The Ammonoosuc Riverlands – 25 Years in the Making
By: Katrina Meserve
The Ammonoosuc Conservation Trust (ACT) began with a group of friends and neighbors who were concerned about rising development in their town. If you’ve been to Foss Forest in Sugar Hill and reveled in the quiet richness the forest has to offer, you’ve experienced the drive those founders had to protect and save that special piece of land. The inception of ACT shows the weight of the community working together to accomplish something amazing – the preservation of a local forest for the community to use and enjoy alongside the flora and fauna that call it home. Twenty-five years after ACT had officially become a nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization, now with an incredible group of passionate and dedicated staff and volunteers, we were given the chance to save a special place from development to protect in perpetuity, and we did just that.
The Ammonoosuc Riverlands, a 761-acre tract of land on Prospect Street in Bethlehem, New Hampshire was put on the market in November of 2024. The start to acquiring this land was not unlike ACT’s founding. A concerned community member, and now great friend to ACT alerted us of the available property with the threat of development that would endanger important river habitat, wildlife and forest health. To conserve a property, ACT has to consider the conservation value the land holds. We look for five key values during our assessment. Does the property have potential for agriculture, a forest for management and forestry, a water source for water quality, wildlife habitat, or potential for outdoor recreation? Typically, one out of these five values will qualify a piece of land for protection with ACT. The Ammonoosuc Riverlands had four out of the five conservation values we look for. The ACT team knew this property should not be lost to development but in turn could be managed to hold great community value with the expanding possibility of recreational trails and water access. We now have the chance to take our time surveying the land and diligently create a future forest management plan to ensure the vitality and health of this space continues forever.
This project seemed valuable not only to the natural environment and creating healthy ecosystems but to the neighbors and friends who would be able to get out and enjoy the land. With the threat of development looming, ACT took a leap of faith and asked our community for help to save this crucial piece of land. It became obvious the community felt just as strongly as we did about the importance of saving this place. In just over three months ACT raised $1.7 million to purchase the Ammonoosuc Riverlands and pay for the costs of the appraisal, survey, legal work, environmental site assessment and the long-term management plan, with generous donations coming from more than 80 individuals, groups and foundations. We would never have been able to complete a project of this magnitude without the broad community support and the support from our major grant funder, New Hampshire Charitable Foundation’s Upper Connecticut River Mitigation and Enhancement Fund (MEF) and also, Trout Unlimited Ammonoosuc Chapter 554. The past twenty-five years have showcased the community’s interest and passion for conservation and has culminated in this project.
On Friday, April 11th we signed the paperwork to officially acquire the Ammonoosuc Riverlands property, meaning it will be conserved and protected forever. Going forward, we will thoughtfully be creating a management plan for the property with our conservation ecologist and land manager and our conservation project managers. This process will take place over the next two years as ACT staff, volunteers, and community members continue to gain a deep understanding of the property’s ecology and makeup to design the best plan we can put into place to protect the wildlife, water quality, forest, and outdoor recreation within this stretch of 761 acres.
We are excited to conduct an in-depth analysis of the best locations for trails. We anticipate upgrading existing forest trails, and building new trails specifically designed for sustainable use by mountain bikers, hikers, cross-country skiers, runners and snowshoers. Creating sustainable trail systems at the Ammonoosuc Riverlands will require help from our community. We look forward to partnering with local organizations like the local boy scout troops, the Bethlehem Conservation Commission, Northern Forest Center, Bike the North Country and more to create and maintain trails for public use year-round.
It seems fitting that twenty-five years ago a group of motivated neighbors joined together to save an important landscape from development. Now, ACT spans as far south as Piermont in Grafton County, and continues to expand throughout Coös County. Because of that drive and determination set forth by its founders, ACT now owns the beautiful Ammonoosuc Riverlands to provide clean water and air, an abundance of outdoor recreation opportunities, a location for educational events and outreach, and above all, a slice of the North Country that will remain wild, filled with beaver ponds and wetlands, uncommon natural communities of red and black spruce, river otters and moose, and you, the public, enjoying the greatness the natural environment holds – forever.
Conservation takes community and we are so grateful to be protecting the lands you love in the North Country. To stay up to date on the progress of the Ammonoosuc Riverlands and an upcoming Riverlands event, learn about trail workdays or free educational events with ACT, you can visit our website at act-nh.org.
A huge thank you to everyone who supported this project -
Andromeda Foundation, Badger Peabody & Smith, Dean Bakes, Barbara Treadway & Steve Chardon, Katrine Barclay, Jim & Karen Beardsley, Bethlehem Conservation Commission, Bike the North Country, Bill Pastuszek & Ellen Smith, Marianne Borowski, Ned & Jane Brewer, Jeff Burt, Mark Cardoza, Brandon Challener, Sarah Turtle & Bill Church, Gregory Clark, Margo & Greg Connors, Jessica Cornell, Kara Delisle, Mike & Priscilla Didio, Louise Eastman Weed, Rick & Donna Kaye Erwin, Fidelity Charitable - Blue Sky Giving Fund, Fidelity Charitable - Sykes Giving Fund, Dennis Follensbee, Kate & Trent Foster Anderson, Jeanette Fournier, Cathy Fulkerson, Gary Ghioto, Dave Govatski, Frank Hagan, Linda Hansen, Melanie Harding, Judith & Geoffrey Hopper, Cliff Hughes, Patricia Hunt, Bradford Hurst, Ian & Sally Jarrett, Cheryl & Chris Jensen, Kevin & Joanne Jones, Andrea Knowles, Nelson Leese, Kate & Tony Leness, Joshua Lieberman, Tara Liljestrand, John Loring, Teddy Loveless, Meica Magnani, Martland Family Fund at Fidelity Charitable, Jim McCann, Scott McGrath, Edith McKown, Lorraine & Rick McPhillips, Doug & Jen Mellor, Sylvia Michael, MLK Fund at Vanguard Charitable, Arlen Murphy, Tami Nason, Neeson Family Foundation, New Hampshire Charitable Foundation's Griffiths Wennrich Family Fund, New Hampshire Charitable Foundation's Melinda Richmond Fund, New Hampshire Charitable Foundation's Upper Connecticut River Mitigation and Enhancement Fund (MEF), New Hampshire Charitable Foundation's Tami E. Nason Fund, David Ford & Nicole Davis, Erik & Elizabeth Nilsen, George Overkamp, Dr. Annamarie Pennucci, Phoebe R. and John D. Lewis Foundation, John & Mary Polaski, Sally Roberts, Dawn Russell, Kathy Ryan, Andy & Jackie Smith, Kirk Steinhoff, Ted Marvelli Jr. & Mary Katherine Foley Marvelli, Tanya Tellman, Thayer Family Fund at Fidelity Charitable, The Hardy Family Fund of the Ayco Charitable Foundation, Trout Unlimited Ammonoosuc Chapter 554, Trout Unlimited Ammonoosuc Chapter 554 - CLCF Grant, Ross & Hilary Veilleux, Pauline Wamsler, Elise Williams, Nancy Wogan Goebel, Charlie Wolcott, Janet Young, and Barry Zitser.
