Rail Trail Bridge Construction, 2008 — Friends of the Goffstown Rail Trail

2008 Rail Trail Bridge Construction

After the contracted trail and drainage project was completed (see photos here), it was time for the volunteers to get to work. On a cold November morning, hardy trail volunteers began work with the temperature near 20 degrees. As they tried to start digging, they discovered that the ground was already frozen a few inches deep. However, once the ground was broken up, progress was steady on the actual bridge structure. By mid afternoon, the bridge deck was complete. A smaller number of volunteers finished the railings and trim over the following couple of days.

This project was made possible by nearly 20 people who volunteered a total of more than 150 hours of work. Thanks for the support of this project also go to:

  • Public Service of New Hampshire for funding through their Environmental Community Grant Program
  • Lowes of Bedford for providing a substantial discount on the materials
  • Dan Devriendt, of Devriendt Farm, for bringing his backhoe over to break up the frozen ground
  • John Neville Excavating for backfilling and smoothing the trail surface after the bridge was complete
  • Goffstown Board of Selectmen for their continuing support of rail trail construction