Blue HillHeritage Trust

Community-Based Land Conservation since 1985

BLUE HILL / BROOKLIN / BROOKSVILLE / PENOBSCOT / SEDGWICK / SURRY Fall/Winter 2011

Asecond shorefront parcel on WightPond in Penobscot has been added

to our portfolio of conservation lands.Abutting a property protected with aconservation easement in 2010, the newproperty includes approximately 18wooded acres and over 1,100 feet ofshore frontage. This frontage includesa freshwater meadow that is productivehabitat for various bird, mammal, andfish species, including dozens of water-fowl and wading bird species.

The land was purchased from a localfamily who had owned the property fordecades but who needed to sell the landto meet other family needs. Thanks totheir cooperation, we were able to ar-range a transaction that worked forthem as well as our Trust.

Long and narrow, Wight Pond has ashoreline that is almost completely un-developed and has the feel of a remotepond. It has high wildlife value due tothe diversity of wetland types present inthe area, the intact riparian habitat andits location within a large unfragmented

habitat block. At the north end of thePond, where our new property is locat-ed, an expansive marsh grades into aforested floodplain along McCaslinStream, one of the Pond’s major fresh-water sources. The Pond, in turn, is amajor freshwater source for the Baga-duce River.

Wight Pond was identified as apotential “conservation focus area” in a2009 conservation planning reportcommissioned by our Trust. The pondand the surrounding landscape include a

relatively intact landscape and host mul-tiple conservation values. This propertyand the 178-acre abutting conservedland provide a “conservation anchor”for future conservation work in thisfocus area.

Over time we plan to create walkingtrails on these conservation propertiesthat will highlight their natural values.For the time being, a paddle up WightPond from the small access point at thePond’s southern end is the best way toexperience this remarkable place.

Aerial of a newly protected property (center, left) at the north end of Wight Pond near the mouth of McCaslin Stream.

Members of our Board of Directors paddled to our new conservation land for a visit prior to its purchase.

Conservation workcontinues at Wight Pond

2 Blue Hill Heritage Trust � Fall/Winter 2011 Our 25th Anniversary

Wallamatogus Mountain in Penob-scot is the second-tallest ridge top

on the Blue Hill Peninsula and is locat-ed at the core of a 11,000 acre unfrag-mented natural area. In 2010, we com-pleted the acquisition of a large parcelof land that includes the northern andeastern slopes of Wallamatogus. Nowwe have the chance to protect an adja-cent 273 acres that includes most of theGreat Heath, the largest and mostremote peatland on our Peninsula.

Thanks to a cooperative landownerand a generous donor, this summer wewere able to secure a one-year option topurchase this land at its appraised value.We have until June 30, 2012 to theraise the additional $177,000 neces-sary to complete the purchase andcover other associated project costs.

The wetland values on this propertyare outstanding. The Great Heath is alarge, intact peatland ecosystem com-prised of a mosaic of wetland com-munities that host a variety of plant andanimal species. It is a significant naturalfeature and freshwater source in theBagaduce River watershed, an estuarinesystem of statewide significance.

This property includes habitat forinland wading birds and waterfowl desig-nated as “high-value wildlife habitat” bythe Maine Department of Inland Fish-eries and Wildlife. Many of the wetlandtypes have been identified as decreasingand of high priority for protection by theU.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. TheMaine Natural Areas Program has alsoidentified the Great Heath as worthy ofconservation protection.

In addition to its wetland values, thisparcel also includes a large area of uplandforest on its eastern side that provides abuffer for the wetland as well as addition-al wildlife habitat. This complements theupland buffer provided by the previouslyprotected property on the western side ofthe Heath. These areas could provide op-portunities for low-impact recreation.

Our efforts to protect Wallamatogusflow from a conservation planning reportprepared for us by a prominent indepen-dent conservation planner in 2009. Thisreport identified a series of “conservationfocus areas” on the Blue Hill Peninsula

that are worthy of conservation becausethey encompass one or more intactlandscapes and include a concentrationof important conservation values. Weare using the report to help guide ournew land project work. The Wallamato-gus area is one of these conservationfocus areas.

