MILTON, Ga. — Charlie Lancelot, neighbor and longtime advocate of Providence Park, adopted one of three trails on the 42-acre space in Milton’s new Adopt-a-Trail program.
The half-mile, paved white trail, which stretches down to the park’s pier, now sports the name “Betindiego Pass.” Betindiego is a combination of the names of Lancelot’s three dogs — Bety, Indie and Diego.
Lancelot, 82, runs the trail just about every day, and brings his companions along, and he has been since he moved next to the park in the mid-’90s, back before the park was bought by Milton and when contamination plagued the grounds from commercial dumping.
He moved there for the park, but it closed in 2001 for chemical cleanup.
“I just decided arbitrarily, ‘No way. I moved next to these trails. I’m going to run these trails. If I have to remove the trees myself, I will,’” Lancelot said. “But, I’ll do whatever I have to do to keep my trails I moved down here for.”
He and his gardener, alone, would trespass into the park wielding a chainsaw, to cut down dead trees infested with pine borers and keep the trails clear.
“That park and I became joined at the hip, so to speak,” Lancelot said.
The Adopt-a-Trail program launched in November. All three trails at Providence Park were adopted within 24 hours, out of a total of 15 adoptable trails in Milton. Trails also run through Birmingham Park and Bell Memorial Park, with trails open for adoption, Lakhapani Preserve, and Milton City Park and Preserve.
Milton Outdoor Recreation Supervisor Jen Young, who brought the Adopt-a-Trail program to the city, said adoptees must conduct quarterly checks for dead or dying trees and erosion. She said they can also opt for beautification, maybe a bench or a fairy house.
The week before, Lancelot notified the city of a tree that had come down which breached the…
Read the full article here
