Conservation Groups Receive Gift of 408-Acre Wilderness Area

The Northeast Wilderness Trust and the Lakes Region Conservation Trust are very pleased to announce the protection of a large parcel of land in Sandwich, NH, to be dedicated as wilderness and known as the Tewksbury Brook Preserve. The owners of the property donated a protective conservation easement to the Northeast Wilderness Trust, and then donated the land itself to the Lakes Region Conservation Trust. This transaction, which occurred in early February 2009, will ensure that the 408-acre property will remain forever-wild.

The donors made the gift of the conservation easement and the land with the interest in increasing protected wilderness lands adjacent to the White Mountain National Forest.

The property abuts the 35,800-acre Sandwich Range Wilderness portion of the White Mountain National Forest and includes significant frontage on Tewksbury Brook. In addition, the property abuts two other conserved parcels totaling 335 acres. The Tewksbury Brook Preserve forms an important component of the wildlife corridor between the White Mountains and the Ossipee Mountains. The Northeast Wilderness Trust is in the process of raising $25,000 in stewardship endowment to manage this property as forever-wild in perpetuity. If you would like to make a gift, please contact the Northeast Wilderness Trust in Boston, MA at 617-742-0628, email info@newildernesstrust.org, or visit NWT's website at www.newildernesstrust.org.

"Tewksbury Brook is a wonderful addition to our wild land portfolio," said Sigrid Pickering, Northeast Wilderness Trust's Executive Director. This region of New Hampshire is experiencing a high rate of development, and the donors wished to see Tewksbury Brook remain as wildlife habitat. LRCT President Don Berry said that "LRCT greatly appreciates the tremendous generosity of the donors in making this extraordinary gift. LRCT looks forward to its partnership with the Northeast Wilderness Trust in caring for the property."

The Northeast Wilderness Trust is a private, nonprofit membership organization working to restore and preserve forever-wild landscapes for wildlife and people. Since its inception in 2002, NWT has protected over 7,000 acres throughout New England and in New York, including three properties in the Squam Range totaling 692 acres. The Northeast Wilderness Trust works with partners to restore and preserve forever-wild landscapes through conservation easements, land acquisitions, donations, and other preservation methods. NWT bases its land protection priorities on conservation science, wilderness potential, community vision, and threat abatement.

The Lakes Region Conservation Trust is an independent, non-profit, member-supported organization that protects key wildlife habitat, preserves freshwater and wilderness resources, and provides for public access to conservation lands for thoughtful recreation in New Hampshire's Lakes Region. Since its founding in 1979, LRCT has protected more than 20,000 acres of conservation land, including some of the region's most cherished landscapes and recreational resources. These include the Castle in the Clouds property overlooking Lake Winnipesaukee and other lands in the Ossipee Mountains, parts of the Squam Range overlooking Squam Lake, Red Hill, Copple Crown Mountain, and pristine shorelines on Lake Winnipesaukee, Squam Lake, and elsewhere. For further information about LRCT, please call LRCT's headquarters in Center Harbor, NH at 603-253-3301, email lrct@lrct.org, or visit LRCT's website at www.lrct.org.