It isn't very often you see me in the middle of the city waiting for a bus.

But I've got a pretty good reason for being here.

Stick with me and we'll take a ride together to a very interesting place.

Welcome to Windows to the Wild.

I'm Willem Lange I'm in Manchester, New Hampshire, at a bus stop at Veterans Park right in the middle of the city.

I'm not alone.

Joining me are Sheila Vargas and Joanne Glode from the Nature Conservancy.

We're about to board a bus and head for an urban forest not too far from here.

And along the way, we'll find out why we're on a bus.

The Nature Conservancy owns and manages the Manchester Cedar Swamp Preserve.

It's a 640 acre urban forest that sits right on the edge of the city.

How in the world, in the middle of this, you know, maze of traffic and everything, did you end up with 640 acres of unspoiled wilderness right here?

How'd you do that?

So.

So, yeah.

So we're here at the Manchester Cedar Swamp Preserve, which has long been recognized as an ecological gem in not only New Hampshire, but New England.

And so the land was owned by the city.

And then in the late 1990s, the city actually had a Clean Water Act violation.

And they worked with EPA to try to figure out a settlement agreement for the violation, the fine basically, that they were going to have to deal with.

So basically, EPA and the city of Manchester chose the Nature Conservancy because of our mission and the way that we do work, preserving biodiversity.

Isn't it nice to have a reputation.

Yeah, I hope so.

That's great.

Yeah.

Acquiring the property was one thing.

Getting people from the city to the preserve was another challenge.

The Nature Conservancy found the solution and the partner, the Manchester Transit Authority, they worked together to create a new bus stop right at the trailhead.

Yeah, that's where we are today.

You'll see the forest and meet some of the people who escape into it.

It's beautiful.

Yeah, Great day.

Not the same as you last saw me, but I'm still here, you know.

You look much better.

I met Bill Foss about six years ago while filming a story on the Welsh Dicky loop trail.

He suggested we meet at the preserve today and hike on the all persons trail.

Picturing the.

This would be a white cedar.

And you've been knocking around since then.

I've been widowed.

And now you live local here.

About a 640 acre playpen here.

Really?

You bought it?

I'm an abutter.

I live at Riverwoods.

An abutter.

Yeah, So I live a walk.

Just a walk away.

Yeah.

It's beautiful.

Yeah.

Yeah.

And this trail that we're on, it's called an All Persons trail.

Right?

And we're going to do it.

We are all persons?

We are all persons.

We're all persons all right.

The all persons trail is pretty much as the name implies.

It's there for all people to use barrier free.

Now, you.

You couldn't do this alone.

You must have partnered with some local groups.

Yeah.

Yeah.

So when we first had this idea of building this trail for everyone right near the biggest city in one of the biggest cities in New Hampshire, we realized that we wanted to build it with the community, not just for the community.

We didn't want to assume what people in the community wanted or needed.

And so what we did was we reached out to a lot of community groups and asked them for input on our first draft we held, I think it was six listening sessions and we had one for active seniors in nature, the black community in nature, LGBTQ plus in nature and their physical, physical access to nature.

The trail is an out and back 1.2 mile hike.

Along the way you'll find benches.

Thank you.

Interpretive signs and a show put on by Mother Nature herself.

What's spectacular about it?

Well, we got the Atlantic white cedars, as you see there.

There you go.

They're spectacular.

Yeah, they are.

We got giant rhododendrons.

Really?

And we have a hosting one of the oldest trees in New Hampshire, the black gum tree.

And hopefully we get a chance to hug that before we come back.

I hope so.

Yeah.

It was growing when Queen Elizabeth, the first was reigning back in the 1540s.

So that's amazing.

That is.

It's older than us!

There aren't too many trees in the woods that are when you think about it.

None of these, for example.

Yeah.

Bill lives just up the street at Riverwoods, a senior living community.

He's here almost every day and sometimes brings a friend with him.

Some are younger than he is, some are older.

The Nature.

Conservancy made sure the trail works for all of them.

So we did hire a professional trail builders to do this.

We hired Peter Jensen and Associates.

Yeah, they are experts in the the practice of accessible trail construction and design.

