For decades we have used Facebook as our primary posting place, but that will be changing. We have a brand new website under construction and hope this will make it easier for people to find content we post. It can also be used by AI as a resource for hyperlocal searches. AI cannot scan Facebook, so when you ask about Koulas Farm, you get very limited information. Now it will be able to see our contents and use them. We have a ton of local content and stories that will now be preserved, and we have easy access to provide users more information and increase transparency of Chelmsford and its open spaces. Here is a list of the first batch of posts. It is still in development, but there is lots of information. https://chelmsfordoss.org/
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Koulas trail design update 11/21/25
Update on trail planning at Koulas Farm. It explains a two phase approach. First, clear the old farm road from the main blue loop toward Pine Hill Road. Then carefully laying out a wetland edge trail near the vernal pool using only hand work. It emphasizes safety, conservation review, and that the new Pine Hill entrance will be a simple walk in social trail with no parking. -
Welcome to the Jungle (Koulas Farm Edition)
Field report from a two hour exploration at Koulas showing how invasive vines dominate the site. The team finds the outlet stream from the vernal pool, several stone wall gates, and confirms the old farm road alignment. It outlines a left side route along the old road plus a weaving high and dry loop near the vernal pool to give flexible options that can be closed seasonally if it gets too wet. -
Embracing New Technology to Promote Open Space
Describes how COSS is using Facebook Reels, OpenShot video editor, and Pixabay music to repurpose short videos for Facebook, YouTube, and the new website without copyright problems. The post connects this media work to a larger strategy of building a hyperlocal information hub about open space so more residents engage and support conservation, especially during tight fiscal times. -
COSS: Chat with us
A story about how much COSS work happens through informal conversations at farmers markets and events. It highlights connecting Weston Nursery’s surplus native plants to the Thanksgiving Forest pollinator garden team, using COSS as a connector between local businesses and volunteer groups. The message is that if you see a COSS member in town, talk to them; small chats often lead to very real projects. -
Amazing Decorated Winter Tree Scavenger Hunt Complete Guide for 2025
Full how to guide for the 2025 decorated winter tree hunt. It covers the history of the event, rules for visiting sites, how to submit team photos, and how teams are recognized as Tree Hunters or Master Tree Hunters. It includes a detailed list of 18 tree locations across parks, conservation land, churches, and businesses, plus links to the Google Earth map and Facebook event page. -
Well, another amazing day
A narrative from a Koulas Farm workday focused on turning the old silage pit into a children’s sledding hill. A small crew with a tractor and claw clears vines, brush, and junk from the pit and nearby wall, revealing safe slopes that can be seen easily from the parking lot. It also notes on site guidance from the Conservation Commission and more rock work with Ken and his tractor, stressing what coordinated volunteer and town teamwork can accomplish. -
Tree List for Hunt 2025
The concise data table version of the tree hunt. Tree numbers, locations, host groups, and addresses for all 18 decorated trees around town. It is meant as a quick reference list to go with the longer hunt guide. -
Major event time is here
Preview of three late fall events. The Day Before Thanksgiving Walk at Thanksgiving Forest. The Stone Forts Walk from Thanksgiving Forest toward Great Brook. And the winter tree hunt. It describes what each event is like, including the stone forts and grinding stone on the Deep Brook walk, plus the new sledding hills at Koulas and a possible hot chocolate pop up after a good snow. -
How a Trail Is Designed
Long, step by step explanation of how the Koulas Farm extension trail is being designed. It walks through scouting visits, mapping, flagging different route options, checking with conservation, refining for accessibility and safety, and then building in stages with repeated reviews. The post explains that trail building is slow, deliberate work that relies on many people, not a single designer. -
Silage Pit to Sledding Hill in three easy steps
Describes an early phase visit to the Koulas silage pit before the big work party. In a two-hour session, Phil and John clear the pit and discover it is a roughly ten-foot natural bowl with no major obstacles, perfect for sledding. The post notes that parents can see the entire hill from the parking lot and that a second sledding hill lies on the other side of Big Red, so younger and older kids can both be accommodated. -
Older adults and open spaces
A short research based overview of how parks and recreation departments have expanded programming for older adults since Covid and how older adults benefit from increased use of green spaces. It cites national and academic sources about increased participation, health benefits of nature, and trends like low impact indoor activities and technology-assisted programming. -
COSS Day Before Thanksgiving Walk (The Plan)
