CAMPAIGN FOR THE EQUINOX HIGHLANDS
$100,000 Challenge Grant

To protect the forested slopes of the Equinox Highlands in southern Vermont, the Conservancy has conserved over 2,000 acres in the last two decades. 

Our vision is to connect a greenbelt of conserved lands on Mount Equinox and Mother Myrick from Manchester to the Merck Forest. To accomplish this long-term goal we are pacing our land purchases in phases.

We are currently in Phase II of the campaign which includes the acquisition of the Pew Forest parcel (198 acres, acquired February ‘09) and the Southern Vermont Arts Center forest (312 acres, under contract).

New! Challenge Grant:
Several generous members recently joined together to create a $100,000 challenge grant to help raise the final $258,200.
All gifts up to $5,000 will be matched 1:1.

A contribution to this project is a triple win:
The Southern Vermont Arts Center receives funds to finance their programs, this 312-acre forest is protected for all to enjoy, and all funds stay within the community.

We need your help.

An Ecological Treasure
Excellent examples of the rich northern hardwood forest community can be found here, providing the Conservancy with a rare opportunity to recreate late successional and eventually to preserve old-growth forest conditions, preserving important biological features not found in the managed or younger forests that are so common in Vermont. 

This forest is part of a larger area of critical habitat for several bat species, including the federally endangered Indiana bat and the state threatened small footed bat.

Community Enjoyment
For years the community has explored this forest using the network of trails behind the Southern Vermont Arts Center. Pew Forest is far less known.  This summer with the help of the Vermont Youth Conservation Corps, interns from New York City, Smokey House and local businesses we are building a new Nature Conservancy trailhead and parking area on Three Maple Drive, to give new access to the mountain.  One day, with the  community’s help, there could be an end-to-end trail along the eastern front of The Equinox Highlands extending from Manchester to Merck Forest.

Around the world, forests are disappearing at an alarming rate. Yet they are essential to life. They clear the air, taking in carbon dioxide and releasing life-giving oxygen. And they provide havens for much of the earth’s amazing array of plants and wildlife.

Protecting extensive and thriving forests in places like the Equinox Highlands, where some of the finest rich northern hardwoods in the Northeast can be found, is a vital part of conserving Vermont’s natural heritage for generations to come. And it is part of a larger effort to protect the world’s forests.

Campaign Statement:  The Place / The Challenge 

Nature picture credits (top to bottom, left to right): Oak Log Cover Design: The Laughing Bear Associates; Cover Photo © Bob Klein/The Nature Conservancy (Equinox Highlands).