FSM Blog and News

Advancing Forest Protection Efforts at Reed Forest with Apple and The Conservation Fund

November 15, 2016 By FSM

On November 14 Apple and The Conservation Fund announced the donation of a 32,400-acre conservation easement at Reed Forest to Forest Society of Maine. With support from Apple, the Fund also donated an endowment to Forest Society of Maine to ensure the easement will be monitored and enforced forever. These are important steps in our collective effort to ensure the long-term protection of working forests.

Reed Forest conserved lands — Photo by Jerry Monkman, EcoPhotography.

Located along the Mattawamkeag River in Aroostook County, Reed Forest adds to more than a million acres of nearby conserved lands and interconnected forest habit that extend beyond the U.S. border into Canada. Maine’s forests provide important habitat for species such as Atlantic salmon, bald eagle, northern goshawk, and Canada lynx.

This conservation easement ensures that the forest will become a healthy, sustainable working forest. Keeping these forests intact provides connectivity to other conserved and managed lands within the region. The easement protects the forests’ bogs, wetlands, rivers, streams, and other aquatic habitat as well as its wildlife and plant communities. It also allows for low-intensity outdoor recreation.

The Conservation Fund worked closely with its local conservation partners to identify the most qualified and experienced easement holder for Reed Forest. Forest Society of Maine was selected because it manages conservation easements across more than one million acres of sustainable working forests in Maine, and maintains an important focus on the conservation of Maine’s North Woods.

Forest Society of Maine is honored to receive and hold the conservation easement at Reed Forest to help ensure its permanent protection. Apple and The Conservation Fund are demonstrating genuine leadership that will help working forests remain intact for Maine’s communities and environment.

Reed Forest Map

Read more about the project from:
Bangor Daily News
Apple Newsroom
The Conservation Fund

What Does Autumn Mean for Woodland Dwellers?

October 25, 2016 By FSM

As temperatures dip and the nights grow longer, trees aren’t the only ones preparing for colder months. Forest dwelling animals throughout Maine are storing food, eating extra calories, or flying south before snow arrives.

Photo by Chris Bosak A Common Loon swims in Long Island Sound in Darien on Thanksgiving Day (Nov. 27), 2014. — A Common Loon swims in Long Island Sound on Thanksgiving Day 2014. Photo by Chris Bosak.

Loons fly to the coast for the winter to find open water, particularly the ocean, and juvenile loons may travel along the coast as far as Florida or the Gulf of Mexico. Did you know that loons have different plumage during the winter? In the summer they sport their iconic black-and-white patterns, but in the winter they molt and regrow feathers in less eye-catching shades of gray. Many neotropical migrants, birds that nest in North America but spend the colder months in South America, have left their summer breeding grounds in Maine’s forest for their winter habitat, making the woods a quieter place.

Others woodland creatures hibernate, and not just the mammals that readily come to mind like bears or skunks. Many amphibians hibernate or become dormant too. Some hibernate underwater or find protected nooks and crannies, while others like wood frogs actually produce antifreeze to protect their vital organs.

The frosty mornings also mean that some of Maine’s residents, fondly known as snow birds, are preparing to return to warmer climates. For people who enjoy fishing, this time of year means that open water fishing season is coming to an end, but many fishermen and women look forward to ice fishing once lakes and ponds freeze over. Hunting season has now begun and even dogs who spend time in the woods are sporting their blaze orange. Safety first of course!

Destination Gulf Hagas – Pleasant River, Then and Now

October 24, 2016 By FSM

Adapted from FSM’s Spring 2016 Newsletter

Over the broken back of Saddleback Mountain lies Silver Lake, far from city habitation, hemmed in by mountains and thick, black woods that crowd close to the water’s edge. Here one may sojourn on its bank for long, contented days and quiet restful nights without number and forget the noisy, work-a-day world beyond the blue rim of the mountains.” From Vacation Days by Pauline Green, 1926 Brownville H. S. Reflector

Silver Lake and its surroundings have remained largely unchanged since Pauline wrote these words close to 100 years ago. The Forest Society of Maine (FSM) is working with two landowners to keep it unchanged by conserving 18,000 acres around Silver Lake, the West Branch of the Pleasant River, and the high elevation streams that feed them. When completed, the Gulf Hagas – Pleasant River Initiative will conserve productive forestland, four mountain peaks, a free-flowing river, wetlands, and important wildlife habitat. These lands also tie together key amenities of importance to regional recreation and tourism, including the Appalachian Trail (A.T.) and a popular access point for the A.T., Katahdin Iron Works (KIW) State Historic Site, Gulf Hagas (a National Natural Landmark), and numerous campsites and other hiking trails.

The Gulf Hagas – Pleasant River region has a long history of forestry and recreation going hand-in-hand. When driving along the Katahdin Iron Works Road you can see remnants of the historic Iron Works, which at one point employed 400 people. Opened in 1843, KIW was supplied with ore from nearby Ore Mountain. The ore was transported by horses and other draft animals roughly one mile to the furnace, where it was melted into large blocks. It was then transported by wagons to Bangor to be shipped.

