Summer 2015 - Moose Mountains Regional Greenways

M o o s e M o u n t a i n s R e gi o n a l G r e e n wa y s
Volume 14 Issue 2
Summer 2015
G REENWAY G AZETTE
Mission
To identify and
conserve important
natural resource
areas, including water
resources, farm and
forest lands, wildlife
habitat, recreational
areas, cultural and
scenic areas.
To educate others
about these efforts.
To join together
protected lands
to form greenways.
Contact Us
By mail:
Moose Mountains
Regional Greenways
PO Box 191
Union, NH 03887
(603) 473-2020
[email protected]
Online:
www.mmrg.info
Staff
Development and
Communications
Coordinator:
Virginia Long
(603) 473-2020
Join Us August 8 for MMRG’s 13th Annual
Woods, Water, and Wildlife Festival
Moose Mountains Regional Greenways’ 13th annual
Woods, Water & Wildlife Festival will take place on
Saturday, August 8 from 10 am to 3 pm. As always, the
event will be at Branch Hill Farm, 307 Applebee Road in
Milton Mills, NH. This celebration of the great outdoors
is a chance for families to have fun and learn about the
natural world together.
Several new entertaining and educational activities will
be featured at this year’s festival. Take your kids on a
Guided Family Forest Walk, a fun discovery adventure
led by MMRG Education Coordinator Kari Lygren. Join
consulting forester Dan Stepnauskas for Best Bird and
Bat Habitats. Watch a low impact mechanized harvester
at work during the Tree Farm Hayride with forester
Charlie Moreno. Don’t miss the chance to learn about the
activities of Strafford County 4H and play interactive
games at 4H Comes to the Festival! At Growing
Heirloom Veggies, Sheehan Lygren will show off his
artistic garden and share gardening and composting skills.
Completing the new MMRG Conservation Quest will take
(Continued on page 3)
Children explore the corn maze
at last year’s WWW Festival.
Photo courtesy of Kate Wilcox.
Fall Hike to Wolfeboro’s Whiteface Mountain–Now Protected!
This coming September, MMRG Secretary
Art Slocum will lead an outing up Whiteface Mountain in Wolfeboro, a beloved hike
known to local hikers for years. It’s a five
hundred foot climb through woods and
along stone walls to the sheer granite cliff
face that gives the mountain its name. At the
summit, you can stand atop the cliff and
enjoy the reward: a long 180-degree view of
the spectacular lakes region, the Ossipee
Mountains, and the White Mountains. Hike
details are on the back of this newsletter.
Local landowners have informally allowed
public access so people could get to the top
of the mountain. However, the soon-to-becompleted Whiteface Mountain conservation project will guarantee that access via a
second, shorter route that is publicly owned.
Eighty acres of the Mountain, including the
famous lookout point, will be permanently
conserved, thanks to this project.
Director of Land
Conservation:
Keith Fletcher
(603) 817-8260
Education
Coordinator:
Kari Lygren
(603) 978-7125
Administrative
Coordinator:
Kam Damtoft
(603) 473-2020
It took many years and many partners to
make this conservation project happen.
With the Wolfeboro-Tuftonboro Land Bank
Hikers study a map while atop Whiteface.Mountain.
(Continued on page 3)
Letter from the Chair: Important Next Steps
Board of Directors
Brookfield
Nicole Csiszer (Vice Chair)
Farmington
Open
Middleton
Jack Savage (Chair)
Milton
Cynthia Wyatt
New Durham
Lorraine Drake
Ron Gehl
Wakefield
Bruce Rich (Treasurer)
Nancy Spencer Smith
Wolfeboro
Art Slocum (Secretary)
Dan Coons
At Large
Jon Batson
Wendy Scribner
Dear members,
With you as our partners, Moose Mountains
Regional Greenways
has contributed mightJack Savage
ily to the land conservation movement in our 7-town region
over the past 15 years. We have survived the organizational start-up phase
and established ourselves as a stable
entity capable of long-term initiatives.
A little over two years ago, the Board
completed a strategic planning process
that led to a carefully considered decision to become a land trust—that is, to
push beyond our established role as a
facilitating partner in land conservation
projects and take on the permanent
protection and stewardship of conservation easements and owning property
ourselves. We recognize that as a land
trust dedicated to the Moose Mountains
region, we are uniquely positioned to
fill the need for community-scale conservation projects. Last fall, thanks to
the generosity of the Thompson family
and other donors, we accepted our first
conservation easement.
