Forestland Near the Appalachian Trail Preserved in Beekman

The DLC is excited to share the news of the permanent preservation of 73 acres of expansive contiguous forestland abutting the Appalachian Trail in the Town of Beekman. The conserved property safeguards rich woodlands that rank highly for their ability to provide a thriving habitat for wildlife and native species while contributing to the vital production of life-giving clean air. It also adds to a critical mass of more than 2,300 acres of federal and state-protected forests, providing important connectivity for animals. The landowner’s commitment to land conservation exemplifies the many ways in which protecting our crucial forested lands benefits our communities and ensures the future of sensitive ecosystems. By choosing to protect this land, he has augmented the beauty of our local landscape and taken a crucial step toward securing indispensable resources such as clean water and fresh air for future generations. His decision to protect his land through conservation will have a lasting impact and profoundly improve the ecological health of our region for wildlife and people forever.

The wide tracts of unbroken woods of this land are but part of a wider forest that stretches for thousands of acres. The forest lies in a critical constriction point between northern and southern Appalachian forests, and contains plant species from both. A wide variety of hardwoods – red oak, sugar maple, black birch, and tulip tree, along with many others – have been seen on the property, providing rich habitat for many mammal, reptile, amphibian, and bird species. These are prime foraging grounds for threatened native bats such as the Indiana Bat and the Northern Long-Eared Bat. A half-mile of Gardner Hollow Brook runs through the hills and woods as well, providing critical drinking water to the Green Haven Correctional Facility. The property overlies a bedrock of heavily metamorphosed Walloomsac Formation phyllite, schist, and metagrawacke formed some 460 million years ago, which are the remnants of the ancient tectonic upheaval that thrust up the Taconic Mountains in eastern Dutchess County, and are responsible for the steep slopes and ledges found here.

The protection of this property was made possible in part by funding from the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation’s Forest Conservation Easement Land Trust Grants, the Appalachian Trail Conservancy’s Wild East Action Fund, and Scenic Hudson.

Since 1985, the DLC has been honored to partner with hundreds of landowners to conserve nearly 48,000 acres of our beloved countryside and crucial natural resources. The commitment of so many to preserving and stewarding the world around us is inspiring and a reason for us all to celebrate the powerful spirit of land conservation in Dutchess County and the Hudson Valley.