Katahdin Iron Works was an extensive operation that included a blast furnace and at least 16 charcoal kilns. These were fed each year with thousands of cords of wood cut from the surrounding forest by hundreds of men and their teams of horses and oxen. Many KIW employees and their families lived near the current historic site. During its heyday the village held upwards of 100 homes, a small school, a blacksmith shop, a store, and two nearby boarding houses. Katahdin Iron Works saw several owners during the short time it operated before closing in 1890.

In the 1880s a rail line was established to Silver Lake, and with it came a new wave of visitors. The landscape had many natural features which made it a popular destination. The three-story Silver Lake Hotel could accommodate between 75 and 100 people. The hotel drew guests from across the country and was marketed for its natural surroundings and the restorative effects of its fresh air. Boasting a “grand combination of lake, valley, mountain and forest scenery” the area became renowned for fishing, hunting, boating, and reliable guides. The hotel operated until 1913 when it burned to the ground and was never rebuilt.

Today more than 10,000 people pass through this area each year. They pursue many of the same activities in the same surroundings as have generations before them. FSM, through the Gulf Hagas-Pleasant River Initiative, is working to ensure these forests stay as forests – undeveloped and productive – and that access remains available for future generations. For more information or a copy of FSM’s spring newsletter contact Karin Tilberg, FSM Deputy Director at Karin@fsmaine.org.

Sources:
Sawtelle, William. Katahdin Iron Works and Gulf Hagas: Before and Beyond. 1993.

Maine Department of Conservation, Bureau of Parks and Lands. Katahdin Iron Works brochure.

Max McCormack receives Austin H. Wilkins Forest Stewardship Award

September 21, 2016 By FSM

Congratulations to Max McCormack for receiving the 2016 Austin H. Wilkins Award for outstanding contributions to forestry in Maine.

Watch the video from WABI TV5 News.

The Austin H. Wilkins Award recognizes those that stand above their peers to further forestry, forests, or forestland conservation in the State of Maine. For more than six decades Max, a University of Maine professor emeritus, has contributed to the stewardship of Maine forests through innovative research, education, outreach, and his willingness to share his knowledge and expertise. We’re proud to have Max as a member of FSM’s advisory council.

Read the official press release.

30 Years, A Million Acres

July 26, 2016 By FSM

**Excerpt from Forest View, FSM’s biannual newsletter, Spring 2015 edition**

How remarkable that the Forest Society of Maine (FSM) is celebrating not one, but two milestones: our 30 year anniversary and having helped conserve a million acres! From day one, FSM’s focus has been on the woods and waters of Maine’s North Woods, the largest remaining block of forestland east of the Rocky Mountains. But FSM is also about people —people who care about the future of this incredible expanse of forest.

FSM arose in 1984 from a need, a vision, and a bold idea. The need was that of the Coburn family who after a century as landowners faced the sale of their forestlands. They wanted the mountains, forests, hiking and canoe trails, and ecological gems around Attean Pond to be maintained into the future. The vision was that productively managed forests and conservation could go hand-in-hand, sustaining ecological, economic, recreational, scenic, and cultural values. The bold idea was creating an organization with the unique mission of conserving those many values. With the help of the Society for the Protection of New Hampshire’s Forests, FSM was established to hold 20,000 acres of forests, mountains, rivers, and lakes. The Attean project included what was then the largest conservation easement ever undertaken and one of the first to conserve forests for habitat, timber, scenic vistas, and public recreation.

By 1994 a century of relative stability in ownership and management of Maine’s North Woods began to change. Leaders at Maine Coast Heritage Trust, Maine Tree Foundation, and Trust for Public Land came together to evaluate the need for a new program specifically focused on conserving the economic and environmental values of Maine’s forestlands. They spoke with landowners, land conservation professionals, ecologists, foresters, mill owners, hikers, hunters, anglers, guides, scientists, and community leaders. They also conducted a review of forestland conservation programs across the United States to find a relevant model for Maine. Their findings laid the groundwork for the restructuring of FSM into a staffed, Maine-based, fully independent, and self-sustaining organization dedicated to filling the role of the land trust for Maine’s North Woods. Alan Hutchinson, FSM’s founding executive director, was hired in 1997 and a steady stream of important projects emerged beginning with the 20,000-acre Nicatous Lake project and followed shortly thereafter by the 329,000-acre West Branch project.

While we’ve spent much of the last year reflecting on our progress, we have also been looking ahead to the next 30 years. We have met with hundreds of FSM supporters and friends across the state. We learned there is continued need for FSM, our inclusive conservation approach, and our focus on large working forest landscapes. As a result Forest Society of Maine remains committed to its mission ensuring that the integrity and productivity of Maine’s North Woods will endure.