MMRG and the Forest Society Join up for Moose Mountain Guided Hike

Mike Speltz, Land Protection Specialist for the Society for the Protection of New Hampshire Forests, led a guided hike up the north side of Moose Mountain, in Brookfield, recently. This free event was presented by Moose Mountains Regional Greenways and the Forest Society and sponsored by Moose Mountain Recreation, LLC. Twenty seven people participated in the half day informative event. The first portion of the hike was a strenuous uphill climb gaining 900 feet of elevation in a little over a mile. Several stops were made along the way so that Mike Speltz could answer questions about the beech understory, mast years and life cycles of squirrels. The hike up provided views of Mt. Chocorua, Kingswood Lake and Lake Wentworth.

Participants experienced a first-hand look at a fantastic property that these two groups are working to conserve next to the Forest Society’s 2,325-acre Moose Mountain reservation. The half-day hike led to unique rocky ridge-pitch pine and dry conifer natural communities along the Moose Mountain ridge and all could view the broadleaf communities along the flanks of the surrounding mountains. The hikers also got a sense of the growing block of conserved land at the very top of New Hampshire’s coastal watershed. This proposed conservation project would continue the greenway formed by the Moose Mountain Reservation, the Ellis Hatch Wildlife Management Area and the Middleton Town Forest.

Founded in 1901, the Society for the Protection of New Hampshire Forests is the state’s oldest and largest non-profit land conservation organization. Supported by 10,000 families and businesses, the Forest Society’s mission is to perpetuate the state’s forests by promoting land conservation and sustainable forestry. For more information, visit www.forestsociety.org.

Moose Mountains Regional Greenways is a regional land conservation organization that works to conserve the most important natural areas of northern Strafford and southern Carroll Counties.