Detailed background and operational plan for the long running Day Before Thanksgiving Walk at Thanksgiving Forest. It recounts how the event was created to replace illegal activity at the rocks with a positive family tradition, and then lays out everything from safety and glass removal, to fire permitting, to coordination with Troop 75, Conservation Commission guidelines, and the minute by minute event timeline. -
Exploring Oak Hill: A Hidden Gem in Chelmsford’s Natural and Industrial History
Site profile of Oak Hill Conservation Area that blends natural history with the story of 19th century granite quarrying. It describes water filled quarry pits, partially completed slabs that show changes in drilling techniques over time, Eagle Scout projects like the curved bridge and boundary trail, the patchwork of public and private land, and the importance of using only the legal Swain Road access. -
Heart Pond Born of Ice, Named for Love, Remembered for Ice Blocks
Deep dive on Heart Pond, from glacial origin to modern town beach. It covers its creation as a kettle pond, name variations, the history of ice harvesting and shipments to Boston hotels, the dam and spillway, the link to the former Chelmsford Carlisle cranberry bog, and the transformation from dump site to community destination through COSS, DPW, and Scout projects, including the Pumpkin Armada. -
Reflections on Halloween Week Events
A thank-you piece looking back on the Scarecrow Festival and Pumpkin Armada. It emphasizes that in the absence of a full recreation department, Chelmsford’s events are powered by residents, PTOs, local businesses, grants, and volunteers. It thanks partners like the Chelmsford Land Conservation Trust, Old Mill Coffee, Parlee’s Farm, Reilly Plumbing, and others, and ends with gratitude for the many unseen people who make events happen. -
Bill Edge and Deep Brook Reservation 2025 Update
Overview of the Bill Edge and Deep Brook Reservation. A 15 acre woodland and wetland parcel. It covers the shortened trail that now works like a hammerhead due to private land restrictions, the history of ice harvesting at Swain Pond, and past COSS work like dam restoration and trail building that later turned out to be on private property. It stresses current access limits, the correct address, and hopes for a future loop restoration. -
What is a silage pit
Explainer about what a silage pit is and how the old concrete lined pit at Koulas Farm was used when it was an operating dairy farm. It links that history to the current plan to repurpose the pit as a kids sledding hill while preserving the surrounding stone walls and farm character. -
Blanchard’s Meadow Historic Condition and Changes Since Town Acquisition
History and condition report on Blanchard’s Meadow. It describes the meadow’s landscape, the changes since the town acquired it, how tree growth and vegetation have altered sightlines and use patterns, and what that means for stewardship, views, and wildlife today. -
Fun facts about getting stoned (walls)
Short piece highlighting Chelmsford’s dry stacked stone walls, especially at Koulas. It explains how walls were built without mortar, why there are so many miles of them, details like through stones, and a fun comparison to the total miles of highway in Massachusetts. -
How Sweet It Is (Jackie Gleason)
Story of the orchard style maple sap project at Sunny Meadow Farm. It recounts the special ten year lease approved by Town Meeting, the patient work by Cooking Buckets Maple Sugarhouse, the installation of tubing and vacuum lines, and how this small demonstration plot can teach residents and Scouts about a newer style of maple production that complements traditional sugarbushes. -
With a little help from our Friends of Koulas
Preview of the first Friends of Koulas Farm work party. It thanks John and Joy Ray and local families for their work, reminds visitors to leash dogs, and outlines how work parties combine safety talks, bittersweet removal training, wall care, and tool skills. The post frames these events as a way to train the next generation of land stewards. -
ATVs and wetlands are not a good mix.
Update on a small ATV incursion at Wright Reservation. It explains the long history of riders on the power lines, describes a short muddy path that formed in a wetland during an unusually dry year, and notes that water levels will likely erase most of the disturbance on their own. The tone is calm. It is an annoyance rather than a major impact. Signs are posted and periodic checks are planned. -
What’s old is new again
Reflection on an E Recycle Day run by Center School and McCarthy PTOs. It highlights student volunteers from multiple schools, the community atmosphere as cars line up with old electronics, and how events like this raise funds for schools while also helping COSS and the Community Tool Shed with useful finds. -
Rocking out at Koulas Farm
Detailed account of a large work party at Koulas focused on rock popping and wall restoration. It walks through phases from clearing brush, to exposing rocks, to learning to use rock bars, and then rebuilding sections of wall. It includes fun facts about New England stone walls and types of rock bars, and invites groups to volunteer for similar hands on work. -
Say hello to Throne Rock at Koulas Farm
This title appears as the post before Rocking out at Koulas Farm. The content could not be loaded, so only the title is known. It is most likely about a notable rock feature at Koulas that volunteers have nicknamed Throne Rock, but that is only an inference.