And so they laid out the trail design and then they did come back and do the final construction as well and built these beautiful benches.

Yes.

Willem, notice how this is joined in here.

Yeah.

I mean the care and the care and thought that went into that.

Yeah.

You know, he just rounded it off and I'm telling you, he was an artist.

He really is.

Everybody should be able to enjoy this peace and tranquility at any time in their life.

Think we have a bench here?

We have a bench.

Kim Thibeault is a hiker who's blind.

She grew up playing in the outdoors and wants it to stay that way.

She worked with the Nature Conservancy to make sure people with disabilities feel a sense of belonging here.

So it's not a just a forrest.

It's a subset of the society that should enjoy this.

Everybody should, because, you know, our mental health is better for it, our mental health is better for.

And after these past couple of years, it's really important to be able to get out and to see other people and to enjoy the company of people, but also enjoy the serenity and the the blessings of this beautiful trail.

My name is Pedro.

Altagracia, and I was born in Puerto Rico, but my parents are both Dominican.

And we when we moved to New York City in like 1998, I was immediately went from like islands, tropical, lush kind of places to, you know, the urban environment.

It was pretty cool.

I really, really enjoyed New York City, but I've always had a connection to the land that was there before I was really born.

After wrapping up high school, Pedro left the Bronx and came to New Hampshire.

He studied environmental science at Colby Sawyer College and reconnected with the land.

And that started really my relationship with the wilderness that is New Hampshire.

For me growing up in New York City, we didn't really have access to all those things.

And being from a marginalized population, we don't have access to many things that promote wellness.

So I had to go to New Hampshire to kind of spark and strengthen this relationship I had or nature, because it wasn't accessible to me in New York City.

So nature in particular, for me, it's like a sanctuary.

It's my church and we're social beings.

We like to connect with people, but sometimes it's good to connect with something that is a little bit bigger than your life, you know?

And that's when I see nature as really it's a realization that life is so much more grand than your own and an appreciation for the outdoors can really spark a lot of benefits to your well-being spiritually, emotionally, physically.

And that's where I see myself being in a lot of times and often times feel that that experience is exclusively taken away from certain populations.

So when the Nature Conservancy asked for input on building this trail, Pedro volunteered.

This is the first time he's hiked on it.

You don't have to walk too, too far into this trail to know just how intentional the design of this trail is.

Like it's very thoughtful, very mindful.

The fact that there's a gravel pit that allows for, you know, wheelchairs to come through.

And so like being able to, like, spread out, it's like you can walk with families, you know, partners can hold hands, you know what I'm saying?

Like, there's opportunity for that kind of intimate relationship with family and nature to happen all at once.

The all person's trail in particular means that anyone has access to the magic that the outdoor brings, regardless of what body you're born into, regardless of what body you grow into as well.

So for people of a variety of different identities, whether you have an impairment or a disability, whether you identify as trans or black, having a space where you can, I guess, start your aha moment with nature.

I am a resident of Manchester, so it was exciting to know that the city and the Nature.

Conservancy was taking such a nice look at something being so inclusive and, and it kind of rejuvenated my feeling of being a part of nature, but also, you know, getting out there and being more active.

Having a trail that promotes access that is very inclusive and promotes belonging into the community and belonging into this outdoor landscape.

It's really, really cool and honestly very impactful for those communities that don't have this right next door or in their backyard.

The preserve is more than a playground.

It's a classroom.

Students of all ages learn above the earth, hands on.

We found out that on Earth Day the park was opened and it was a new trail.

So the girls love to hike and we wanted to come out and explore nature a little bit.

Vanessa is a Girl Scout and she's working on earning some of her badges, the outdoor badges.

So she's on the hunt for all sorts of things to find.

Bill is retired but still loves to work.

So were you part of with it being open the project?

Yeah.

Did you help out a lot?

Yeah.

That's great.

Yeah.

Just promoting what I love to do.

Yeah.

You know what they say?

If you find a job you love, you'll never work a day in your life.

Yes, that's so true.

Yeah, it's very true.

And I am so happy that my girls love to hike and explore too, because the outdoors is a big part of my life.

And especially teaching science.

