For years, the section of the Hojack Trail between Holt Road and Drumm Road was the hardest part of Webster's trail system to keep up. Friends of Webster Trails described those stretches as the most difficult to maintain because of their poor condition and drainage problems. This November is the first full late fall since that section was resurfaced, the drainage was fixed, and the project was formally finished.
The same is true a little farther east. In September, Webster Parks and Recreation spread more than 10 tons of gravel on Bird Sanctuary Trail and installed several drainage pipes. Across town, the past year's heaviest trail work went to the places that used to turn soft first. So once the leaves come down, the trails that used to send people home with muddy boots are now the ones built to handle the wet. The soft spots that remain are in other places.
The trail that started the whole volunteer effort
The Hojack is a converted section of the old Hojack Railroad line. It runs nearly five miles from Lake Road in the northwest corner of town to Phillips Road in the southeast and links several other trails and parks along the way. It is also where Friends of Webster Trails began. When the group formed in 1997, maintaining the Hojack was its only job. Today the volunteers work with the Town to care for more than 30 miles of trail.
The rebuild was paid for by the Ralph C. Wilson, Jr. Foundation's Trails Maintenance Fund, matching money from anonymous donors, and support from RG&E. Resurfacing covered Holt Road to Drumm Road. By fall 2025, the volunteer group reported that the new surface was complete. That first winter on the new surface was the trial run. The group's Spring 2026 newsletter said the trail had been busy all winter with walkers, runners, bikers, and cross-country skiers using the new surface and the better drainage.
The rest of the work came after that. The group designed the road-crossing bollards to be removable, so they keep motorized vehicles out but can come out when RG&E needs to work on the power lines. By the time of the ribbon cutting, Webster on the Web reported that Friends of Webster Trails had added two new kiosks with maps and trail information, wayfinding and point-of-interest signs, new trees and shrubs, and access bollards. In the middle section, between Hard Road and Klem Road, the Habitat Preservation Committee and ReTree are working with RG&E on a "Pollinator Pathway" of native shrubs, small trees, and wetland plants that can grow safely under the power lines.
Webster Parks & Recreation, Friends of Webster Trails, and neighbors held the ribbon cutting on Thursday, September 3. In the Town of Webster's announcement, Parks and Recreation Commissioner Chris Bilow pointed to the cold-weather crowd in particular:
"The Hojack Trail receives significant year-round traffic from cyclists and pedestrians to cross-country skiers and snowshoers; we are confident that trail users will enjoy these refreshed amenities."
Bird Sanctuary Trail got the same fix on a smaller scale
The Hojack project took more than a year. Bird Sanctuary Trail got its version in one September push. Trail steward Linda Siple wrote in the Fall 2026 newsletter that Parks and Rec's Mike Herbst and Tom Price did the gravel and drainage work. She said the trail is much improved and should be less muddy come winter and spring. The volunteer Chainsaw Crew also cleared the trees that came down in several strong windstorms, and she described the trail as in very good shape.
There's one more change coming that dog owners will notice. A dog waste station is going onto the kiosk at Orchard Street "in the near future." For parking, the Bird Sanctuary Trail page lists Orchard Street at the trail's end, the Hojack/Charles E. Sexton lot just west of there, and a few limited spaces west of Route 250. The Sexton lot puts you right where the two upgraded trails meet, so you can walk a gravel stretch of each from one parking spot.
Where the soft footing is this November
The upgrades leave the rest of the trail system's November conditions about where they were. The volunteer stewards' fall reports point to a different issue at nearly every preserve.
