First, thanks for taking the time to help us out on this! I agree with the pipe/drain gap, which is why we thought originally that the pipe should/would connect directly to the drain (but, as I said, the landscaping guy said that then more sediment could get in the drain?). I don't think a larger grate would readily do the trick - the water level rarely reaches the level of the grate (which is elevated off of the "bottom" of the trench. It enters the drain primarily through those holes drilled in the side, as I mentioned. So you think the water would move well enough through soil? I thought in general that rocks were better at moving water quickly - hence the commonality of dry creek beds, surrounding french drains in gravel, etc.?

Hi zaclyasitshoulbe, I don't really know what I'm doing either. I just faked my way through this. The path took me a month or more to complete, because I had to drive 15 or 20 minutes to get rocks and I could only get a few in my Jeep at a time. I also spent lots of time searching for rocks with a fairly large flat side. I just built another path like that one this weekend, but it's only about 5 feet long. To answer your question, since I took so long to do the project, I just dug up a few feet at a time rather than the whole path. I did need to dig up more than the area for just one rock because most of them bump up against each other under ground. I think it shows up in some of my pictures. I have pure sand under all of my yard, so I dug off the topsoil and placed the rocks in the sand underneath. If you have a different kind of soil, you might need to do something underneath for drainage. Mine made it through the first winter (Northern Lower Michigan) without any frost heaving so I guess what I did was ok. I put a link to a picture of my new path in case you wanted to see it, but the first one is a little more impressive. Here is a link that might be useful: Stone path to faucet

I can see where the gravel is easier, but ours isn't a weed problem, it is all in lawn grass, so pretty easy to deal with. My kids like to weed eat, so the idea with the mowing and using the mulch is good too. The reason we started this adventure is because I was in a car accident which left me with a severely broken neck. This makes my getting up and down and bending over very difficult. Peggy, I can see where the wheelchair would be an issue to look at. My husband found some rock that may solve the problem. It would basically be putting down the gravel, but paving it with large pieces of rock, which could be flattened out really well. I bet a wheelchair would go over it easily. It would be prettier than plain gravel. I have a hard time facing killing all that lawn. It is so pretty and green. However, the kids won't be here forever to weed whack and mow for me;) We'll have to hash it out I guess. I am just grateful for a husband who is so great about making these for me. I love gardening and I was so upset at the prospect of not being able to enjoy it any longer. I bet your son feels the same way. Gardening is so therapeutic for me!! Good Luck, if you decide to pave or gravel I would love to see pictures!! g

The stepping stones look a little pointless to me. Who meanders over them in fairy steps rather than make a beeline straight to the exit? Rectangular paving stones in a straight line down the middle would be more practical and a visual improvement imo. Gravel is annoying to walk on. Driftwood would look good if it was big enough, like a whole eroded tree trunk, as would large boulders. Otherwise some big containers with shade toleraters like ferns or hostas would help the space.