Phillips-Ulrich Community Trail AKA The College Woods Trail, SUNY Fredonia
Visited August 10, 2021
Parking Lot 7 on Ring Road, SUNY Fredonia, Fredonia, NY 14063
[Access the campus from the main entrance off of Central Avenue. Lot 7 is to the right.]
Paved parking area that will hold 100+ vehicles. We had the lot to ourselves since Fall Semester has not yet begun.
85 degrees Fahrenheit, 4:00-5:15 PM
No toilets available at trail but bathrooms may be available on campus via Starbuck's or the Williams Center.
Leashed dogs allowed. Please pick up after your pooch.
Long pants not needed for these trails. No mud today but in the spring or after long periods of rain, I would recommend waterproof boots.
Poison ivy is at the edge of the trail in a few places.
No cost to access the parking lot or the trail.
I visited the trail with my daughter a soon-to-be graduate. As a Fredonia alum, I remember tromping in these woods when the trails were less formalized. In 2006, we found our first geocache here. The Fredonia High School cross country team used the trail for practice so my daughter also has memories of running this trail. With that background, our walk today, had moments of fond memories and "remember when".
The Main Loop is 1.29 miles. There are two short cuts marked on the map as well. We did the main loop counter clockwise and then made an inner loop of the South Trail, Main Loop to connect to the North Trail, and back that added up to approximately 2.1 miles. You will need over one hour, especially if you take a detour as we did to get a photo of the new FRED letters in front of the Williams Center. Overall, we had a relaxing, enjoyable ramble. Wesley would have loved it but I left him home because of the heat.
There was a little trash present on this walk that I picked up and disposed of.
We encountered one person who was walking the trail clockwise. When college opens next week, I expect that parking will be more challenging and there may be more people on sections of the trail.
The trails are marked with sign posts and colored tree medallions as shown in the photos below. It was flat with slight inclines but overall an unchallenging walk. The trails were mowed and in great condition except for a few recently downed trees on the far side of the Main Loop near Central Avenue and the thruway.
The trail surface was natural.
The trail was dry today. The trail was wide enough to walk side by side except in a few single-file sections.
The variety at this site was incredible. Some of the trees were gigantic. We saw Queen Anne's lace, trillium, sweet pea, American honeysuckle, grape vine, Virginia creeper, poison ivy, mayapple, goldenrod, hemlock, honey locust trees, willow trees, maple trees, oak trees, apple trees, and cherry trees. We saw paper wasps, Japanese beetles, robins, gray squirrels, Canada geese, and a sweet little woodchuck whose afternoon snack we interrupted.
For more information and a link to the trail map:
https://www.fredonia.edu/about/community-trail
Nearby:
Sullivan's, 3590 East Main Road (Route 20), Fredonia, NY 14063
I love the milkshakes here. Worth the wait if there is a line.
Crosswalk to the trail from Parking Lot 7
Parking Lot 7
Entrance to trail
Entrance to Trail
Three Man Hill
Trail Markers
Mayapple
Queen Anne's lace
Apple tree with trail medallion and paper wasp nest
Grapes
Japanese beetles
Honey locust tree
No need to turn right here
Turn left to stay on the trail
Deer print
Giant willow tree
One of the tree branches that has fallen into the trail
View of the Chautauqua County Fairgrounds buildings' rooftops
View of the thruway, Route 90
Sweet pea
A flock of Canada geese resting in the far right of this image
Bluebird nesting boxes
We saw the woodchuck as we neared the end of what you can see in this image
Bat nesting box
Leftover art exhibition artifacts?
Nice little bridges for when the trails are muddy
Trillium
New FRED letter installation near Williams Center