Two years ago, we launched a capital
campaign to raise funds necessary to
accomplish the goal of “becoming a
land trust.” Based on the success of that
campaign thus far, it’s fair to say that
our members and donors enthusiastically support the idea.
This year we are taking two additional
steps we feel are critical to pursuing our
land conservation mission and fulfilling
our potential as an organization.
tions Coordinator. She has been looking
to reduce her hours, has enjoyed communications and development work, and
will be invaluable as we make this
transition. We are grateful for her past
service and very fortunate that she will
continue to be working on MMRG’s
behalf. Kam Damtoft of Durham joined
the staff as Administrative Coordinator
on an interim basis to help until the new
Executive Director is in place. Kam has
extensive non-profit experience, including working with Dover-based Strafford
Rivers Conservancy prior to its merger
with Southeast Land Trust.
Second, we are seeking to create a
Moose Mountains Conservation Action
Plan that would help focus our conservation work over the next decade or
more. As a land trust, we recognize the
need to make the most efficient use of
all-too-scarce resources, and the Action
Plan will guide our priorities and allow
us to be more proactive. Creating the
plan will be a collaborative process—
you’ll hear more about this over time.
Meanwhile, our work continues.
I hope you’ll stop by our 13th annual
Woods, Water, & Wildlife Festival on
August 8. If you’re a landowner who
has been contemplating conserving your
land, please speak to one of our Board
members or reach out to our Director of
Land Conservation, Keith Fletcher. Or,
if you just want to let us know what you
think, don’t hesitate to send us a note or
give us a call. We’d love to hear from
you.
Jack Savage
Chair, Board of Directors
First, our Board of Directors has
launched a national search to hire
for the first time a full-time Executive Director to help lead the
work of MMRG.
Serving
Brookfield
Milton
Farmington
New Durham
Middleton
Wakefield
Wolfeboro
2
Virginia Long, who has served the
organization as Executive Director on a part-time basis for the
past five years, has decided to
take on a more focused role as
Development and Communica-
MMRG Staff: Keith Fletcher, Kam Damtoft,
Virginia Long , and Kari Lygren.
Greenway Gazette
(Wolfeboro’s Whiteface Mountain, continued from page 1)
(WTLB) in the lead and assisted by MMRG, discussions
were held with a previous owner of the land. Although
those preliminary discussions did not bear fruit, a new
owner purchased the land and house and was pleased to
sell most of the acreage for conservation and donate some
additional land.
Acting swiftly when the land was about to go on the open
market, WTLB reached agreement with the new owner
and stepped in to purchase the property, creating the time
and space needed for permanent conservation. The purchase was accomplished with additional funds from the
Town of Wolfeboro Conservation Commission. The Town
will be the final landowner. The Land Bank is temporary
holder of the land while a conservation easement is being
prepared by the Lakes Region Conservation Trust
(LRCT), which has agreed to hold the easement, permanently protecting the land and public access.
Don McBride, President of WTLB, led the project from
the beginning, stating, “It took patience and persistence,
but the Land Bank really wanted to see this land protected.
With the help of MMRG and our partners, we succeeded.”
LRCT is also playing a critical role as future easement
holder. An easement deed is close to final that will ensure
the land is protected and available for public use.
A public trail to the top of the mountain will be established within the next few years. “It’s a short, steep climb
to the top,” says Dan Coons, Chair of the Wolfeboro Conservation Commission, “but it lies entirely on the property,
so the public will always have a way to get up there.” The
new trail will be accessed from Brown’s Ridge Road.
Says Keith Fletcher, Director of Land Conservation for
MMRG, “This project shows the power of persistence and
partnerships in getting important conservation deals done.
When the land was sold a few years back, it looked like
the opportunity to protect it was lost, but instead this created the opportunity we needed. The Land Bank moved
swiftly, and the Town of Wolfeboro Conservation Commission and the Lakes Region Conservation Trust pitched
in to finalize protection and establish a second route to the
top that will be there for all, forever.”
