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Reprinted with permission from New Hampshire Wildlife Journal, November-December 2008, www.WildNH.com.
In every corner of New Hampshire, people are at work protecting open land, improving habitat, educating communities about conservation and keeping land open for hunters and anglers. The N.H. Fish and Game Commission’s award of excellence program was created to recognize outstanding conservation efforts in support of the N.H. Fish and Game Department’s mission. It brings into focus a range of conservation activity that bodes well for the future of wild New Hampshire. This year’s winners included Cynthia Wyatt.
CONSERVATION LEGACY
Cynthia Wyatt of Milton Mills, N.H., is carrying on a legacy begun by her father, Carl Siemon. Carl would be proud. Wyatt has been instrumental in keeping thousands of acres of land open to hunting, fishing and other forms of outdoor recreation through her contributions to Moose Mountain Regional Greenways, along with the Carl Siemon Family Trust and the Branch Hill Farm. In recognition of this work, Wyatt received the Ellis Hatch Award, the Commission’s highest honor.
“Ms. Wyatt exemplifies the legacy of Ellis Hatch, a long-term advocate of the outdoor life,” said Fish and Game Commission Chair Robert Phillipson. Wyatt is a founding member of and presently co-chairs the board of the Moose Mountain Regional Greenways and has worked to conserve 2,200 acres on Moose Mountain, which coincidentally abuts the Ellis Hatch Wildlife Management Unit owned by Fish and Game. Another 3,000 conservation acres form the “Siemon Access,” of which Wyatt is the director and which is open to the public for hunting, fishing and other recreation.
In 2006, through the Moose Mountain Regional Greenways, Wyatt helped secure
197 acres of land along the Mad River in Farmington, providing
2,700 feet of river frontage managed by Fish and Game. Wyatt
also has been instrumental in securing 116 acres along the
Union Meadows in Wakefield for conservation, allowing sportsmen
and women a quality fishery. She has been involved in the
Salmon Falls Headwater project to protect 300 acres in the
upper reaches of the Salmon Falls River, a large portion of
which Fish and Game will manage as a fishery. The Siemon Family
Trust agreed to donate 375 acres of property along Jones Brook
to Fish and Game as part of the match for the Salmon Falls
Headwater Project. This land is also part of the Siemon Access.
The Siemon Family Trust’s 3000-acre Branch Hill Farm
includes miles of multi–use trails and borders Jones
Brook and the Salmon Falls and Branch rivers. Wyatt has hosted
many outdoor education events at her farm, including nature
walks and other conservation learning opportunities –
such as the yearly Branch River Paddle and the Woods, Water
and Wildlife Festival.
Wyatt’s activities build on her father’s
years of conservation work. She established the Moose Mountain
Regional Greenways, which today is a strong advocacy group
for protecting networks of public and private land in the
region of Brookfield, Wakefield, Middleton, Milton, Farmington
and New Durham. She said, “My father was certain that the
Greenways would help realize his vision of corridors of protected
lands providing, in his words, ‘an oasis of forests, fields,
wildlife, recreation, clean water and air. Perhaps these protected
lands will inspire others to find ways to protect their lands
– to keep New Hampshire, New Hampshire.”
In nominating Wyatt for the award, Conservation Officer Mark Hensel summed it up: “The State of New Hampshire, Fish and Game and all sportsmen owe Wyatt a debt of gratitude for her work and contributions.”
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