Submitted by Jo Natale for Wegmans

The Northborough Trails Committee (NTC) announced collaboration with Wegmans Food Markets, Inc. to develop a fitness Passport program on the hiking trails in the town of Northborough.

Starting in the fall of 2011, people can visit the new Wegmans store located at Northborough Crossing (at the intersections of routes 9 and 20), or go to the town hall engineering office to pick up Wegmans Passport to Family Wellness and begin their journey exploring the 30 miles of hiking trails scattered throughout the town. Passports were also distributed at Northborough Applefest.

The Passport is a small booklet containing 10 different trail maps with a brief description of the location and the type of terrain that will be encountered. On each map is a small star showing the location of a trail marker used to emboss the name of the trail in the booklet with a pencil or crayon.

Completing four of the ten trails allows the hiker to receive a Wegmans coupon. If seven trails are completed, the hiker is eligible to win the annual grand prize, a $100 Wegmans gift card for a picnic for 20 friends and family at a pavilion in Ellsworth McAfee Park.

The winner will be drawn in mid-July each year.

In 2006, Wegmans began partnering with local towns and counties in its market areas to encourage use of trails, and now supports trail programs in 10 different communities where they have stores. Wegmans provides the passports, the Wegmans coupons, and a $100 gift card for each community’s annual grand prize drawing. 

“One of our five giving priorities is to support programs that encourage healthy eating and activity,” said Kevin Russell, Wegmans Northborough store manager.  “This is a great way to do that and raise awareness about the beautiful trails that already exist in our community.”   

Russell and a team of employees from the new store launched the program by hiking the Stirrup Brook Trail on Sept. 10.

The Northborough Trails Committee is a subcommittee of the Northborough Open Space Committee. NTC’s mission is to develop and maintain a recreational trail system in Northborough on public and private property by utilizing volunteers from the community. The NTC has agreements with the Northborough Conservation Commission, MassWildLife, Sudbury Valley Trustees and private property owners to perform the services of volunteer trail stewards for the recreational trails on those lands.

In addition, the town’s library has available trekking packs that can be signed out for use on any trail and an audio guide of the natural features of the Edmunds Woods. Please feel free to learn more about the trails by accessing our the NTC website.