(August 8 Woods, Water, and Wildlife Festival, Continued from page 1)
your whole family to all our festival activities as you seek
stickers to fill your Quest card and get your tasty reward.
Returning festival attendees will be happy to see their
favorite activities. Volunteer instructors from NH Fish &
Game will provide poles and bait to kids for Let’s Go
Fishing! Nature experts display rescued animals at the
Squam Lakes Wildlife Workshop and Ruth Scruton’s
Traveling Barnyard has a petting zoo. Learn about our
water and wildlife on the Junior Ecologist Hayrides to the
Salmon Falls River. Kids Discover the Forest and
Nature’s Playground events give families a chance to
explore and play amongst the ferns and tall trees.
Cooperative Extension agriculture and forestry experts
answer your questions, and volunteers from the NH Farm
Museum, local craftsmen, and horse loggers demonstrate
traditional rural skills. Kids can get creative in the Tree
Cookie Craft Corner, or try building their own birdhouses.
And everyone loves to explore the Amazing Corn Maze.
Homemade salads, desserts, grilled food, and smoothies
will be on sale along with T-shirts and raffle baskets of
local fresh produce and other items. The festival takes
place rain or shine. No pets please. Rest rooms and most
events are wheelchair accessible. The cost is $5/person or
$10/family and free to ages 12 and under and MMRG
members. All events are included in the admission price.
Proceeds and business sponsorships support MMRG’s
land conservation and educational outreach mission.
MMRG is grateful to its festival underwriters, the Siemon
Company and Branch Hill Farm/the Carl Siemon Family
Charitable Trust, which also hosts the festival. We would
3
Volunteers helped kids build birdhouses at last year’s WWW Festival.
also like to thank the many area businesses, organizations
and individuals that support our mission through festival
sponsorships and supporter donations! See the thank you
list on p. 5 of our early festival sponsors. Several events
still need co-sponsors; please call Virginia at 473-2020.
The festival could not take place without the many
dedicated volunteers who make the day run smoothly! See
the thank you list on p. 5 and please call Kari Lygren at
603-978-7125 if you’d like to jon our volunteer team this
year!
Greenway Gazette
Help Us Become a Land
Trust Campaign!
MMRG has successfully completed the
second year of its five-year $250,000
fundraising campaign to ensure our
financial sustainability as a land trust.
The campaign was kicked off in the
summer of 2013 with an extraordinary
$100,000 matching challenge pledge
from MMRG founding member and
current board member Cynthia S. Wyatt.
We are thrilled with our success to date
and grateful to our many donors for their
generosity! Please see the donor thank
you list on the facing page.
Exploring and Learning About the Land
Branch River Paddle
Paddlers floated between the conserved banks of Branch Hill Farm land
and learned about the changing landscape from forester Charlie Moreno.
Thanks to our business sponsor, M&M Boat Storage!
The monies raised in this campaign will
be put into land conservation, stewardship, and legal defense funds.
Monies set aside for land conservation
will enable us to conserve more land by
helping to pay for surveys, title searches,
easement drafting, legal work, the
documentation of property features and
other staff time on conservation projects.
Vernal Pools Walk
Rich Cook of NH Fish & Game led the search for spring vernal pools
species at the conserved Union Meadows Wildlife Management Area.
Stewardship funds pay for the costs of
yearly
monitoring
of
easement
properties and educating new landowners about the easement on their land.
Legal defense funds help us enforce our
easements in those rare cases where
legal action is required to ensure that
conservation is indeed permanent.
By the end of our second campaign year
(June 30, 2015), we had already raised
$128,000 and received pledges for
another $45,000.
In addition, Cynthia will continue to
match $20,000 per year for the next
three years for funds we raise. Thus, we
are well past the halfway mark on the
way to attain our final goal, after only
the first two years!
Winter Wildlife Snowshoe Walk
Wildlife biologist Charlie Bridges led a snowshoe walk at Branch Hill
Farm, looking for tracks and signs of how wildlife fared this winter.
To add your support as the campaign
continues to Help Us Become a Land
Trust, mail your check, marked ‘Land
Trust Campaign’, to: MMRG, PO Box
191, Union, NH 03887. Thank you!
4
Greenway Gazette
Thank You! We Count On You!
