Hello All!!

The 2023 River To River Trail Society Annual meeting will be here soon. It is scheduled for Saturday, June 3rd, 10 am, at the Vienna, IL. City Park, which coincides with National Trails Day The park is adjacent to the Tunnel Hill Trailhead along IL Route 146 midway between I24 (exit 16) and the US Route 45 intersection downtown. We have reserved the Rams Landing shelter which is located in the back of the park. (See photo below)  As a result, the Society will be providing grilled brats and hotdogs, buns, table service and bottled water. The rest of the picnic will be a potluck and everyone is asked to bring their favorite dish to pass such as a fruit, vegetable, side dish and/or dessert.  If you want something to drink besides water you will have to bring your own. Only picnic tables are included with the shelter so if you want something more comfortable it is suggested you bring your own lawn chair.

For the meeting, there will be reports from various board members about the accomplishments from the past year and possible future projects. During the business meeting, the Society will also be electing Society officers and board members for the next year.

 Following the business meeting, the Society has arranged for Susan Wygant to speak on a geology topic relative to the area.  We have also invited the Hoosier National Forest Supervisor Mike Chaveas to attend, but since he is out of the office on a detail we have been informed that Ellen Bogardus-Szymaniak who is the acting Forest Supervisor may attend.  Her topic would be the relationship between the two forests.

Please, come join us, learn what being an officer or board member might entail. No hikes are planned for the event. You are welcome to bring a friend interested in hiking, or a significant other.

As we did last year, several members brought bikes and enjoyed a ride on the Tunnel Hill state trail to work off the meal.

For those that are interested, the American Discovery Trail Society is also having an event that day called “The American Discovery Trail Challenge”. Since the Tunnel Hill Bike Trail is part of the ADT hiking of biking the trail would meet the challenge.  For details see https://discoverytrail.org/american-discovery-trail-home/trailchallenge/