If youwould like to help us take advan-tage of this opportunity by making afinancial contribution to this project,please let us know.

Left, a nearby disturbed peatland high-lights a potential threat to a natural arealike the Great Heath.

We have an option to purchase a 273-acre parcelthat contains much of the Great Heath and is adja-cent to our existing Wallamatogus conservationland.

Wallamatogus: An opportunity for more conservation

Ecologists from the Maine Natural Areas Programhelped us investigate the plant diversity of theGreat Heath.

www.bluehillheritagetrust.org Fall/Winter 2011 � Blue Hill Heritage Trust 3

Hiked Blue Hill lately?Bequests made your hike possible

Whether they know it or not,the thousands of people who hikeBlue Hill Mountain each year arethe beneficiaries of two bequests.The opportunity to enjoy this land-mark property was made possiblethrough the wills of Louise Freder-ick and Ruth Hayes, who left theirland to Blue Hill Heritage Trustand the Town of Blue Hill for con-servation purposes. These bequestsare enduring legacies.Please consider leaving a legacy

of your own by naming the BlueHill Heritage Trust in your will.

Walks and Talks:A success, thanks to wonderful volunteers!

Blue Hill Heritage Trust has beenfortunate to have the support ofmany volunteers over the years.We’d like to thank the followingvolunteers for sharing their knowl-edge as program leaders during our2011 Walk & Talk Series:Fred Beck, Alison Dibble, BonnieCopper, Nate Grey, Lynn Havsall,Gary Harmatz, Pam Johnson, MikeLittle, Heather McCargo, DavidPorter, Susan Shetterly, and MiaStrong.David Porter, a Board member and one of our many Walk

& Talk Leaders, provided a wonderful opportunity forpeople to learn about mushrooms this fall.

Wednesday Walks got lots of kids outside

In the spirit of theholiday season, consider a

GIFT MEMBERSHIPfor your family and friends.

Blue Hill Heritage Trust hosted tenWednesday Walks for children in theBlue Hill Peninsula this summer.These events, led by naturalist Char-lotte Clews Lawther, invited childrento learn about nature while spendingtime outdoors on several of the Trusts

beautiful trails. Over 140 participantsjoined Charlotte for these mid-weekadventures. Below, children explorenature’s surprises during a WednesdayWalk on the trails at our PattenStream Preserve in Surry.

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Mountain Day 2011:Fun in the rainYoga on the summit, a foot race, food,

music, a magnificent landscape, peopleyoung and old. Only the sun was missingfrom our second annual Mountain Daycelebration. Though heavy rains short-ened this year’s event, we were happy tosee so many people join us for anotheroutdoor community celebration of theconservation lands on Blue Hill Moun-tain and throughout the Peninsula.

A special thanks to Jerome Lawtherfor chairing this year’s event, to themembers of our Community OutreachCommittee for countless hours attendingto all the details, to Camden NationalBank, The First, and Cadillac MountainSports for their financial sponsorship, tothe food vendors Barncastle, Blue HillCo-op Café, El El Frijoles, The Cakery,and The Cave, and to all the volunteerswho made it work.

4 Blue Hill Heritage Trust � Fall/Winter 2011 Our 25th Anniversary

Our 2011 Membership Meeting,held September 7th at Kneisel Hall

in Blue Hill, brought together 100members and friends for an enjoyableevening that included socializing, somebusiness and an entertaining program.

As always our Board of Directors andstaff appreciated the chance to greetboth long-time and new members.

Following the welcoming reception,Board President Mary Barnes, openedthe business meeting by introducing theBoard members and staff and expressingthe importance of member support. Shealso reported on various activities of the

Trust over the last year.Treasurer John Murphy

reported that the Trust “remainsin sound financial condition,”noting that the Trust met its2010 fiscal year operating bud-get with new revenue, that itsquasi-endowment investmentaccount had increased to$887,658 as of 12-31-10 andthat the Trust’s 2010 financialstatements were favorablyaudited by an outside account-ing firm.

