The Gwynns Falls Trail is a scenic ribbon of green for hikers and bikers that meanders across West Baltimore, from Leakin Park to the Middle Branch of the Patapsco River.

But you may want to bring your hip boots if you want to try your luck with the most recent segment. It's being built from Winans Meadow in Leakin Park to the Park and Ride lot at the eastern end of Interstate 70.

It seems that stormwater has been gushing down from nearby Franklintown Road, washing across about a 10-foot portion of the path and into nearby wetlands.

The Maryland Department of the Environment has informed the project's designers that they can't build in an area so likely to flood, said Robert Ballinger, spokesman for the state agency

"We did not issue any penalties, but we did have some concerns about the flood plain," said Ballinger. ""We've been working with them to correct the problem."

A boardwalk or pipe of some kind may have to be built to allow this section of the trail to continue, said William F. Eberthart Jr., chair of the board of the Gwynns Falls Trail council.

"The project is not held up…..but there is a gap in the trail where the water overflow is," Eberthart said.  Without additional funding to build a boardwalk, hikders "will be walking in the mush. It won’t be a proper bike trail. It's unacceptable not to finish it."

The final leg of the trail is a few months behind schedule, and is set to be finished by this fall.

For more information about the trail, go to: http://www.gwynnsfallstrail.org/