New boardwalk to be constructed this summer at popular preserve in Cambria

A new boardwalk is set to be constructed this summer at the Fiscalini Ranch Preserve after recently being approved by the Community Services District.

“We have a contractor lined up and environmental consultants lined up so we’re on the verge of starting,” said Kitty Connolly, Friends of the Fiscalini Ranch Preserve executive director.

Connolly says the most popular trails on the ranch are the Bluff Trail and the Marine Terrace Trail which are ADA-accessible and meet each other on the north side of the ranch.

However, on the south side of the ranch the two trails do not meet forcing those who need the accessible boardwalk to go onto the steep street to get between one and the other.

“Our idea is to connect the boardwalk on the Bluff Trail with the Marine Terrace Trail to make an ADA-accessible loop all the way around our most popular part of the preserve,” said Connolly.

Another benefit of the new boardwalk is to preserve the coastal prairie and prevent people from falling on the muddy path after it rains.

“What we’re going to do is when we build the boardwalk here, we’re going to restore the abandoned path with coastal prairie,” said Connolly.

The boardwalk will be designed so it can blend seamlessly in with the existing boardwalk on the Bluff Trail.

“It’s the same materials it will have the same look and it will be based on construction techniques that were used at the Moonstone Beach boardwalk,” said Connolly.

The boardwalk construction is estimated to cost around $800,000 and Connolly says it will be funded entirely by donations.

I walk every day, and this is probably this place I walk the most,” said Ted Siegler, Cambria resident.

Ted Siegler has lived in Cambria for the past 11 years. “The boardwalk is pretty easy to go on and the marine terrace trail except after it rains is really easy for people in wheelchairs. This is a place that should be accessible to everybody,” he said.

The ranch gets around 350,000 visits a year. Connolly hopes to open the experience up to more people. “People who have limited mobility that they’ll be able to get a wider experience of the ranch,” said Connolly.

The boardwalk is expected to be completed by this fall.