I like to, you know, test things out and have them learn and appreciate nature and all that it has to offer.

Yeah.

We are always trying to find places that are even safe for the kids to walk around and explore.

And I love all of the signs that are posted with information that kids love reading and it's very easy to get to.

So very nice.

(Inaudible) Navel or belly button.

Interpretive signs to mark the trail and answer questions.

Is there a soundtrack that goes along with it?

There is, yes.

We worked with travel stories GPS and they're a company that built an audio tour for us in English and in Spanish.

So you can come here and you can listen to a beautiful audio tour that is triggered by GPS.

So as you're walking on the trail, it will actually tell you what you're seeing.

So it's very also cool to know that there is a lot of other Spanish speaking, other communities that speak different languages and dialects that are being introduced into this as well.

You see, the most of these have flat faces.

Isn't that interesting?

Yeah.

You know why?

I suspect the movement on the ice picks them up and drags them along and the flattens off one side until the friction between the ground and the and the rock gets more than the ice can handle.

And they flip over.

Okay.

And get the other side and it tumbles.

Yeah, exactly.

Tumbles.

And then they scrape that side.

You know.

I used to tumble rocks when I wasn't doing anything else.

Yeah.

So I'm kind of familiar with Jasper and that kind of just.

You'll see a pitch pine here as I tell the folks when I walk in here.

How do you know it's a pitch?

Fine.

Well, I count the number of needles, on it.

On the bud.

And if you reach down like this.

Well, that's this one.

Yeah.

And if you reach down, as I would say to my student, you look at her bud.

Bill won't mind if I tell you that he's in his eighties.

Age hasn't put a dent in his desire to be outdoors.

That would be what I call a red pine thing.

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

Well, when you become one with nature, you lose track of time, that's one thing.

And then some people use a fancy name they call forest bathing.

But yeah, you just become incorporated in the moment so that you lose track of time.

And that's how I tell.

Yeah, yeah.

When I wake up, and say I've been out here three quarters of an hour already.

You know, that's that's means that I've been into it.

Pretty simple.

It provides peace, peace and refuge from, I would say, the the city.

You know, you don't even realize you're in the city.

You know, out here.

All you hear is the birds.

You know.

It's ability to, you know, regroup and reconnect with my thoughts and my and nature at the same time.

So it's great.

Well, it's it's replenishing.

It just motivates the spirit of the body to get going and and find a purpose of what's out here to see every day there's something new you know, this is not a one and done thing that you come out and I've seen it all.

Yeah.

The view isn't changing much, but what you see here does change.

So as and you'll find that out as you become part of it.

So it's never the same twice.

Yeah.

Yeah.

How has your life changed since you being outdoors?

Well, as I would say, if one thing is extended my life because I, at the point of just sitting on the couch day after day, was not taking me where I wanted to be.

So I needed to to find a purpose.

And this is one of the purposes of getting this trail in here after five or six years.

Now, have you seen any change in the old guy since he started this well, madness?

He decided that he wanted to remove himself from his leisure chair.

And, you know, just reading, being by himself, kind of isolated.

He had lots of friends, but he wasn't getting out and moving around.

You know, he would go up to the exercise room and just do those things.

But he wasn't out engaging with what I saw, nature as, a good therapy know.

Yeah.

We went to a meeting at Catholic.

Medical Center about the value of the outdoors, and the rest is history because he started to see the value of being outside.

I mean feel well, and he was getting exercise and engaging with people.

I know the 500 feet well, yeah, we can do it, can't we?

Well, I'll let you I'll let you know when we get back in the parking lot.

I like to use the word intersectionality, being intersectional and thinking about all the different ways that any person can just be a person, you know, being a human being is not a monolith.

You know, there's there's a lot of variety out there when it comes to people, for sure.

This is not something that is exclusive to a particular population or identity.

This is for everybody.

But when you don't have a relationship with nature, you're not exposed to it in like physically or in curriculum or education.

You really just don't ever really strengthen that relationship that we as human beings like are born with, with nature, you know?

So it's a it's it's really, really important to make places like this accessible to everyone because it provides such great benefits to life.

This is the interpretive signage here.

They're trying to explain the red and the white oak, you know, and they talk about making your own flower.