A special “Volunteer RecognitionAward” was given to the followingmembers of our Community Outreach

Committee for their contri-butions in organizing a series of activi-ties to engage the broader communityin the Trust’s work: Kim Ridley, BonnieCopper, Heather Albert-Knopp, Kath-ryn Dillon, Judi Hilliker, John Richard-son, Jen Traub, Courtney Weaver, PaulaMrozicki, Jerome Lawther, and MiaStrong.

The business meeting concluded witha report by Executive Director Jim Dowon recent land projects and how a seriesof identified “conservation focus areas”are helping to guide new land work.

A highlight of the evening was a pre-sentation by photographer Roger Ray-mond entitled “A New Look at the Nat-ural World through 3-D Photography.”Roger’s photographs (and special 3-Dglasses) revealed the startling beauty ofordinary elements in our landscape. Itwas a delightful end to a wonderfulgathering. Please join us next year!

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3-D Fun!This year’s annual meetingfeatured a striking a 3-Dphoto presentation by RogerRaymond entitled “A NewLook at the Natural Worldthrough 3-D Photography”that required the audienceto don special glasses.

Jim Dow, BHHT’s Executive Director, reported on recent newconservation land projects.

Sharing details of a busy, successful year

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As the final leaves fall off the trees,take a moment to reflect about the landon which you stand, the views thatinspire you, and the natural elements ofthis common ground we share. Thislandscape is what binds us together, isour common language, and why each ofus chooses to live here.

Now think ahead fifty years andimagine this same common ground. Is itthe same? Can it be the same? Will it bethe same? How can we preserve whatreally matters to us now for fifty years tocome? Don’t we want to maintain —and increase — this open space, to beable to hunt, to experience the wildlife,

and to take our chil-dren to the top of abeautiful mountain?

Now is the time to conserve our com-mon ground, to make the effort to builda landscape of mixed use where we allcan thrive – now and for the future. Atthe Blue Hill Heritage Trust, we arecommitted to doing just this for every-one. The challenge is enormous. Pleasejoin our effort to protect and conserve“the common ground we share.” Thankyou for your support.

Sincerely,Mary Barnes,President

President’s Column

The Common GroundWe Share

www.bluehillheritagetrust.org Fall/Winter 2011 � Blue Hill Heritage Trust 5

Memorial GiftsIn memory of Tony ButlerPeter and Sandy ClappJim DowThomas and Mary Ann PerkinsIn memory ofRudolph Henry Deetjen Jr.Fannie Allen and George CoganHarry and Marie BissellPeter and Sandy ClappKen and Marnie CrowellCharles and Beverly CunninghamWilliam and Linda DeetjenRicardo and Carol DeMarcoRon de PaoloCharles and Mary DethierTrina Dykstra and Tom StewartSarah L. FlahertyBrent and Anne FollweilerArthur W. GreggHanley Law OfficeJane S. HolmanRichard J. HunnemanJacqui KaufmanRobert C. and Jan MarvilleJohn and Carol MerrifieldA. Leonard ParrottKatrina ParsonJanet and John PaulThomas and Mary Ann PerkinsE. Burke Ross, Jr.William and Katherine RoweHarriot M. SpavenMarilyn M. StewartCharles and Gundren TarrRobert and Barbara WoodhouseDean and Jean Young

In October a community conversationabout local farms and local food that

began a year ago resumed at an eventorganized by the volunteers who serveon our Community Outreach Commit-tee. Co-sponsored by the HalcyonGrange and the Blue Hill HistoricalSociety, this event opened the Blue HillChamber of Commerce’s sixth AnnualFoliage, Food & Wine Festival and at-tracted a full house of participants to theGrange’s building in North Blue Hill.

While last year’s event focused on thefuture of farming on our Peninsula, thisyear’s discussion focused on issues asso-ciated with our community’s access tolocally produced food. Moderated bythe Trust’s Executive Director Jim Dow,the discussion was led by a group of pan-elists representing various methods oflocal food distribution, ranging fromdirect farm sales to web-based buying.The active participation of the audience,which included local farmers, restau-rant owners and local consumers, madefor a lively and rich discussion of a rangeof issues associated with the capacity of

the Peninsula’s growing farm communi-ty to provide food for residents andrestaurants, all as part of development ofa local food system.

