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Thank you for helping meet the goal to fund the MacNeil Family Forest Reservation project!
Inspired by the Farnsworth Hill project, the MacNeil family had a desire to protect their land, a 245 acre lot adjoining the newly protected parcels. Connecting conservation lands into large swaths of protected landscape is a major goal of the Forest Society and the opportunity presented by the MacNeils - to purchase this property, at significantly below market value, made a very important connection possible.
The land sits right next to the Forest Society’s Farnsworth Hill Reservation, Washington’s Town Forest, the Ashuelot River Headwaters Forest and the Long Pond Town Forest.
MacNeil Family Forest property, in yellow
On a larger scale, all of these properties lie between the 25,000 acres of protected lands surrounding Pillsbury/Sunapee state parks to the north and the 11,000-acre Andorra Forest to the south. The MacNeil parcel gets us 245 acres closer to connecting these regions into one conserved landscape – a refuge for wildlife and open lands for public recreation.
The MacNeil parcel is located above Millen Lake on one side and above the Ashuelot River on the other. Conserving this property will help protect the water quality of these nearby treasured resources.
One doesn’t have to walk far on the MacNeil land before seeing ample signs of moose, deer and bear. With its mix of hardwoods and softwoods, much of the land is the highest quality habitat in the state, designated as such in N.H. Fish and Game’s Wildlife Action Plan. The unmaintained Old Marlow Road, a long-ago main travel route to Washington, is a popular snowmobile trail in winter and a peaceful walking trail past many cellar holes and stone walls in warmer seasons. By buying the property, the Forest Society can guarantee that it will stay open for public recreation into the future.
MacNeil Family Forest old foundation
John Brighton played a key role in this project (as well as the Farnsworth Hill project). Without his steadfast attention and hard work this project would not have received the awareness and funding that made it successful. We give him special thanks for all his amazing efforts!
Thank you to all who helped meet the goal!
Together we protected this land for future generations!
Find out more about the Society to Protect New Hampshire Forests: forestsociety.org
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