Well, over here we have the actual device that they.

Yeah, yeah.

And then they, got a depression there for as a model like and a pencil here and the kids can interact with that and see how they used to do that in the olden days, you know.

But the sun is perfect for us right now.

You can see right into that hole, you know, to see how that bark just goes up to there.

And these are the giant rhododendrons down below.

Not flowering but you can see the buds there's one shaft of sunlight in there.

You can see the buds standing up.

That would show me a red oak there.

It does.

Yeah.

It's more scraggly.

Yeah, but it's got the pointies on the end.

Yeah.

Bill knows that not everyone is able to make it to the preserve.

So he brings the outdoors to them.

Do you or you take videos of all this, right?

Oh, absolutely.

You put them online.

I put them online, but I have the population in my my community of about 200 people, plus some of the the staff, too, because they like to know what's going on Because we are neighbors.

Yeah.

As I like to think in terms of neighbors, we're concerned of what's going on here.

So I share that with them and take videos and chat with them online, kind of, you know, explaining what trying to explain what's going on.

Like the other the animals, they're always interested in the beaver and the great blue heron.

Bill's hiking partner lives at River Woods.

Claudette is her name.

Claudette?

Yes.

You know the song?

(Singing) I was named after Claudette Colbert, believe it or not.

Really?

Yes.

Yeah.

My mother loves Claudette Colbert as an actor.

Is that right?

Yes.

Yeah.

Dragged on into this or is it something you what you wanted to do?

Oh, no.

I've always been pretty active.

And when I met Bill and we started walking through the rough trails, something a little rougher than what we're doing.

I don't know whether you or Sally, but one of you or both of you.

Simultaneous.

We spotted it.

Yeah, right.

Early in the story, Bill told us about an ancient black gum tree.

He often stops, admires it and shows his appreciation.

It's older than I am.

That's.

That's the bottom line.

So I have to hug it.

Reverence, right?

It's been a couple of years, so I owe it reverence.

Anyway, at least once a year, this falls impossible to slip with hand tools, so the colonists left them alone.

Thank you.

This tree was here when Queen Elizabeth the first took her reign.

And what, 1543, I think it was that she became Queen of England.

So it was around even then during Shakespeare's time.

Yes.

We owe a lot.

It's seen a lot.

Kim found her place outdoors once paired with a guide dog, she can ride the bus from the city to the trailhead, hop off and explore.

Once I do have my service dog, I'll be able to come out here with a guide and and my service dog will be able to learn the trail and to know what you know, you know what, what to do.

And then I'll be able to come out here fully independent.

And but you know, even before that, I maybe, you know, once I know the trail, like the back of my hand, I, I could do it even before that.

Probably.

This is what happens when communities come together and create a place where all people belong.

The effort won't stop here.

We want this to be more accessible, more frequent to a point where there's no need to distinguish this from that.

This is just the way all of the all of it is.

And with respect to nature.

You know, I think that this does a great job of preserving what nature should be and the intent to preserve this and and really dig into conservation for these lands in particular is so that we can have everyone enjoy it.

You know, that's why we want to keep it so that we can continue enjoying it.

And those people who are going to enjoy it is going to be everyone, anyone who's in this community, anyone who lives in Manchester.

People will hear about this trail and they will come from other places, come visit this trail so that they can blueprint this and put this in their community, you know?

So this is a very beautiful thing, the way that this has really started.

And for me, the all persons trail, I see myself in this trail, you know what I'm saying?

So that's why I'm here today.

And this was a really easy commute to do because this is the intention was to see yourself reflected in this environment.

Well, we have done this beautiful lollipop of a trail through the Cedar swamp.

Oh, it's just gorgeous.

And the rhododendrons and we're back to where we started.

Yeah!

Stop that.

Well, almost everybody's back to where we started.

And now we've come again to that time.

But we have to say goodbye.

And so I shall.

Goodbye.

I hope to see you all again on Windows to the Wild.

Yeah!

That was.

That was a pretty pallid Yeah (Laughter) Support for the production of Windows to the Wild is provided by the Alice J. Reen Charitable Trust, Bailey Charitable Foundation.

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