Our Trust has been directly involvedin the development of that system at“the ground level” – by working withland owners to preserve the agriculturalpotential of over 2,000 acres of localfarmland. We are delighted to see thesteady growth in the number of localfarms and the development of the infra-structure necessary for the productionand distribution of local foods. Conver-sations like this one help. If you missedthis event, please join us next year.

Local Farms, Local Food:BHHT hosts public discussionto open annual food festival

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Panel members included representatives from (left to right) King Hill Farm, Local Stock Buying Club,Tradewinds, Farm Drop, and Homewood Farm.

Jo Barrett of King Hill Farmsuggested the importanceof consumers aligning theirfood consumption preferenceswith the seasonal availabilityof local food.

Statement ofFinancial PositionAs of December 31, 2010, (audited by Loiselle,Goodwin & Hinds, CPAs)

AssetsCash and Cash Equivalents .. $385,144Certificates of Deposit ............ $49,654Long-term Investments ........ $887,658Pledges Receivable .................. $65,471Office Building...................... $146,274Other ........................................ $4,013Conservation Land ........ $3,569,787Total Assets ........................$5,108,001

LiabilitiesAccrued Expenses .................... $7,854Mortgage: Office Building .... $75,285Total Liabilities ........................$83,139

Net AssetsPermanently Restricted .......... $1,723,521(Includes Value of Conservation Land)Temporarily Restricted.......... $184,426Unrestricted, Designated.... $2,910,919Unrestricted ..........................$205,996Total Net Assets ................ $4,840,956Total Liabilities and Net Assets.......................................... $5,024,862

6 Blue Hill Heritage Trust � Fall/Winter 2011 Our 25th Anniversary

Monthly Givingmakes a difference!Simplify your life and supportour land conservation efforts.

Teresa Rankin is one of ourlong-time monthly contributors.She says “monthly contributionsare a win-win – it’s easier formy budget and it adds up forBHHT. I think a non-profit canbetter plan and support theirmission if they know that wehave made a commitment tothem.” Contact Jen at 374-5118to make arrangements formonthly gifts.

Canyouidentifythisland?

Brooksville.Middleground,left:JohnB.Mountain.Foreground,left:Bell’sPointalongtheshoreofHorseshoeCove

Join us for our annual

HolidayWreath PartyDecember 11th from 1-4 p.m.

Everyone is invited to make wreaths.Cookies, cider, music.

At the Carlton HouseFor more info call 374-5118.

Can you identify the conservation lands shown in this photo?The pictures include our conservation lands. The answer is below, upside-down.

An aerial view of the recently completed public access siteand road on Walker Pond developed by the Town of Sedg-wick. The access road crosses our Cooper Farm property onCaterpillar Hill and provides a recreational opportunity thatcomplements those that we provide on our land.

New town road on Caterpillar Hill

www.bluehillheritagetrust.org Fall/Winter 2011 � Blue Hill Heritage Trust 7

We are pleased to welcome Jen Plow-den and Adam Bishop, who join

Executive Director Jim Dow as full-timestaff members.

Jen is our new Membership Coordina-tor, attending to our communicationswith members and the public, managingour outreach programs and assisting withvarious tasks essential to the functioningof our organization. During her GraduateProgram at the University ofMaine, she studied the land-use change brought about byresidential development andthe role land trusts play inthe protection of specialplaces for future genera-tions. She serves on theBoard of Directors and Out-reach Committee for theOrono Land Trust. She andher husband James haverelocated to Blue Hill andare excited to be a part ofour community.

Adam is our newConser-vation LandsManager, lead-ing our stewardship pro-

gram for the lands we own and the con-servation easements that we hold. He willassume the responsibilities previously per-formed by Charlotte Clews Lawther.Adam attended Wesleyan University andthe College of the Atlantic and comes tous with a variety of skills and experience,including land trust experience throughservice on the Board of Directors of theFrenchman Bay Conservancy and work

with the stewardshipstaff of the CoastalMountains Land Trust.Adam, his wife Deidreand two children willjoin our Blue HillPeninsula community.