MMRG counts on you for volunteer help and for in-kind donations for our fundraisers. We are grateful to all who give
their time and treasures! Member donors and all 2015 business sponsors will be thanked in our next winter newsletter.
Thank you to all our in-kind item donors!
4 J’s Earthworks
Art and Lynne Slocum
Bailey’s Bubble
Birds and Beans Coffee
Black’s Paper and Gift Shop
Bruce Rich
Butternut Farm
Cameron’s Home and Garden Center
Cheryl Kimball
Coyote Creek Outfitters
Custom Quilting
Cynthia Wyatt
Darayl Remick
David Levin and Marty Conant
Deb Miller
Dick Turgeon
Dottie Bean
Eastern Boats, Inc.
Emily and Matt Paulin
Everett’s Cove Marina and Ice Cream
Forty to One Farm
Granite Steak and Grill
Gratitude Yoga and Wellness
Independent Home Consultants
Jack Savage and Cheryl Kimball
Jane Wingate Photography
Jenesis Gardens and Design
Jill Paul
Jim Smith Horseshoeing
Jim Theodore and Nancy Spencer Smith
Johanna Vienneau
Johnson’s Bakery/Sharon Gooch
Kay and Carl Fernald
Kevin Martin
La Corona Mexican Restaurant
Lee and Doris Prescott
Thank you to all our willing volunteers!
Robin Allen-Burke
Appalachian Mountain Teen Club
Richard Ballou
Keri Bassingthwaite
Linda Bates
Jon Batson
Michelle Beauchamp
Bonnie Bonneau
Charlie Bridges
Ed and Debra Cantwell
Michael Carrigan
Paul Chartrain
Deb Chase
Dan Coons
Cherie Corbett
Bob Craycraft
Larissa Crockett
Nicole Csiszer
Resta Detwiler
Lorrie Drake
Scott and Karen Drummey
Dawn, Lane, Taylor and Jake Evans
Keith Fletcher
Jay Fortune
Kirsten Gehl
Ron Gehl
Jessica Gero
Tom and Cheryl Giguere
Marta Gray
Brad Helfer
Kathleen and John Hraba
Peg Hurd
Cheryl Kimball
Cathy King
Joyce El Kouarti
Ashley Ladder
Janice and Tim Long
Faye Lowrey
Lone Oak Ice Cream
Longmeadow Farm and Home Supply
Lorraine Drake
Made on Earth
MapleStone School
Marie Hanson Massage Therapy
McKenzie’s Farm
Meadow View Sugarhouse
Middleton Building Supply
Mikel O’Brien
Milton Hardware, LLC
Miss Wakefield Diner/Gracie’s Country Sto.
Moose Mountaineers
New England Furniture
Nordic Skier Sports
North Endz Hair and Tanning
Nute Trading Post
Parson’s Furniture Co.
Pat’s Prims
Peg Hurd
Pigs in a Poke
Poor People’s Pub
Rachel Towne
Salmon Press
Steve Panish
Stuart’s Woodworking and Design
Susann Foster Brown Studio
The Governor’s Inn Restaurant and Tavern
The Music Mill
The NH Farm Museum
Tim and Janice Long
Top of the Hill
Trager Massage, LLC
Virginia Long
Windjammers Seafood Restaurant
Kirsten Lygren
Sheehan Lygren
John and Simonne McCallister
Allan and Marie Mayranen
Susan McDonald
Charlie Moreno
Karen Santoro-Nason
Robin Olivares
Dave and Robin Osborn
Mark Parmenter
Steve Panish and Virginia Long
Cyndi Paulin
Emily and Matt Paulin
Chris and Michele Penta
Mary and Greg Poston
Darayl Remick
Bruce Rich
Stephanie and Curtis Richard
Annie Robbins
Deborah Romaniak
Jack Savage
Wendy Scribner
Sean Skillings
Art Slocum
Stephen Snow
Nancy Spencer-Smith
Dan Stepanauskas
Judy and Rod Thompson
Mark Thompson
Rachel and Ben Towne
Ali Treloar
Danna Truslow
Dick Turgeon
Robin Weeks
Kate Wilcox
Cynthia Wyatt
Thank You to our Early* Woods, Water & Wildlife Festival Sponsors!