| Trail or preserve | Recent work or setup | What to expect in November |
|---|---|---|
| Hojack Trail, Holt Rd to Drumm Rd | Resurfaced and drainage rebuilt in 2025; kiosks, signs and bollards added since | The formerly worst section has already been through a full winter of use on the new surface |
| Bird Sanctuary Trail | 10+ tons of gravel and new drainage pipes in September | Expected to be less muddy into winter and spring; dog waste station coming to the Orchard Street kiosk |
| Gosnell Big Woods Preserve | Trails lightly blazed; NW corner bridge got new boards | Blazes are meant to keep you on the path when leaves or snow cover it; bikes and ATVs are not allowed |
| Whiting Road Nature Preserve | New boardwalk on the Red trail, built in June | Volunteers planned to blow leaves off the trails after cutting back brush in October |
| State Road Nature Preserve | Parking lot, opened in 2024, fits 12 cars | The walk from the lot toward Broken Willow can be wet and muddy |
| Vosburg Hollow Trail | Pump house in the parking lot due for improvements | Hiking access may be affected while the work is underway |
Gosnell Big Woods is the clearest November example. Steward John Boettcher and fellow steward Jonathan Horvath got approval from Genesee Land Trust and lightly blazed every trail in the preserve so walkers can find the route when leaves or snow hide it. The town mowed the Big Field in late September, so that open stretch is easy to cross this month. The steward also said bikes are still showing up on the Big Woods trails, where they are prohibited, and that ATV tracks have been found as well. Friends of Webster Trails is working with the town on a response.
At Vosburg Hollow, steward Rich Bilsback wrote that the pump house in the parking lot is expected to be improved over the next few months and that the work may affect hiking access. He said he will post updates in the group's monthly email as he gets them. Before driving over, check that email or the Friends of Webster Trails events and news pages.
Saturday, November 7 has one event in the morning and one after dark
Both of the group's family events this fall are on the same day, at two different preserves.
- Family Scavenger Hunt, 10:30 a.m. to noon, Kent Park/Webster Arboretum. Drop in at the Kent Park pavilion any time during that window, rain or shine. Activities are designed for kids ages 2 to 12, families follow the Arboretum trails, and every child who finishes the hunt gets a prize. Details are on the scavenger hunt event page.
- Hot Cocoa Hike, 7 to 8:30 p.m., State Road Nature Preserve, 1571 State Road. This is a free, self-guided flashlight hike of about a mile with a stop for cocoa along the way. Leave the parking lot between 7 and 8 p.m. and reach the cocoa stop by 8:30. Bring a flashlight and your own travel mug, since it's carry-in, carry-out. Dogs stay home for this one. The group asks everyone to register so it makes enough cocoa.
With the lot at State Road holding 12 cars, carpooling makes sense for the evening hike.
Two days later, on Monday, November 9, the group holds its annual meeting at Finn Park Lodge, with a look back at 2026, a preview of 2027, and snacks. The next date after that is the guided First Day Hike at State Road Nature Preserve on January 1.
The volunteer hours behind the gravel
The volunteer group's Fall 2026 newsletter reported 11 guided group hikes, five trail workdays, and four tree planting days so far in 2026, plus about 30 weekly habitat workdays. President Anna Taylor counted that as 50 planned activities on Webster's trails this year. Its 254 members have contributed $6,281 in dues and donations this year, and that money buys materials for bridges, boardwalks, benches, and signs. The Habitat and ReTree volunteers logged 291 hours and planted 151 native trees and shrubs, with more planned for this fall.
The group's trail counter shows how many people use these trails. Weekly traffic on individual Friends of Webster Trails routes ranges from about 100 to 1,000. Charles E. Sexton Memorial Park's paved, one-mile town trail counted about 4,000 a week, which the counters noted is close to 10% of the town's population. Counts by observers found that hikers and dog walkers make up most of the traffic. With an easy surface and a parking lot, Sexton gets several times the traffic of the woodland preserves. The Hojack's new surface comes out of that lot and runs right past it.
More is planned for the Hojack. In May 2025, the Village of Webster received a New York Forward grant, and one of the funded projects is $289,000 for a Hojack Trail Gateway where the trail crosses North Avenue. No completion date has been published yet. Until it's built, the best way into the improved trail is the Holt Road to Drumm Road section that has already been through one winter on its new surface.
If you're in Webster and your weekend walks keep growing longer, the Bonnie Pagano Team is always glad to talk about trail access, the quiet streets near the Hojack, or anything else about where you live now or might live next. Contact us any time. We might see you at the cocoa stop on November 7.
