Clarkstown officially opened the Bear Swamp Preserve on Mountainview Avenue in Valley Cottage on Tuesday.

The environmental club at Nyack High school helped create the trail alongside town workers by using geographic technology and drones.

The new path helps connect Clarkstown land with a Rockland County park, where there are more trails to explore.

Helena Sopin, a freshman at Nyack High School, helped create the new trail.

“It’s just so cool to see like all of your hard work and dedication put into process,” says Helena.

The previous landowner had wanted to build a large church before the Mountainview Preservation Group stepped in to protect the land. Clarkstown bought the land in 2017.

“It let it become an educational experience for them, but also let them take ownership of this park because they’re the ones that are hopefully going to be using this park for many, many years to come,” said Clarkstown Supervisor George Hoehmann.