Underwriters/Matching pledges: Gene Hays
The Siemon Company
Carl Siemon Family Charitable Trust
$1000:
Bruce & Jennifer Rich
$500—$999:
Beverly Siemon
D.F. Richard Energy
Great East lake Improvement Association
Index Packaging
Liberty Mutual Insurance
MapleStone Farm
Mi-Te-Jo Campground
New England Furniture
Norman Vetter Foundations
Proulx Oil & Propane
The Frank Massin Agency, Inc
$250—$499
Art & Lynne Slocum
Charlie Moreno Consulting Forester
Donald F. Whittum Law Office
Evergreen Valley Snowmobile Club
Forest Pump & Filter
Gary Getchell & Mariko Yamasaki
J&S Tech Electric
Jay Fortune Custom Carpentry
Lake Forest Resort
Land Bank of Wolfeboro and Tuftonboro
Law Office of L. Bradley Helfer
Mal Blodget, CPA
Profile Bank
Rowley and Associates, PC
Royle Timber Harvesting LLC
Sharon & Dave Buttrick
The Music Mill
Three Ponds Protective Association
* received by July 20
Thanks to all who gave to the 2nd year* of our ‘Help Us Become a Land Trust’ Campaign!
$20,000 (match)
Cynthia S. Wyatt
$5,000
Nancy Spencer Smith
Sylvia Thayer & Philip Zaeder
$1,000—$4,999
Anonymous Family Foundation
Gene Hays
Dulcie and Thomas Lavender
William Sammis
Barbara and Cyrus Sweet
Brian & Laura Wyatt
5
$500—$999
Dottie Bean
Frank and Pam Frazier
Don and Gail Holm
David Levin and Mary Conant
Linda McGivern and Ben Thayer
Steve Panish and Virginia Long
Bruce and Jennifer Rich
Christopher Sherrill
Art and Lynne Slocum
$250—$499
Ron and Paula Gehl
Law Offices of Don Whittum
Cyndi and Mark Paulin
$100—$249
Cynthia Belowski
Marjorie and Warren Berg
Robert Cole
Lorraine Drake and Brad Helfer
Thomas and Andrea Costello
Richard DeRoches
Jane Cooper Fall
Gary Gould
David and Sheila Larson
Peter Roessiger
Pam and John Siemon
Jack Slosky (in loving memory of Ursula &
Sebastian and Stress Breaker Acres )
$25—$99
Jane Batchelder
Dan Coons
Nicole Csiszer and Jim Cowles
William and Cynthia Hohenberger
Nancy and James Insley
John and Donna Lynn
Bernard Sinkonis
*July 1, 2014—June 30, 2015
Greenway Gazette
Snowshoe Racers Brave the Snow in ‘Moose Mountain RunAround’
In spite of blowing snow making for difficult travel, a record number of racers
participated in the 2nd Moose Mountain
Runaround snowshoe race in Brookfield on
Sunday, February 8. Thirty-three intrepid
participants toed the starting line and
negotiated 3.3 miles of trails, including
trails at Moose Mountain Recreation,
snowmobile trails and single track.
Last year’s winners came in first again this
year! The men’s winner was Jim Johnson
of Madison, with a time of 25:39.
The women’s winner was Leslie O’Dell of
Albany, with a time of 32:34.
Finishers of local interest include:
Jon Miller of Sanbornville (32:19)
Hilary McCloy of Center Conway (36:20)
Curtis Richard of New Durham (39:10)
Dan Lader of Moultonborough (44:36)
Robin Allen-Burke of Wolfeboro (48:44)
Bill Huntley of Wolfeboro (81:52)
Angela Deplama of Farmington (89:10)
Gisele Pomeroy of Sanbornville 89:13)
Tom Pomeroy of Sanbornville (89:14)
Denise D’Eri of Wolfeboro (93:52)
Proceeds of the race benefitted MMRG.
We thank Wolfeboro Oil Company, our
business sponsor!
Forestry and Conservation Easement Workshop for Landowners
Sixteen people showed up on a cold February night in
Wakefield to hear about forestry and conservation in a
workshop titled “Your Legacy in Land and Forests.” The
workshop was sponsored jointly by the
Wakefield Conservation Commission and
Moose Mountains Regional Greenways.
