Once the land is protected, our Stewardship team undertakes the very deliberate and time-consuming process of assessing and incorporating the new land into an overall management plan for our preserves. It is no small task to look after over 8,000 acres of forested land – and those acres continue to grow with the success of our land protection efforts. We constantly balance the needs of the natural habitat with the demands of humans.
Visitors fall in love with the beauty of our preserves as they travel our trails, glens, and streams 365 days a year. Places like Tucquan Glen & Pyfer, Ferncliff, Fishing Creek, and Shenks Ferry are flooded with people and parking lots that are filled to capacity.
With these challenges a new vision for stewardship has emerged! We must invest in infrastructure that allows visitors to explore our preserves without impacting our work to actively restore biodiverse habitats, water quality, and air cleaning ecosystems. When the balance between visitor readiness and habitat restoration is achieved, the Conservancy’s preserves have the power to inspire respect for nature and a passion for conservation.
