June 22nd - Organize two horseback trail clean-up/maintenance days
- Have a TROT presence for at least one of the official Patapsco trail maintenance days, known as the Patapsco Fun Series. The Friends of Patapsco have already released the dates for the Fun Series, and other events for 2025. The calendar is here. I encourage you to attend one of these, especially if you regularly ride Patapsco. Let me know if you are going and I’ll plan to join you! As for the TROT/horse
community day, I am currently aiming for the McKeldin work day which is Saturday, October 25th 2025.
Speaking of McKeldin, if you’ve ridden there at all the last few months, you’ve noticed that there is trail work going on to expand trails for adaptive bikes. This is, first and foremost, super important to improve accessibility for all trail users, but it’s also nice for us horsey users because the trails will be much wider
and smoother!
Please respect all closure signs and do not ride on closed trails. Riders can still access the Woodstock, Sykesville, and Marriottsville trails without riding on closed trails. This is currently scheduled for completion in February, but that timeline may get pushed back by weather.
Please don’t hesitate to reach out to me with concerns about the Park, ideas for rides, or if you want to get involved with any of my 2025 goals. I am happy to talk Patapsco any time. My TROT board member
email is: boardmember04@trot-md.org