Mohonk Preserve was honored to receive The David R. Brower Conservation Award for commitment to preserving mountain regions from the American Alpine Club at their Annual Benefit Gala.
Photo: Mohonk Preserve Board Chair Russ Clune accepting the David R. Brower Conservation award by Jim Aikman
A new endowment is established in memory and honor of Bob Larsen, Mohonk Preserve’s cultural historian. The Bob Larsen Cultural Heritage Endowment Fund will ensure cultural history preservation and land protection work will continue at Mohonk Preserve. The fund will also support programs to enable the public to learn more about the cultural history of the Preserve.
Photo: Bob Larsen by G. Steve Jordan
Originally founded as the Mohonk Preserve Trust in 1963, Mohonk Preserve has been protecting the Shawangunk Mountain region for six decades. Staff and board members gathered to raise a glass at the Visitor Center on Monday, February 27, 2023 in celebration of Mohonk Preserve’s 60th anniversary. Director of Research Emeritus Paul Huth recounted the origin story of the trust and noted the remarkable conservation legacy the Preserve will serve for future generations.
Photo: Mohonk Preserve logo
Significant increases in climbing in recent years have necessitated extra steps for the preservation of climbing areas to avoid environmental damage. With support from the American Alpine Club Cornerstone Conservation Grant and the Waterman Fund Grant, the Preserve is scaling up conservation with low-impact climbing. Through new signage and programming, we are explaining and encouraging the use of low-impact climbing practices, such as our new anchor stations and access routes. Collaborating with the climbing community, we continue to explore new ways to recreate responsibly and deepen our relationship with nature.
Photo: Climber by Stephen D. Stewart-Hill
Mohonk Preserve Director of Research Emeritus Paul Huth is the recipient of the Preserve’s Long View Conservation Award at the organization’s 25th Anniversary Benefit Auction on Saturday, Sept. 17, 2022.
In addition to the Long View Conservation Award, President and CEO Kevin Case announced the establishment of the Paul Huth Endowment Fund to recognize his contributions to environmental research and education and support the Preserve’s conservation programs and Daniel Smiley Research Center. “We’re very excited to be able to honor Paul in this way and thanks to many generous supporters, build a stronger financial foundation for our conservation science efforts for generations to come,” Kevin noted.
Photo: Mohonk Preserve Director of Research Emeritus Paul Huth Accepting the Long View Conservation Award during the 25th Annual Benefit Auction by Andrea MacScott
Kate O’Connor joins the Conservation Programs team as our Applied Forest Ecologist – a new position focused on developing and implementing climate-adaptive forest management plans. Working together with Conservation Programs staff, the goal of this position is to create a plan to help declining hemlock stands transition to a healthy and biodiverse future forest that preserves, to the extent possible, the ecosystem services formerly provided by hemlock.
Photo: Community Science Coordinator Penny Adler-Colvin (L) and Applied Forest Ecologist Kate O’Connor (R) setting up a Lindgren funnel traps to catch the Southern pine beetle by Julie Gundersen
The Visitor Experience team is committed to maintaining the critical balance between recreation and conservation, while promoting low-impact, Leave No Trace principles for all visitors.
Photo: Patrol Ranger Alan Kline greeting visitors at a trailhead booth by Andrew Bajardi
Over 400 riders participated in the first Shawangunk Grit, a 50.4 mile or 23.3 mile gravel ride on the Shawangunk Ridge to benefit Mohonk Preserve. The course begins at the Ulster County Fairgrounds and continues through the Testimonial Gateway Trailhead on Preserve and Mohonk Mountain House carriage roads and the River-to-Ridge Trail. The race takes its name from Shawangunk Conglomerate, also known as Shawangunk Grit, which is sedimentary conglomerate and sandstone, with a small amount of shale.
In 2020, the Preserve’s Conservation Science and Land Protection programs joined to become the Conservation Programs department, under the leadership of Director of Conservation Programs Julia Solomon. This integration enhances both our climate and natural history research, including community science programs, and our land protection and management work, including ongoing work with landowners to protect high priority properties. Working together, the conservation professionals in these programs take a comprehensive approach to deepening our connections and commitments to nature and our communities.
Photo: Conservation Programs staff on the trail by Leo Vatkin
Longtime Preserver members James Silbert and Elizabeth Horton made the decision to leave a conservation legacy by donating approximately 24 acres of property near Millbrook Ridge. Working together with committed conservationists like Liz and Jim, the Preserve is able to continue to protect fragile habitats and scenic viewsheds to leave a conservation legacy that will last for generations, fulfilling our promise of saving the land for life.
Photo: Shawangunk Ridge by Michael Neil O’Donnell