We had a beautiful ride on October 9 and want to thank the 30+ riders who came out to ride and most of them also joined us for lunch! Thanks to Kathy Noble for the great photos!

A huge thank you and shout out to Jennifer and Steve Nagel, who had helped to groom the trails, and opened their beautiful farm for us to park and ride from. They also invited the group to have lunch on their magnificent pool patio.

In perfect weather, the ride led through the Northern segment of EPIC’s Dry Seneca trail system. This part of the system runs from a southern most point at the back of Beyond A Bay farm to a northern point behind Willow Mist farm, including the “Northern Loop” which is just north of Willow Mist.

We had three groups to match the riders' comfort levels with about ten riders each. Allan Noble and Uli Rodgers led the walk-trot-canter group; Tom Gutierrez had the walk trot group; and our guest trail leader Marge Edmundson and EPIC board member Anne Davies led the group that wanted to soak in as much of scenery and sunshine as possible by largely walking. Each group took a slightly different route and was out for about 1.5 hours. The walk-trot group inaugurated the new Woodland Run that lies parallel to a portion of the Farm Field Loop and was designed and built by Jennifer Nagel.

As folks were leaving the ride, one rider asked: "EPIC, how are you going to top that??" Well... just wait until you see “Mike’s Loop” scheduled to open in the Spring of 2023 near Boyds, MD. Keep in touch with us for details!

PARKING AND ACCESS NOTE: Some riders asked about accessing the Dry Seneca Trail System outside of organized EPIC events. Just a reminder that all EPIC trails are open to all riders whether or not there is any EPIC organized event. Check out our website www.epicmontgomery.org. While there is unfortunately no designated trailer parking lot at Dry Seneca, there are about 4-6 trailer parking spaces along Sugarland Road (two or three on each side), where Sugarland Road separates Ladds’ Loop from Sugarland Loop. If you haven't been there and are planning to use them, we suggests that you scope them out by car beforehand to make sure you are comfortable with it. There is also a larger parking area at the State Park on Montevideo Road, just south and east of the one lane bridge at Rocklands Farm, that can be used to access the park itself and the southern portion of the EPIC Dry Seneca Creek trail system. A drive-by to scope out the area before arriving with your trailer is also recommended. For more information on parking for Dry Seneca Creek, riders can contact EPIC VP Tom Gutierrez by emailing info@epicmontgomery.org. Happy Trails!