Wendy Scribner, extension field specialist in
forestry for the University of New Hampshire
Cooperative Extension, spoke about forestry and
forest management planning. Wendy emphasized that no
matter what a landowner wishes to achieve with a forest,
be it revenue, enhanced wildlife habitat, or other goals, a
forest plan will help the landowner achieve it. According
to Wendy, “A forest management plan describes the
resources on your property, identifies your interests, and
prescribes actions you can take to reach your goals.”
UNH Cooperative Extension provides free advice to
landowners on forest management. Call 603-447-3834 or
email Wendy at [email protected].
Keith Fletcher, MMRG Director of Land Conservation,
discussed conservation easements, including how they
6
work and what they accomplish. “Easements are a way to
protect land while keeping it in private ownership,” says
Keith. “If you think of land ownership as a bundle of
rights, the easement removes some of these rights and
puts an organization, such as a town or land trust, in
charge of making sure the easement is never violated.”
During the presentation, Keith and MMRG Board
member Bruce Rich demonstrated a sample easement
negotiation for the crowd, passing back and forth some
of a bundle of chopsticks, each one representing one
of the landowner’s rights.
Keith also explained, “Easements are not to be
entered into lightly–they are permanent and are
not cheap to do, but for some people who want to keep
their land the way it is, an easement is the right answer.”
Keith also reported that late last year MMRG accepted a
donated easement on the 203 acre Thompson property in
Farmington and New Durham.
Landowners interested in learning about options to
conserve their land may contact Keith Fletcher at 603-817
-8260 or email [email protected].
Greenway Gazette
MMRG’s Annual Meeting Festivities Attract a Crowd
Beautiful spring weather added to the festive atmosphere at
Moose Mountains Regional Greenways’ Annual Meeting,
held at Club 59 Restaurant, Kingswood Golf Club in
Wolfeboro on April 12. Live fiddle music filled the air,
awards were given to local conservation heroes, and over
100 supporters heard legendary newspaper columnist John
Harrigan speak of nature, writing, wolves, cougars, and life
in northern New Hampshire.
Outgoing MMRG Chair Nancy Spencer Smith welcomed
the crowd, then recognized Rod and Judy Thompson of
Farmington for, “making our most important accomplishment of the year possible–the protection of their 203 beautiful acres in Farmington and New Durham.” Nancy continued, “Not only did the Thompsons donate this amazing
easement, they generously helped with some of the project
transaction costs.”
Philip Zaeder and Sylvia Thayer of Milton were honored
with MMRG’s Conservationist of the Year Award, presented by MMRG Director of Land Conservation Keith
Fletcher. Keith lauded them for, “commitment to place, to
deep roots, and to meaningful actions that help everyone in
the community.” Philip and Sylvia donated an easement on
their 37-acre Milton farm, donated 177 acres to the Forest
Society, helping leverage another 2,100 acres of conservation at the Moose Mountains Reservation, and continue to
financially support conservation in the region.
MMRG Education Coordinator Kari Lygren presented the
Volunteer of the Year Award to Dawn Evans and family,
“These folks rise to any tasks mentioned, offer suggestions
I wish I had thought of myself, and truly enjoy helping.”
Two Board members, Steve Panish who is stepping off the
Board, and Jon Batson who is stepping down as Treasurer,
were recognized by outgoing Vice Chair Cynthia Wyatt.
Wyatt noted, “These are two of the smartest people I know,
are both of excellent character, and are loyal and generous
volunteers for MMRG.”
In the short business portion of the meeting, MMRG members elected three new Directors: Ron Gehl, New Durham;
Jack Savage, Middleton; and Wendy Scribner, At-Large.
Jack begins his 2nd term on the Board and
Wendy starts as a Board member after
serving on the Stewardship and
Lands Committee.
We welcome Ron,
who brings valuable experience as
Chair of the New
Durham Conservation Commission
and past ND PlanNancy Spencer Smith recognized
ning Board memRod & Judy Thompson .
7
ber. Ron is a professional engineer and
president of EOS Research, LTD.
