Forest Society Working to Conserve Land on Mount Monadnock
The Society for the Protection of New Hampshire Forests is working to conserve 390 acres along the slopes of Mount Monadnock in Jaffrey and Marlborough.
“If we are successful in our current effort, this land will add to more than 5,000 acres of protected acreage on and around Mount Monadnock,” said Forest Society President/Forester Jane Difley.
The protection of these properties will guarantee that important sections of active hiking trails will continue to be maintained and open to the public under Forest Society stewardship. One of these lands, located next to Forest Society-owned land on the western side of the mountain, includes a key section of the Marlborough Trail, one of the main routes to Mount Monadnock’s summit. The Forest Society will lead a short hike to this property along the Marlborough Trail and Shaker Farm Road on October 2.
The other parcel, surrounded on three sides by Forest Society land, abuts two class 6 roads that are heavily used as hiking trails, including part of a cross country ski trail that begins from the state park headquarters.
With their forests and wetlands, these two parcels enhance the varied wildlife habitat that the region is renowned for. The conservation of these lands will also protect the panoramic mountain views of Mount Monadnock that are widely visible from across the region.
The Forest Society is raising money to conserve these properties.
“We must raise $760,000 by December 31 in order to protect this land,” said Difley.
Mount Monadnock is one of the most-climbed mountains in the western hemisphere. In 1915 the Forest Society conserved its first tract on Mount Monadnock, beginning a long-term effort to protect the natural integrity of the mountain and its surroundings. Since then, the Forest Society has acquired more than 5,000 acres at Mount Monadnock and Gap Mountain in the towns of Dublin, Marlborough, Troy, and Jaffrey. The Forest Society leases much of its land to the State to be operated as Mount Monadnock State Park.
For more information about the Forest Society’s conservation work on Mount Monadnock or to support the organization’s current conservation efforts on the mountain, contact Susanne Kibler-Hacker at (603) 224-9945 ext. 314, or visit forestsociety.org/monadnock.
Founded in 1901, the Society for the Protection of New Hampshire Forests is the state’s oldest and largest non-profit land conservation organization. Supported by 10,000 families and businesses, the Forest Society’s mission is to perpetuate the state’s forests by promoting land conservation and sustainable forestry. For more information, visit www.forestsociety.org.