Executive Director’s Column

Land,People and Accreditation

As I often say, although the mission ofour land trust is centered on con-

serving land, our business is really aboutpeople. We are an organization of peo-ple – members, staff, Board of Directors,volunteers, landowners – providing abenefit for people that will endure overtime. That is why it is so enjoyable toshare our successes with the many peo-ple who join us at our annual member-ship meeting. That is why it is so impor-tant to be able to add two young, smartand enthusiastic people to our full-timestaff. That is why it is wise for us to gothrough an accreditation process at thispoint in our history.

Taking stock of what we doAfter months of preparation, in Jan-

uary we will enter an accreditationprocess by the Land Trust AccreditationCommission, an independent body cre-ated by the national Land Trust Alliance.The preparation has been hard andoften tedious work – reviewing policies,

documenting pro-cedures, organizingand copying files –with none of thethrill of protecting a parcel of land orbuilding a new trail. Yet this preparationhas forced us to take stock of all that wehave done over the last 26 years and totake actions that will ensure that theorganization is able to meet the perpetu-al obligations that we have undertakenwith each parcel of land that we haveprotected. This process has helped usbuild an organization that will not onlyendure, but continue to thrive.

Thanks in large measure to Jen Traub,who has guided this accreditation prepa-ration process (and held our feet to thefire), and to a grant from the MaineExcellence Program which has fundedher work, we are an organization wellpoised for the future.

– Jim Dow, Executive Director

BlueHill HeritageTrustOur Mission

To conserve land and water of specialecological, natural, agricultural, scen-ic, cultural and recreational signifi-cance in Blue Hill, Brooklin, Brooks-ville, Penobscot, Sedgwick and Surry,and to work to increase public under-standing of the importance of landand water conservation.

Board of DirectorsMary Barnes, Sedgwick, President

Pamela Johnson, Sedgwick, Co-Vice-PresidentNorman Alt, Brooksville, Co-Vice-President

John Murphy, Sedgwick, TreasurerDavid Porter, Brooklin, Secretary

Mitchell Baum, BrooklinPeter Clapp, Blue Hill

Bonnie Copper, PenobscotJim Kannry, Blue Hill

John Merrifield, Blue HillNorman Mrozicki, SurryTerry Moulton, Blue Hill

StaffJames W. Dow,

Executive DirectorJennifer Plowden, Membership CoordinatorAdam Bishop, Conservation Lands Manager

Jennifer Plowden, new Mem-bership Coordinator (above),and Adam Bishop, new Con-servation Lands Manager(right).

New staff offer enthusiasm and experience

Great Blue Heron

ThanksWe want to express our gratitude

to Charlotte Clews Lawther forher contributions to our work overthe last two and a half years as ourpart-time Director of Stewardship.Charlotte brought great energy and awealth of natural history knowledgeto our work. Although she has left ourstaff to devote her time to other en-deavors (including her yoga businessand her family), we look forward toher continuing contributions as amember of our community.

We also want to thank Sheila Cor-bett, who ended her service as ourpart-time Membership Coordinatorearlier this year, and to SamanthaHaskell and Grace Bell, who provid-ed able assistance in the interim.

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P. O. Box 222, Blue Hill, ME 04614

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We hope you will explore our newlyfinished Snow’s Cove Trail in Sedg-wick. This preserve hosts a varietyof interesting geological featuresand a diverse array of vegetation.The 2-mile trail has extensive viewsof the Bagaduce River. If you seeany interesting flora or fauna,please let us know!

Trail work completed onSnow’s Cove Preserve

Land Report As of November 1, 2011

Conservation Easements (55) .............................. 3645 acresConservation Lands owned (42).......................... 2162 acresTotal Protected Land since 1985 ........................ 5817 acresTrails ...............................................................approx. 14 miles