The newly-elected
Board elected its Executive Officers: Jack
Savage, Chair; Nicole
Csiszer, Vice-Chair;
Bruce Rich, Treasurer;
Conservationists of the Year:
and Art Slocum, SecreSylvia Thayer & Philip Zaeder
tary. Chair Jack Savage
then thanked the previous Chair, Nancy Spencer Smith, for
her “astoundingly hard work” and for “helping prepare
MMRG for the challenges of holding conservation easements.” He expressed a vision for the organization, citing
the “vast recreational network that we use ourselves and
that we offer up to visitors to our region,” concluding, “the
conservation of those resources is a huge opportunity.”
After the awards and business meeting, John Harrigan gave
a humorous and engaging talk. For decades, Harrigan has
observed and written about life in the north country. He’s
long been interested in sightings of cougars and wolves,
and many people are in the habit of letting him know if
they’ve seen something. “I have five questions I ask whenever anyone thinks they saw a cougar.” He shared one:
“Does it have a long rope-like tail with a brush at the end of
it?” Harrigan is convinced that some sightings are real and
that cougars are coming back to New Hampshire. He is also
pretty sure he has heard a wolf, “We had coyotes, and
learned how to call them out at night. They’d come right up
to our yard. We were sitting out calling them, and we were
howling, and our dogs were howling too. Then all of a sudden, we heard a different call—a deep long howl. The
coyotes got quiet and left. The dogs went inside. They
knew the ‘big boy’ was back in town.” Harrigan praised the
conservation work of MMRG and its partner groups, such
as the Forest Society, “Isn’t it great to be able to take your
grandchild out hunting or fishing and be able to point to the
undeveloped shoreline and say to them, this will be here for
you, your kids and grandkids!”
The annual event is also a fundraiser for MMRG. “It was
our most successful yet,” says MMRG Executive Director,
Virginia Long, “We are delighted by the enthusiasm and
support shown by our community. We appreciate the many
businesses and individuals who generously donated auction
items and services and the meeting attendees who bid on
them. I’d also like to thank our event business sponsor
Ransmeier & Spellman, PC and our member volunteers,
Cheryl and Tom Giguere and Peg Hurd, who helped plan
and make it run so smoothly!”
Greenway Gazette
PO Box 191
Union, NH 03887
Working to conserve the special places of the Moose Mountains region.
Upcoming MMRG Outreach Events: SAVE THESE DATES!
Saturday, August 8; 10 am—3 pm; 13th Annual Woods, Water and Wildlife Festival!
Branch Hill Farm, 307 Applebee Rd, Milton Mills, NH
This family-friendly celebration of the natural world features fun and educational outdoor activities: hayrides, wild and barnyard
animals, guided walks, kids’ fishing and crafts, corn maze, nature’s playground, horse logging and more. Volunteers needed!
Rain or shine. No pets please. Bathrooms and most events are wheelchair accessible.
$5/adult or $10/family. FREE for kids 12 and under and for MMRG members.
An early fall weekday, Date TBA
Stream Habitat Improvement Workshop
Branch Hill Farm property in Strafford County
For professionals as well as landowners with advanced
understanding of forest management DES will provide
update on permitting, NRCS will present cost sharing options,
Tin Mountain specialists will share experiences, and NHF&G
will discuss impacts on fish and other wildlife. Co-sponsored
by Branch Hill Farm. FREE but Pre-registration required.
Saturday, October 3; Time TBA
Fall Foliage Hike With Art
Whiteface Mountain, Wolfeboro
MMRG Secretary Art Slocum leads this annual autumn hike
and shares his knowledge about the land you are exploring.
See front page article. FREE but Pre-registration required.
Sunday, Date TBA
MMRG Volunteer Appreciation Day
We love our volunteers! Stay tuned for details.
A Thursday evening in October; Date TBA
Conservation Commissions Mixer
Commissioners share experiences in a round table and the
public learns about the important work of our 7 town CCs.
A morning in January, 2016, Date TBA
Moose Mountain RunAround
Moose Mountain Recreation, Brookfield
A three-mile snowshoe race on scenic trails around Moose
Mountain and a fundraiser to benefit MMRG. Prizes in all
categories. Snowshoe walkers also welcome! Watch our
website for race registration details.
All Events: Visit our revamped website www.mmrg.info for more event information soon. To pre-register and for directions, call
MMRG Education Coordinator Kari Lygren at 603-978-7125 or email [email protected]. Please do not bring pets to these events.